Hank Williams III, Nashville, Tennessee, 1998

Hank Williams III, Nashville, Tennessee, 1998.

On August 17, 1952, Hank Williams was jailed overnight in Alexander City, Alabama for drunken and disorderly behavior.

46 years, 2 months and 10 days later in 1998 I paid homage to that moment whilst photographing his grandson Shelton Williams, aka Hank III, in the stench-y alley behind the Ryman Auditorium. The “jail door” behind him in reality is the iron gate on the back entrance of the Ryman that innumerable country music legends walked out of between 1943 and 1974. Where were they going? Quite often just a few steps across the alley and into the backdoor of Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge (originally known as “Mom’s” until Tootsie Bess bought it in 1960) to get a quick tipple before they had to get back on the Grand Ole Opry stage which was held in front of a packed audience as well as beamed live via 50,000 watts of power over 650-AM, WSM radio, heard across the eastern US and into Canada and Mexico.
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Archival pigment print on baryta 315 gsm, acid-free, 100% cotton-fiber paper.

Signed on recto by photographer Jim Herrington.

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All photos and text © 2025 Jim Herrington

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