1956 Top Ten: Honky-Tonk Man (#9)

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Going back 70 years is sometimes a gamble, given that some people don’t remember songs from 70 weeks ago. Thankfully, this one has been covered enough to keep it in people’s memories. Let’s celebrate the start of a career cut tragically short. #9: Honky-Tonk Man - Johnny Horton I remember a “Wiley’s Dictionary” in the old comic strip B.C. that had the word honky tonk in it. The description? “The sound made by hitting a white guy over the head.” Although Johnny Horton had been making a name for himself around the Shreveport, Louisiana/Louisiana Hayride scene for years, this was his first national single. Just over four and a half years later he would have a Grammy award, a #1 song (“The Battle of New Orleans”)…and, sadly, a fatal car wreck. You can hear the “confusion” of the blending of genres in this song so brilliantly. Is it country? Absolutely. Is it rockabilly? You bet. Is it a terrific song? Oh yeah!!! Dwight Yoakam covered this in the 1990s. I like Dwight (I mean, he’s a Kentuckian, so I’m obligated ), but if you’re going to give me one version of this song to take on a road trip, it’s going to be this one. Honky Tonk Man Written by Johnny Horton, Tillman Franks, and Howard Hausey Recorded by Johnny Horton Released as a single, 1956 I’ve got plenty of company: