Audrey Mae Sheppard Williams (February 28, 1923 – November 4, 1975) was an

America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

n musician known for being the first wife of

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

singer and songwriter

Hank Williams Hiram "Hank" Williams (September 17, 1923 – January 1, 1953) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician. An early pioneer of country music, he is regarded as one of the most significant and influential musicians of the 20th century. W ...

, the mother of Hank Williams Jr., and the grandmother of Hank Williams III and Holly Williams.

Early life and marriages

Audrey Sheppard was born in Banks, Alabama, to Artie Mae (née Harden; 1903–1976) and Charles "Shelton" Sheppard. She grew up on a farm owned and worked by her parents. Sheppard married her first husband, James Erskine Guy, when she was a high-school senior. On August 13, 1941, their daughter Lycrecia was born. Sheppard and Guy separated soon after. Sheppard met

in Andalusia, Alabama, in 1943. Despite the objections of Hank's mother and bandmates, Sheppard was added to the band as an occasional singer and upright bass player. In December 1944, the two were married 10 days after the finalization of Sheppard's divorce from Guy. The ceremony was performed by a justice of the peace at the officiant's gas station in Andalusia.

Music career

Soon after their wedding, Williams took over as her husband's unofficial manager, a position previously held by his mother, Lillie Williams. The couple visited

Nashville Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

with the intent of meeting songwriter and

music publisher A music publisher is a type of publisher that specializes in distributing music. Music publishers originally published sheet music. When copyright became legally protected, music publishers began to play a role in the management of the intellectu ...

Fred Rose of Acuff-Rose Publishing. The meeting resulted in Hank Williams recording two singles for Sterling Records: “Never Again” in December 1946 and “Honky Tonkin’” in February 1947. Both proved successful and a contract was signed with

MGM Records MGM Records was a record label founded by the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film studio in 1946 for the purpose of releasing soundtrack recordings (later LP albums) of their musical films. It transitioned into a pop music label that continued into the ...

in 1947, with Fred Rose becoming the singer's official manager and record producer. Williams, however, began to push for her own spot in the limelight. Country-music biographer Colin Escott wrote, "Her duets with Hank were like an extension of their married life in that she fought him for dominance on every note." Having recorded several duets with her husband, Audrey was featured on the recordings of "Lost on the River", "I Heard My Mother Praying for Me", "Dear Brother", "Jesus Remembered Me", "The Pale Horse and His Rider", "Jesus Died for Me", "Help Me Understand", "Something Got a Hold of Me", "I Want to Live and Love", and "Where the Soul of Man Never Dies".

Marriage difficulties and family

In early 1948, tension grew in the Williams marriage when Hank started to again abuse alcohol, a problem he brought with him to their marriage from the beginning. Williams left her husband: she gave him the choice of alcohol or her. They eventually reunited. On May 26, 1949, Williams gave birth to the couple's only child, Randall Hank Williams, in

Shreveport, Louisiana Shreveport ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is the List of municipalities in Louisiana, third-most populous city in Louisiana after New Orleans and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Baton Rouge. The bulk of Shreveport is in Caddo Parish, Lo ...

. When her husband expressed a desire to adopt Lycrecia, Williams refused, fearing that he would take her if they divorced. On December 31, 1951, after allegations of mutual infidelities and the resumption of her husband's health problems, Williams called from a hotel and told Hank to be out of their Tennessee house by the time she returned. Replying to her with a seemingly prophetic statement, Hank Williams stated, "Audrey, I won't live another year without you." In June 1952, the couple divorced. She was awarded the house, their son, and half of her ex-husband's future royalties on the condition that she never remarry. In 1953, months after Hank Sr.'s death, Williams paid his second wife, Billie Jean Jones, $30,000 to relinquish the title of "Hank Williams's Widow". Both women had been using the description professionally. Billie Jean agreed to Williams's terms.

Later life and death

Williams and her son Hank Jr. became estranged after he turned 18. She never remarried. She died of

congestive heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome caused by an impairment in the heart's ability to fill with and pump blood. Although symptoms vary based on which side of the heart is affected, HF typically pr ...

on November 4, 1975 at age 52.

Cultural references

Music

*Audrey is mentioned in the

Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American singer-songwriter. Most of his music contains themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially songs from the later stages of his career. ...

song: "The Night Hank Williams Came to Town." *Audrey is referenced in "Tangled Up Roses" by Shooter Jennings. *Audrey is referenced the Hank Williams Jr. song, "The Conversation" with

Waylon Jennings Waylon Arnold Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He is considered one of the pioneers of the Outlaw country, outlaw movement in country music. Jennings started playing ...

. *Audrey is referenced in the song “Everything She Ain’t” by Hailey Whitters in the line “Audrey to your Hank”. *Audrey is referenced in "Mrs. Hank Williams" by Fred Eaglesmith. * Audrey is referenced in “The Ride” by David Allen Coe.

Film depictions

* Susan Oliver played Audrey in the 1964 biopic '' Your Cheatin' Heart'' opposite George Hamilton as Hank. * Allyn Ann McLerie played Audrey in the 1983 television biopic '' Living Proof: The Hank Williams Jr. Story'' opposite Richard Thomas as Hank Williams, Jr. * Elizabeth Olsen played Williams in the 2015 biopic '' I Saw the Light'' opposite Tom Hiddleston.

Discography

Singles

External links

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Audrey 1923 births 1975 deaths American women country singers American country singer-songwriters People from Pike County, Alabama Country musicians from Alabama 20th-century American singer-songwriters Alcohol-related deaths in Tennessee Drug-related deaths in Tennessee 20th-century American women singers Singer-songwriters from Alabama Audrey