Hank Locklin

Locklin secured a contract with Four Star Records through his association with Pappy Daily. Daily brought him to the attention of Bill McCall of Four Star where he signed his first recording contract in 1949.[6] Also in 1949, Locklin joined the cast of the Louisiana Hayride in Shreveport, Louisiana.[8] He had his first major hit in 1949 with a self-penned single titled "The Same Sweet Girl".[4] The song reached the top 10 of the Billboard country singles chart, peaking at number eight.[9] Despite having a hit, Locklin did not see many royalties from its success. Because his recording contract allowed for McCall to gain all of the publishing rights, McCall also made all the money from its success. "I never made no money with him. My understanding was that he liked to go to Vegas. I guess Bill was just a guy who liked to take everything," Locklin recalled in 2001.[6]

Locklin's follow-up singles did not become hits, which caused further financial difficulties.[4] He even recorded the original version of his future hit "Send Me the Pillow You Dream On". Although it was not a hit, Locklin did recall the song getting a warm reception after he performed it live on a radio show.[6] By this time, McCall had arranged for Locklin's material to be leased to Decca Records, which was headed by Owen Bradley. With this partnership, he had his second major hit in 1953 titled "Let Me Be the One".[4] The single became his first to reach the number one position on the Billboard country chart. "Let Me Be the One" spent a total of three weeks at the country chart summit. His follow-up Four Star releases were unsuccessful.[9] Furthermore, Locklin still was receiving little royalties from his success with the label. In order for McCall to not claim them as his own, he started composing songs under his wife's name. Cuts such as "These Ruins Belong to You" were written under the pen name Willa. After an argument with McCall, he left Four Star Records.[8]

In 1955, Locklin switched to the larger RCA Records. Collaborating with producer Chet Atkins, Locklin developed a simpler musical style. His recordings often included heavy acoustic guitar and piano production.[4] These styles were individualized by that of The Nashville A-Team, a group of studio musicians that included Floyd Cramer and several others.[4][8] In 1956, he had his first hit with RCA titled "Why Baby Why". The single reached the top 10 of the Billboard Country & Western Records Most Played By Folk Disk Jockeys chart, becoming his first major hit in three years.[9] It was followed in 1957 by "Geisha Girl".[8] The song reached number five on the Billboard country chart,[9] and was his first to reach the pop chart, climbing to number 66.[10] The hit was included on his debut studio album Foreign Love. Marketed toward overseas servicemen, the record was one of several concept albums released by Locklin during his career.[8] In 1958, Locklin had major hits with "It's a Little More Like Heaven" and a remake of "Send Me the Pillow You Dream On".[9]

Locklin's singles over the next two years were unsuccessful.[9] In 1960, he was brought to the attention of a song composed by Hal Blair and Don Robertson. Both writers had the idea of writing a "cheating song" that centered around a man's conscience. Blair brought in elements from his own marital troubles to write the song. Their finished product was the tune "Please Help Me, I'm Falling". The song was first offered to Jim Reeves, who turned it down. Locklin believed it to be a hit and decided to cut it in the studio.[8] Released as a single in 1960, "Please Help Me, I'm Falling" reached number one on the Billboard country songs chart in May.[11] It spent a total of 14 weeks at the top of country charts.[5] It also became Locklin's biggest hit on the Billboard pop chart, reaching the number eight position in August 1960.[12] In the United Kingdom, the song reached the top 10 of the national charts as well.[13] "Please Help Me, I'm Falling" became the biggest hit of Locklin's career and his biggest-selling single.[9] The song's success led to an invitation to join the Grand Ole Opry, which he accepted in 1960. He remained with the program for 49 years.[14][15]

Locklin did not reach the top of the country charts again, but he continued having commercial success with RCA Victor. In 1961, he had three top 20 hits with "One Step Ahead of My Past", "From Here to There to You" and "You're the Reason".[9] In November 1961, the single "Happy Birthday to Me" (written by Bill Anderson) reached number seven on the Billboard country songs chart.[16] It was followed by "Happy Journey", which went to number 10 on the country singles list in February 1962.[17] An album of the same name followed in 1962, and it included the top 20 single "We're Gonna Go Fishin'".[18][19] The song also became a major hit in the United Kingdom.[13] His 1964 song "Followed Closely by My Teardrops" was his only major hit for several years.[20][9]

