Hank Williams’ Great Grandson Trying to Fill ‘Big Boots’ of Family Musical Legacy

Hank Williams IV and The Lost Highway Band captivated the audience Thursday night at the Fayette County Fair.

Ricky Fitzgerald, who goes by the stage name Hank Williams IV, says he’s the great grandson of the legendary Hank Sr.

“My granddad was the first-born son of Hank Williams Sr.,” Fitzgerald said in an interview with the Record Thursday at the Fair. “He was born in 1943, and Hank Sr. named him Butch. I’m his grandson. He started me off playing all the Hank Sr. records.”

Fitzgerald’s claim to the family name is a fascinating story in its own right, and you can learn more about it from this episode of the Country History X Podcast: https:// www.savingcountrymusic. com/the-lost-bloodline-ofhank- williams-the-search-forhank- iv-country-history-x/.

Judging from his performance Thursday night at the Fair, it’s hard to doubt his claim. The 25-year-old looks and sounds like the man he claims to be.

“It’s a stage name,” Fitzgerald said. “It’s a name I was given growing up in Montgomery, Alabama. I used to work at a local grocery store and everybody knew I sang Hank Williams. A little bit later I learned I was kin to Hank WIlliams.

Fitzgerald, who released his debut EP “Honky Tonk Habit” on Aug. 11, recently moved to Smithville.

“The music is way better down here,” he said. “There ain’t much work in Alabama. I came down to Texas and the music is much better. All they want to listen to (in Alabama) is new country. Steel guitar isn’t really heard in Alabama. I don’t care too much for the new country music. It isn’t my cup of tea. What you’re hearing tonight is what I was raised on and what I want to do the rest of my life.”

Fitzgerald’s set list Thursday night included many songs from the Hank Williams Sr. catalog along with a few from Hank Williams Jr. including a crowd-rousing version “Mr. Weatherman.” Fitzgerald, who bears a striking resemblance to Hank Jr., can sing a lot like Bocephus, too..

“I get that a lot,” he said. “People say, ‘You sound like Senior but you look like Junior,’ Then other people turn around and say, ‘Na, you sound like Junior. You’re a spitting image of him.’ He’s not my dad, he’s my uncle, actually.”

Fitzgerald said hopes to put his mark on country music and bring the genre back to it’s roots.

“I’ve been doing this since I was 5 years old,” he said. “I’ve been all up and down the east coast. It’s been something I always wanted to do in life. My main goal is to put the country back in country music. The stuff you hear on the radio this day and time ain’t country music.

“It’s big boots to fill – I want to fulfill the legacy that Hank Sr. left behind,” he added. “I want to pick that legacy up and run with it.”

Fitzgerald’s EP Honky Tonk Habit is available on Apple Music and most other streaming services.