Garland Perry "Hank" Cochran (August 2, 1935 – July 15, 2010) was an American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

singer and songwriter. Starting during the 1960s, Cochran was a prolific songwriter in the genre, including major hits by

Patsy Cline Patsy is a given name often used as a diminutive of the feminine given name Patricia or sometimes the masculine name Patrick, or occasionally other names containing the syllable "Pat" (such as Cleopatra, Patience, Patrice, or Patricia). Among I ...

, Ray Price,

Eddy Arnold Richard Edward Arnold (May 15, 1918 – May 8, 2008) was an American country music singer who performed for six decades. He was a Nashville sound (country/popular music) innovator of the late 1950s, and scored 147 songs on the ''Billboard'' cou ...

, and others. Cochran was also a recording artist between 1962 and 1980, scoring seven times on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large adverti ...

'' country music charts, with his greatest solo success being the No. 20 "Sally Was a Good Old Girl." In 2014, he was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.

Biography

Hank Cochran was born August 2, 1935, in Isola, Mississippi, during the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

. By the time he turned three, Cochran already had pneumonia, whooping cough, measles, and mumps. The doctor feared he wouldn't survive to adulthood. His parents divorced when he was nine years old. He then moved with his father to

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mo ...

, and was placed in an

orphanage An orphanage is a residential institution, total institution or group home, devoted to the care of orphans and children who, for various reasons, cannot be cared for by their biological families. The parents may be deceased, absent, or a ...

. After running away twice, he then was sent to live with his grandparents, in

Greenville, Mississippi Greenville is a city in and the county seat of Washington County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 34,400 at the 2010 census. It is located in the area of historic cotton plantations and culture known as the Mississippi Delta. H ...

. His uncle Otis Cochran taught him to play the guitar as the pair

hitchhiked Hitchhiking (also known as thumbing, autostop or hitching) is a means of transportation that is gained by asking individuals, usually strangers, for a ride in their car or other vehicle. The ride is usually, but not always, free. Nomads have ...

from Mississippi to southeastern

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe, New Mexico, Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque, New Mexico, Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Albuquerque metropolitan area, Tiguex , Offi ...

to work in the

oilfield A petroleum reservoir or oil and gas reservoir is a subsurface accumulation of hydrocarbons contained in porous or fractured rock formations. Such reservoirs form when kerogen (ancient plant matter) is created in surrounding rock by the presenc ...

s.Watkins, Billy. – "Everybody wants to sing". – ''

The Clarion-Ledger ''The Clarion Ledger'' is an American daily newspaper in Jackson, Mississippi. It is the second-oldest company in the state of Mississippi, and is one of the few newspapers in the nation that continues to circulate statewide. It is an operating d ...

''. – August 6, 2003. After returning to Mississippi as a teenager, Cochran went to California and picked olives. While there, he formed The Cochran Brothers, a duo with unrelated

Eddie Cochran Ray Edward Cochran (; October 3, 1938 – April 17, 1960) was an American rock and roll musician. Cochran's songs, such as "Twenty Flight Rock", "Summertime Blues", "C'mon Everybody" and " Somethin' Else", captured teenage frustration and desire ...

. In 1960 at the age of 24, he hitchhiked for Hollywood, but ended up going to

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and th ...

, and teamed with

Harlan Howard Harlan Perry Howard (September 8, 1927 – March 3, 2002) was an American songwriter, principally in country music. In a career spanning six decades, Howard wrote many popular and enduring songs, recorded by a variety of different artists. C ...

to write the song " I Fall to Pieces". It became a major success for

(recorded November 16, 1960), reaching No. 1 on the Billboard country music charts and No. 12 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 (chart for all music categories). Cline also recorded Cochran's "

She's Got You "She's Got You" is a country song written by Hank Cochran and first recorded (in December 1961) and released (in 1962) as a single by Patsy Cline. Musically the song is an upbeat jazz-pop song with country overtones to support it. History Accord ...

