Ten Acts Who Belong in the Country Hall of Fame: Hank Locklin (#5)

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In addition to looking at favorite songs by the Eagles and Talking Heads I'm also going through a list of ten acts I think are way overdue for induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame. I'm starting the top five with this great act. #5: Hank Locklin And why not? His 1960 hit "Please Help Me, I'm Falling" was only the fourth biggest hit of the entire decade of the 1960s. Born in Florida in 1918, Lawrence Hankins Locklin didn't start his career as a country music superstar until he was 30, about the time most acts today are considered "washed up." His first #1 hit was "Let Me Be the One," in 1953. But it was that massive hit in 1960, which was #1 for fourteen weeks, that elevated Locklin above the "average" country star. His other massive hit, "Send Me the Pillow That You Dream On," was a top five country and pop hit, later covered by the Browns in country and Johnny Tillotson in pop. Locklin was also a mainstay on the Grand Ole Opry. When he died in 2009 at the age of 91 he was the oldest member of the Opry at that time. Hank Locklin entertained fans in seven decades, selling over 11 million records in the process (and remember, that's a country singer!). He absolutely deserves induction. Hank Locklin Born: February 15, 1918, McLellan, Florida Died: March 8, 2009, Brewton, Alabama (natural causes) Claim to fame: singer, songwriter Best work: "Please Help Me, I'm Falling" "Send Me the Pillow That You Dream On" "Blue Grass Skirt" "Let Me Be the One" Hank Locklin's best-known song: