Written by Alan Jackson and Don Sampson, this is an ode to country music legend Hank Williams, who fell ill on his way to a New Year's Eve performance and died the following day in 1953. In the song, Jackson is on his way to his own New Year's Eve show and makes a late-night visit to Williams' grave in Montgomery, Alabama, to pay his respects... only to bump into the singer's ghost.
The lyrics contain lines that are used in the Hank Williams song "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry," including "Of somewhere a midnight train slowly passes by, I can hear that whistle blowing; I'm so lonesome I could cry."
Hank Williams became a co-conspirator in Jackson's rebellion against the ACM Awards in 1994. It all started with Jackson showing up to the typically black tie event in a sleeveless Hank Williams T-shirt, claiming he thought it was perfect because who is more country than Hank Williams? Then, when he was told he had to perform his hit "Gone Country" to a pre-recorded track, he tipped his hat to the charade by telling his drummer to play without sticks. Jackson left unscathed by his antics and with an award for Top Male Vocalist.
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