" (recorded December 17, 1961, it was another major hit, No. 1 on the country charts and No. 14 on the Hot 100), and "Why Can't He Be You" (recorded September 5, 1962). In 1960, during a date at a movie theater, the film inspired him to compose a new song. He left the theater quickly, and by the time he got home fifteen minutes later, composed "

Make the World Go Away "Make the World Go Away'" is a country pop song composed by Hank Cochran. It has become a Top 40 popular success three times: for Timi Yuro (1963), Eddy Arnold (1965), and the brother-sister duo Donny and Marie Osmond (1975). The original ver ...

." Ray Price recorded the song, and it scored No. 2 on the Billboard country charts in 1963. The next year

, who recorded it in as a pop-oriented Nashville Sound arrangement, made the song his signature hit and one of the biggest sellers in country music history, scoring No. 1 on the country music charts, then in 1965 No. 6 on the overall Billboard Hot 100 charts (his highest rated song ever). Arnold also recorded the song " I Want to Go with You". Cochran wrote several successful songs sung by

Burl Ives Burl Icle Ivanhoe Ives (June 14, 1909 – April 14, 1995) was an American musician, actor, and author with a career that spanned more than six decades. Ives began his career as an itinerant singer and guitarist, eventually launching his own rad ...

A Little Bitty Tear "A Little Bitty Tear" is a song written by the American country songwriter Hank Cochran. It has been recorded by many musical acts, the first being American recording artist Burl Ives. It has since been recorded by others, including Wanda Jackson ...

", "

Funny Way of Laughin' "Funny Way of Laughin'" is a song written by Hank Cochran and performed by Burl Ives. It reached #3 on the U.S. adult contemporary chart, #9 on the U.S. country chart, #10 on the U.S. pop chart, and #29 on the UK Singles Chart in 1962. It was ...

", "The Same Old Hurt"). He also wrote songs for

George Strait George Harvey Strait Sr. (born May 18, 1952) is an American country music singer, songwriter, actor, and music producer. Strait is considered one of the most influential and popular recording artists of all time. In the 1980s, he was credited for ...

(" The Chair" with

Dean Dillon Dean Dillon (born Larry Dean Flynn; March 26, 1955) is an American country musician and songwriter. Between 1982 and 1993, he recorded six studio albums on various labels, and charted several singles on the ''Billboard'' country charts. Since 1 ...

and "

Ocean Front Property ''Ocean Front Property'' is the seventh studio album by American country music artist George Strait, released on January 12, 1987, by MCA Records. It is certified 2× Multi-platinum by the RIAA. It is the first album to debut at #1 on the Billboar ...

" with Dillon and Royce Porter),

Keith Whitley Jackie Keith Whitley (July 1, 1954 – May 9, 1989) was an American country music singer and songwriter. During his career, Whitley released only two albums but charted 12 singles on the ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' country charts, and 7 ...

Miami, My Amy "Miami, My Amy" is a song written by Dean Dillon, Hank Cochran and Royce Porter, and recorded by American country music artist Keith Whitley. It was released in January 1986 as the second single from the album '' L.A. to Miami''. The song reached ...

" also with Dillon and Porter),

Merle Haggard Merle Ronald Haggard (April 6, 1937 – April 6, 2016) was an American country music singer, songwriter, guitarist, and fiddler. Haggard was born in Oildale, California, toward the end of the Great Depression. His childhood was troubled a ...

("It's Not Love (But It's Not Bad)"), "Don't You Ever Get Tired (of Hurting Me)", a No. 1 scoring record for

Ronnie Milsap Ronnie Lee Milsap (born Ronald Lee Millsaps; January 16, 1943) is an American country music singer and pianist. He was one of country music's most popular and influential performers of the 1970s and 1980s. Nearly completely blind from birth, ...

, and

Mickey Gilley Mickey Leroy Gilley (March 9, 1936 – May 7, 2022) was an American country music singer and songwriter. Although he started out singing straight-up country and western material in the 1970s, he moved towards a more pop-friendly sound in the 19 ...

("That's All That Matters"). While working at publishing company Pamper Music, some evenings, he performed in a Nashville tavern named

Tootsie's Orchid Lounge Tootsie's Orchid Lounge is a honky-tonk bar located in Nashville, Tennessee behind the Ryman Auditorium, home in past years and occasionally in the present to the stage and radio show ''The Grand Ole Opry.'' Tootsie's has three stages that host ...

