Hank Williams - I Saw the Light
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"I Saw the Light" written by Hank Williams
performed by The Rosinators
Paul Castle, acoustic guitar, bass guitar, vocals;
Fliss Premru, fiddle, vocals; Will Sneyd, fiddle, vocals
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"I Saw the Light ...One of the real highlights of the album"
UKmusicsearch - see full review here
The Rosinators on the Leftfield Stage, Glastonbury Festival, 2005
"When American roots music deejays rave about bluegrass passion, Cajun verve
and country-gospel authenticity, you know that The Rosinators are the real deal.
From deep in the heart of Balham Alligator territory, the London-based trio have
added their own stamp to the American old time tradition so convincingly that most
of their radio airplay comes from US stations. Formed in 2001, they blazed out of
the traps with dynamic three-part vocal harmonies and fiery twin-fiddle attacks
driven by crackin' guitar picking."
[Acoustic Music Centre - Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Aug 2005]
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Lyrics
"I Saw the Light" by Hank Williams
1. I wandered so aimless, life filled with sin
I wouldn't let my Dear Saviour in
Then Jesus came like a stranger in the night
Praise the Lord I saw the light
Chorus -
I saw the light, I saw the light
No more darkness, no more night
Now I'm so happy, no sorrow in sight
Praise the Lord, I saw the light
2. Just like a blind man I wandered along
Worries and fears I claimed for my own
Then like the blind man that God gave back his sight
Praise the Lord - I saw the light
Chorus -
I saw the light, I saw the light
No more darkness, no more night
Now I'm so happy, no sorrow in sight
Praise the Lord, I saw the light
3. I was a fool to wander and stray
Straight is the gate and narrow the way
Now I have traded the wrong for the right
Praise the Lord, I saw the light
Chorus -
I saw the light, I saw the light
No more darkness, no more night
Now I'm so happy, no sorrow in sight
Praise the Lord, I saw the light.
(Recorded in 1947; first release on single MGM 10271 in September 1948)
Song History
The Smithsonian Magazine (January 2003) - Honky-Tonk Poet
Extract from a tribute to Hank Williams by Geoff Boucher
"Hank Williams' music was the sound of Saturday night staggering into Sunday morning,
a lonesome shuffle between the roadhouse bar stool and the church pew. He learned how
to perform for a crowd and drink by himself in the "blood buckets" - rough Alabama
honky-tonks - but the Bible he loved as a boy is where he got his rhythms. On the radio
shows that would make him famous, in fact, Williams always performed at least one
hymn, and the spirituals he wrote, such as the mesmerizing "I Saw the Light," are often
overlooked. [read the full tribute here]
Extract from the sing365.com Hank Williams biography
"When Hank was in tenth grade, he dropped out of school to write and play music full
time. He put together a band called "The Drifting Cowboys" and played country music
with a touch of the blues mixed in. Lily was the manager of the band and would drive
them to concerts in south Alabama. Hank signed on with Montgomery's local radio
station, WSFA, in hopes to gain popularity, when he was only nineteen. One night on
the way home from a concert, Hank was looking for a landmark that would let him
know they were close to home and he saw the radio tower that was in Montgomery
and began writing the hit song "I Saw the Light".This song seems to simply be
based on Hank finding a landmark that would tell him he is close to home."
Alabama Public Radio
Extract from Hank Williams 50th Anniversary (aired 1/1/03)
Dr. Guy Bailey grew up in Montgomery’s working-class Chisholm neighborhood, at
a time when Hank Williams was becoming the best known of a score of Montgomery’s
country musicians. Hank and his band had a reputation for living the rowdy life they
sang about.
Hank Williams, like many of his listeners, had come to town from a poor rural setting.
He was born Hiram Williams on Sept 17, 1923 in the lumbering community of Mt Olive
West, Alabama. Times were hard and became worse with the onset of the Depression
and his father’s admission to a VA Hospital. His mother, Lillie, moved Hank and his
sister Irene into Georgiana. There, Hank came under the influence of Rufus Payne, a
black guitarist known as Tee-Tot, who played on the streets. In 1951, Hank told the
Montgomery Advertiser that Rufus Payne had given him “all the music training I ever
had…” Sacred music was also an important influence—though as Guy Bailey notes,
Hank’s song “I Saw the Light” may have been written about the lights at Montgomery’s
airport.