Locklin expanded his recording of concept albums during the 1960s. This began with a tribute effort to Roy Acuff titled A Tribute to Roy Acuff: The King of Country Music. It featured a collection of Acuff's best-known songs, including "Wabash Cannonball" and "Once More".[21] The album was reviewed positively by Billboard in 1962. Writers noted their appreciation for the fact that Locklin chose to sing Acuff's songs in his own style rather than emulate him.[22] In later years, Allmusic rated the album three out of five stars.[23] With an expanding fan base in Ireland, Locklin recorded 1963's Irish Songs, Country Style.[14] The following year, he recorded a studio album of Hank Williams' songs. Allmusic's Greg Adams rated it 2.5 out of 5 stars, calling Locklin "a good yodeler [who] seems to struggle a little."[24] Meanwhile, 1965's My Kind of Country Music fared better with critics. Reviewer Thom Owens gave the release 4.5 stars and praised his "gift for tear-jerking ballads and pure traditional country."[25] Locklin's 1966 studio release The Girls Get Prettier was his first to chart the Billboard Top Country Albums list, reaching number 26.[26]

In 1968, Locklin returned with his first top 10 hit in several years titled "The Country Hall of Fame".[4] Its corresponding studio effort of the same name was also successful, reaching number 20 on the country albums chart.[27] Allmusic gave it a warm response in its review, calling it "one of his best albums of the late '60s."[28] Following its release, Locklin saw declining radio success on the American country charts. He had his last top 40 single on the Billboard country songs survey was 1969's "Where the Blue of the Night Meets the Gold of the Day".[9] At the start of the early 1970s, he spent time touring and performing in Europe, where he became popular.[4] He was among country music's early artists to perform at military bases and clubs in Europe.[8] He also toured with producer Chet Atkins in Japan during the early 1970s.[4] Locklin remained with RCA Victor until 1974.[9] Among the highlights in his remaining RCA years was a collaborative record with Danny Davis and the Nashville Brass in 1970. It featured re-recordings of some his bigger hits.[29] His final album for the label was 1972's The Mayor of McLellan, Florida.[30]

Locklin in a trade ad for Billboard magazine, 1968

Following his departure from RCA Victor Records, Locklin recorded for various other labels, beginning with MGM Records.[4] In 1975, his self-titled studio album was released on the label and included a collection of 10 tracks. The record was produced by fellow country artist Mel Tillis.[31] Three singles were spawned from the album, but failed to become commercially successful.[9] He then moved to Plantation Records in 1977 where he recorded the studio record There Never Was a Time. It was produced by Shelby Singleton and featured 10 tracks of original material.[32] Four singles were spawned from the album, which were unsuccessful.[9] He also turned his attention to other opportunities during this period. In the 1970s, Locklin hosted a handful of television programs in Dallas, Texas and Houston, Texas. He also continued performing overseas, particularly in Ireland. He also remained an active performer on the Grand Ole Opry.[14][1] During this period, he was made the honorary mayor in his hometown of McLellan, Florida.[33] The honor was given to him after he was nicknamed the "Mayor of McLellan" by radio and television host Ralph Emery.[34]

Locklin's career began slowing after the 1970s. In the early 2000s, his son (Hank Adam Locklin) encouraged his father to return to the recording studio. In 2001, Locklin's first album in decades was released, titled Generations in Song. The project was produced by his son and featured session instrumentation from some of the original Nashville A-Team. It also featured collaborations with Vince Gill, Dolly Parton and others.[6][35] The album received positive reviews from writers and critics following its release. Bruce Eder of Allmusic gave it four stars and praised Locklin's voice: "His voice sounds at least three decades fresher than it has a right to, and the harmonizing and the playing are first-rate, along with the arrangements, which makes this more than an exercise in nostalgia."[36] No Depression also gave the album a warm response, calling its production to have "clean arrangements" that allow his "clear voice to shine through."[37] Ken Burke of Country Standard Time also gave the album a positive review. "The Florida-born tenor can boast not only that he clawed his way out of dire poverty, but built a musical legacy that he can share with his family," Burke wrote.[6]

In 2006, Locklin released his final album titled By the Grace of God: The Gospel Album. The album was a collection of gospel songs that featured collaborations with The Oak Ridge Boys and The Jordanaires.[14][38] The record was issued on Yell Records. It was reviewed favorably by Larry Stephens of Country Standard Time, who praised Locklin's youthful voice and songwriting effort.[39] Also in 2006, Locklin appeared on Country Pop Legends in which he performed "Send Me the Pillow That You Dream On", and "Please Help Me I'm Falling".[40] In his final years of performing, Locklin continued appearing at the Grand Ole Opry. In September 2007, he made his last appearance at the venue.[41]