Hank Thompson

Induction Year: 1997

Birth Name: Henry William Thompson

Birth Date: 09-03-1925

Place of Birth: Waco, Texas

Death Date: 11-06-2007

Place of Death: Keller, Texas

Hank Thompson was a honky-tonk and Western swing star whose career spanned seven decades. He wrote many of his own country hits, including Top 5 singles "Humpty Dumpty Heart," "The New Green Light" and "Waiting in the Lobby of Your Heart," as well as the #1 country hit "Rub-a-Dub-Dub."

Born Henry William Thompson in 1925, Thompson learned to play guitar as a child and was broadcasting as "Hank the Hired Hand" on radio station WACO while still in high school. He served in the U.S. Navy and studied engineering in college after leaving the military. He signed his first recording contract with Globe Records in 1946, creating a regional stir in Texas with "Whoa Sailor." With cowboy star Tex Ritter's help, Thompson soon signed with major label Capitol Records, scoring his first national hit in 1948 with "Humpty Dumpty Heart."

Thompson's successes were aided by his commanding baritone voice, the precise phrasing of a trained broadcaster and the tight, eight-to-10-piece country band that played on most of his records. Thompson also benefitted from a deft songwriting style that often employed both humor and heartbreak.

In 1952, Thompson's "The Wild Side of Life" — a song he didn't write — led to an "answer song" from Kitty Wells called "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky-Tonk Angels." Wells' #1 country recording made her a star. Thompson's own #1 hit with "Wild Side of Life" was just one of 30 hits he lobbed into the country Top 10 during his distinguished career.

In 1961, Thompson and his Brazos Valley Boys Band recorded a live album, At the Golden Nugget, in a Las Vegas casino showroom, creating the first significant live album in country music history. Thompson also appeared frequently on television variety shows, and even designed his own lighting and sound systems. His run with Capitol ended in 1963, and he went on to record hit singles for the Warner Brothers, Dot, ABC and MCA labels. Thompson, whose hard-charging brand of country music was an influence on artists including Waylon Jennings, Dwight Yoakam and George Strait, was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1989. His 1997 Hank Thompson and Friends album featured George Jones, Vince Gill, Wells and others, and his 2000 album, Seven Decades on HighTone Records, spotlighted his distinct style and his longevity.

Read More

Read Less

Song Catalog

"A Six Pack to Go"

(written with Dick Hart, Johnny Lowe)

Hank Thompson & His Brazos Valley Boys1960 #10 country
Leon Russell1973 
George Strait1997 
 

"Anybody's Girl"

(written with Billy Gray)

Hank Thompson & His Brazos Valley Boys1959 #13 country
 

"Breakin' in Another Heart"

(written with Billy Gray, Dorothy Thompson)

Hank Thompson & His Brazos Valley Boys1955 #7 country
 

"Breakin' the Rules"

(written with Al Blasingame, Billy Gray)

Hank Thompson & His Brazos Valley Boys1954 #10 country
 

"Don't Take It out on Me "

Hank Thompson & His Brazos Valley Boys1955 #5 country
 

"Hangover Tavern"

(written with Johnny Lowe)

Hank Thompson & His Brazos Valley Boys1961 #12 country
 

"Honky-Tonk Girl"

(written with Chuck Harding)

Hank Thompson & His Brazos Valley Boys1954 #9 country

"Humpty Dumpty Heart"

Hank Thompson & His Brazos Valley Boys1948 #2 country
 

"If Lovin' You Is Wrong"

(written with Billy Gray)

Hank Thompson & His Brazos Valley Boys1955 #12 country
 

"Most of All"

Hank Thompson & His Brazos Valley Boys1955 #6 country
 

"On Tap, in the Can, or in the Bottle"

(written with Dick Hart)

Hank Thompson & His Brazos Valley Boys1968 #7 country

"Rub-a-Dub-Dub"

Hank Thompson & His Brazos Valley Boys1953 #1 country
 

"She's Just a Whole Lot Like You"

Hank Thompson & His Brazos Valley Boys1960 #14 country, #99 pop

"Smokey the Bar"

(written with Will Penix)

Hank Thompson & His Brazos Valley Boys1968 #5 country
 

"The Blackboard of My Heart"

(written with Lyle Gaston)

Hank Thompson & His Brazos Valley Boys1956 #4 country

"The New Green Light"

Hank Thompson & His Brazos Valley Boys1954 #3 country
 

"Waiting in the Lobby of Your Heart"

(written with Billy Gray)

Hank Thompson & His Brazos Valley Boys1952 #3 country
 

"We've Gone Too Far"

(written with Billy Gray)

Hank Thompson & His Brazos Valley Boys1954 #10 country
 

"Whoa, Sailor"

Hank Thompson1946 
Hank Thompson & His Brazos Valley Boys1949 #6 country
 

"Yesterday's Girl"

(written with Billy Gray)

Hank Thompson & His Brazos Valley Boys1953 #8 country

Other Media

Hank Thompson

Induction Year: 1997