Watch Hank Williams Jr. Sing “All My Rowdy Friends (Have Settled Down)” To All of His Settled Down Friends

Besides being known as the son of Hank Williams, Hank Williams Jr. is also known to be the hardest partying country musician of all time. Whether it be falling off a mountain or shooting a shotgun on stage, the man is crazy. Crazy in a good way that is, as Williams’ persona and outlaw attitude have amounted to some of the best country music ever made.

Though, like most lives of this nature, no one can sustain them forever. Well, that of course doesn’t apply to Hank Williams Jr. Rather, it applies to his friends Kris Kristofferson, Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, and George Jones. Williams took the opportunity to throw some shade at his watered-down buddies in his hilariously hit song, “All My Rowdy Friends (Have Settled Down).” However, the funniest part was when got the chance to sing it to their face.

Hank Williams Jr.’s Comedically Insulting Lyrics

Originally released in 1981, the song garnered Williams his fifth No. 1 hit on the country charts. Regardless, the song’s accolades are not what makes it hysterically marvelous. Instead, it’s Williams’ tongue-in-cheek humor and the comic insults of some of country music’s finest.

Lines attesting to this fact include old George Jones, I’m glad to see he’s finally getting straight /
And Waylon’s staying home and loving Jessi more these days. Furthermore, Williams also wrote, And Johnny Cash don’t act like he did back in ’68 / And Kris, he is a movie star, and he’s moved off to L.A.

In essence, the song aims to poke fun at how all of these formerly rowdy musicians have seemingly grown out of their debauchery. However, not Williams and this comes as no surprise given that he was the youngest of the bunch. In addition to Hank Williams Jr.’s humor, the song also shows the friendship all of the Outlaw musicians shared.

Performing To The Song’s Subjects

While making a television appearance, Williams busted out the song for all of the friends mentioned in the tune. Before he starts playing, he sarcastically says, “I was really blessed being around all of these songwriters and musicians I could steal from” and “I want to try and pay back a little bit to some of you guys.” The guys in question particularly include Kristofferson and Jennings.

Williams then breaks out the song and gets a laugh from every one of his friends surrounding him. Especially when he does impersonations of Johnny Cash and George Jones. The song and the performance are wholesome in the utmost way. Especially since most of the legends watching Hank Williams Jr. perform have now passed on.

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