Extract from the CMT.com column - Nashville Skyline
"I Saw the Light" -- A Country Music Beacon?
The Saga of One Classic Country Song
by Chet Flippo
[see full article here]
"Country gospel is genuine currency of the realm, a timeless message that transfers
seamlessly from generation to generation.
Williams himself, who was the original country star who set the pattern for sinning
on Saturday night and seeking redemption on Sunday morning, seemingly looked
into the face of eternity with the lyrics of "I Saw the Light."
He wrote it in 1948: I wandered so aimless, my life filled with sin/I wouldn't let my
dear savior in/Then Jesus came like a stranger in the night/Praise the Lord, I saw
the light.
The melody, ironically, is identical to that of the Chuck Wagon Gang's 1935 country
gospel song "He Set Me Free." Melodies back then -- like now -- were fluid vehicles
to be liberally borrowed from. Williams -- who granted virtually no interviews in his
life -- never talked about the circumstances of writing that song. But his mother,
Lillian, after his death, said the idea stemmed from an evening early in his career.
She explained, "We was drivin' back from doin' a show in Georgiana [Alabama],
and I was drivin' and Hank had his head in my lap, and he said, 'Oh, Mamma, I'm
tired, so tired, but I know we're almost home because I saw the light.'" The light
he mentioned was from the beacon at the airport.
Toward the end of his life, Williams was so drunk or drugged one night in San
Diego that he stumbled off stage after finishing only two songs in the first show
of a two-show evening gig. Minnie Pearl and the show promoter's wife drove
him around town to try to sober him up enough to do the second show. They
tried to get him to sing along with them to revive him. He sang only one verse
of "I Saw the Light" before stopping. "Minnie," Williams said, "I don't see no
light. There ain't no light."
After Williams died on his way to a Dec. 31, 1952, concert in Charleston, W.Va.,
and a New Years' Day show on Jan. 1, 1953, in Canton, Ohio, his Drifting
Cowboys band went ahead and did the show at the Canton Memorial Auditorium.
To open the show, a spotlight was shone on the curtain after the crowd was told
that Hank Williams had died. His band, assembled unseen behind the curtain,
sang "I Saw the Light."
Hank's funeral was held on Jan. 4 at Montgomery's Municipal Auditorium, where
the crowd was so great that loudspeakers had to be set up outside for the overflow
crowd out on the street. More than 20,000 people attended. In the service, Roy
Acuff sang "I Saw the Light" over Hank's body lying in its casket. He was joined
by Bill Monroe, Little Jimmie Dickens, Carl Smith, Red Foley, Eddie Hill, Lew
Childre and Webb Pierce. Dickens began weeping and was inconsolable. "I Saw
the Light" was Hank Williams' ultimate show-closer.
You can go and gaze today upon Williams' huge tombstone in the Oakwood
Cemetery Annex in Montgomery, Ala. Carved across the front of that big white
marble monolith are a giant sunbeam bursting through clouds and the words
"Praise the Lord, I Saw the Light."
© Chet Flippo, Editorial Director, CMT/CMT.com
Links
Turn Back the Years: The Essential Hank Williams Collection
(Lost Highway Records) - three-CD box set released October 11, 2005
Listen to sound samples
Categorized into three CDs - Drinkin,' lovin' and prayin'. Featuring 60 original
recordings, newly digitally remastered-there are 20 songs on each CD titled
"Honky-Tonkin'," "Cold, Cold Heart" and "I Saw The Light".
TURN BACK THE YEARS illuminates the forces that shaped and ruled the
short and troubled life of a man whose songs are part of Americana and continue
to be reinterpreted by artists of nearly every genre.
Co-produced and annotated by Grammy winning country music authority
Colin Escott, TURN BACK THE YEARS is marked by a 24-page deluxe
booklet including an essay and rare photos. Spanning Williams' entire
recording career of 1946-1952, the set shines a focused light on one of the most
important figures in the history of American music. By the time Williams was
declared dead on New Year's Day 1953, he had redefined country music and
laid the foundation for rock 'n' roll. He was 29 years old and had recorded just
88 songs under his own name. But half of them were hits and he was as big a
star as anyone who had ever stepped on a stage.
