Former Drifting Cowboys member dies
Monday, October 26, 2009 – Steel guitarist Robert D. Norred, one-time member of Hank Williams' backing band for a short period in the late 1940s, died Sunday, Oct. 25.
Norred was born Jan. 16, 1919 in Sylacauga, Ala. Norred was a band member of the Drifting Cowboys from late 1947 until early 1948, playing on Wiliams' radio show on WSFA in Montgomery, Ala. along with Joe Penny, Lum York, and Winston "Red" Todd.
Norred worked in the cotton mills of Talladega, Ala. For seven yearse and played music on the side. For 10 years, he played with Hal Howard and the Pearl River Boys. He later was as a member of Mac Sanders' Troubadores and was heard on WRBL Radio in Birmingham, Ala. Norred eventually opened his own TV sales and service business.
More news for Hank Williams
- 11/25/19: Hank radio recordings, book coming
- 06/08/12: Hank Williams film, discussion panel comes to New York
- 08/04/11: Hank Sr. songs see light of day
- 07/27/11: More Hank recordings coming
- 02/13/11: Beatles take Grammy over Hank Williams
- 12/07/10: Hank, Willie, Wills receive Grammy hall honors
- 11/03/10: Williams' Family Tradition continues
- 04/12/10: Hank Williams receives Pulitzer Prize
CD reviews for Hank Williams
In a career that spanned a mere six years - a minuscule amount of time compared to those who are today celebrating anniversaries of 40, 50 or even 60 years of more - Hank Williams established himself as an abiding influence on all those who followed, a man whose music is as relevant and revered today as it was when it was originally recorded. Indeed, what Williams accomplished in that scant amount of time still resonates nearly 70 years later.
There's been an abundance of compilations, ...
"The Lost Notebooks of Hank Williams" is a great story before you even start playing the music. Williams, according to the story, used to write down his lyric ideas in notebooks. When he died, there were four notebooks of unreleased or unperformed songs. Over the years, the notebooks remained in the possession of Williams' publishers Acuff-Rose and few knew of them. One who did, however, was longtime Nashville executive Mary Martin, who shepherded this project to its eventual light-of-day. ...
After his death in 1953, Hank Williams, became less a performer than a post-mortem brand name wherein his basic personality as an artist was increasingly downplayed and diminished. This remarkably enjoyable three-CD set, drawn from warmly remastered acetates - featuring occasional surface noise - of the old Mother's Best radio show, showcases much of that nearly lost essence.
Supported by his regular collaborators the Drifting Cowboys, Williams brings surprising drive to live renditions his ...
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