. While there, he noticed an amazing new talent. He encouraged management to contract the young songwriter,

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American country musician. The critical success of the album ''Shotgun Willie'' (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of ''Red Headed Stranger'' (1975) and ''Stardust'' (1978 ...

, giving Nelson a raise owed to him at the time. Two of his fondest memories were working with

Natalie Cole Natalie Maria Cole (February 6, 1950 – December 31, 2015) was an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She was the daughter of American singer and jazz pianist Nat King Cole. She rose to success in the mid-1970s as an R&B singer with the h ...

(among other artists) on a 2003 tribute album to Patsy Cline (''

Remembering Patsy Cline ''Remembering Patsy Cline'' is a tribute album to Patsy Cline. It was released on September 9, 2003 by MCA Records. The album peaked at number 1 on the ''Billboard'' Top Jazz Albums The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popula ...

''), because of his love for her father

Nat King Cole Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's music career began after he dropped out of school at the age of 15, and continued f ...

, and his collaboration with

Vern Gosdin Vernon Gosdin (August 5, 1934 – April 28, 2009) was an American country music singer. He had 19 top-10 solo hits on the country music charts from 1977 through 1990. Three of these hits went to Number One: "I Can Tell By the Way You Dance (You ...

for the 1988 album '' Chiseled in Stone'' (Gosdin's highest rated album at No. 7). In 2008, singer Lea Anne Creswell came to Cochran's home to choose songs for a new album, subsequently called ''Lea Anne Sings Hank Cochran and ...''.

Marriages

Cochran was married five times. His fourth wife was country music vocalist

Jeannie Seely Marilyn Jeanne Seely (born July 6, 1940) is an American country music singer, songwriter, and record producer. She also has several acting credits and published a book. Seely found success with the Grammy Award-winning hit " Don't Touch Me" (196 ...

. They were married twelve years and divorced in 1981. In 1982, he married his fifth wife Suzi and they were married until his death in 2010.

Death

Cochran had surgery for pancreatic cancer in July 2008. In April 2010, he had a second surgery to remove and repair a grapefruit sized aortic aneurysm. Cochran's health did not improve, and he died on July 15, 2010, at age 74.

Tributes

In October 2012, singer

Jamey Johnson Jamey Johnson (born July 14, 1975) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Signed to BNA Records in 2005, Johnson made his debut with his single " The Dollar", the title track to his 2006 album '' The Dollar''. He was dropped fro ...

released '' Living for a Song: A Tribute to Hank Cochran'', featuring his renditions of sixteen Cochran compositions.

Awards and honors

Awards and honors include: *1967: Walkway of Stars –

Country Music Association The Country Music Association (CMA) was founded in 1958 in Nashville, Tennessee. It originally consisted of 233 members and was the first trade organization formed to promote a music genre. The objectives of the organization are to guide and enha ...

*1974:

Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame was established in 1970 by the Nashville Songwriters Foundation, Inc. in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. A non-profit organization, its objective is to honor and preserve the songwriting legacy that is ...

*2003: Mississippi Music Hall of Fame *2014: Country Music Hall of Fame inductee

Artist recordings

Notable artists who have recorded Hank Cochran songs include:

Discography

Albums

Singles

References

*Oermann, Robert K. (1998). – "Hank Cochran". – ''The Encyclopedia of Country Music''. – Paul Kingsbury, Editor. – New York: Oxford University Press. – pp. 101–2. –

External links

Official website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cochran, Hank 1935 births 2010 deaths American male singer-songwriters American country singer-songwriters Deaths from cancer in Tennessee Deaths from pancreatic cancer People from Humphreys County, Mississippi People from Nashville, Tennessee Ekko Records artists Cash Records artists RCA Victor artists Liberty Records artists Monument Records artists Singer-songwriters from Tennessee Singer-songwriters from Mississippi Country Music Hall of Fame inductees Country musicians from Tennessee Country musicians from Mississippi