The "Honky Tonkin'" CD illustrates Hank's rooting in black music and his
affinity for what would be called "rock 'n' roll attitude." In fact, Move It On Over,
his first hit, had a blues melody that later became Rock Around The Clock. He
epitomized blunt honesty (I'm A Long Gone Daddy), carnal desire (Hey, Good
Lookin,' Howlin' At The Moon, Rootie Tootie, Settin' The Woods On Fire)
and rowdiness (There's A Tear In My Beer, Too Many Parties And Too Many
Pals). The latter was issued under his Luke The Drifter guise, as was I've Been
Down That Road Before and Ramblin' Man. Heard too are Honky Tonkin',
Wearin' Out Your Walkin' Shoes, Rockin' Chair Money, Lost Highway, (I Heard
That) Lonesome Whistle, Honky Tonk Blues and more.
The "Cold, Cold Heart" CD contains the classic Lovesick Blues which was a
huge hit in 1949. Today, two other songs are perhaps more popular--Your
Cheatin' Heart and I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry. Other gems include the CD's
title track Cold, Cold Heart, Please Make Up Your Mind, A Mansion On The Hill,
My Love For You (Has Turned To Hate), You Win Again and Ernest Tubb's I'm
Free At Last, First Year Blues and Wedding Bells.
The "I Saw The Light" CD boasts a few of his earliest recordings--Calling You,
Wealth Won't Save Your Soul and I Saw The Light, among the most popular of
latter-day hymns. Hank's gospel streak yielded The Pale Horse And His Rider,
I'll Have A New Body (I'll Have A New Life), Where The Soul Of Man Never
Dies, When God Dips His Love In My Heart, Neath A Cold Gray Tomb of
Stone, Alone and Forsaken, House Of Gold, Angel Of Death and other songs.
Official Hank Williams Web Site
http://www.hankwilliams.com
The Official Hank Williams Museum
118 Commerce Street Montgomery, AL 36104
http://www.xaust.com/hank/homepage.htm
Hank Williams Song Lyrics
sing365.com
Cowpie Song Lyrics
Hank Williams Books
@
1. Hank Williams : The Biography -- by Colin Escott, et al;
Paperback - Buy new: $15.95 -- Used & new from: $7.29
2. Hank Williams Complete -- by Hank Williams;
Paperback - Buy new: $13.57 -- Used & new from: $11.18
3. Hank Williams: Snapshots from the Lost Highway -- by Colin Escott, Kira Florita;
Paperback - Buy new: $14.00 -- Used & new from: $6.85
4. Sing a Sad Song: The Life of Hank Williams - by Roger M., Williams;
Paperback - Buy new: $14.67 -- Used & new from: $5.95
5. The Hank Williams Songbook -- by Hank Williams, Fred Sokolow;
Paperback (Rate it) Buy new: $10.17 -- Used & new from: $9.45
6. Your Cheating Heart: A Biography of Hank Williams -- by Chet Flippo;
Paperback (Rate it) Buy new: $16.84
7. Hank Williams, So Lonesome -- by George William Koon, Bill Koon;
Paperback (Rate it) Buy new: $12.24 -- Used & new from: $7.99
- or search 'books' & Hank Williams @
Hank Williams Quotes
"If a song can't be written in 20 minutes, it ain't worth writing."
more quotes here
Note: If you have any comments about this page or can suggest additional
links or stories to add to this research, please write to Paul Castle
Tell a friend about this page
Lyrics/Song history research on other recordings by The Rosinators
Old Joe Clark
Orange Blossom Special
One Kind Favour
In My Time of Dyin'
Blue Ridge Mountain Blues
Joli Blon
Little Sadie
Stay
Connected - Join the mailing list
Choose a **Free Download** by The Rosinators
Choose a **Free Download** by The Rosinators
The Rosinators - or your choice from their current available recordings.
Reverbnation's FanReach is a secure, fan communication tool for musicians.
Your email address will be for the exclusive use of The Rosinators and will not be
sold, rented, or disclosed to others without your consent (see our Privacy Policy)
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