Artist: Hank Williams

There are some singers whose impact simply cannot be measured, and the late, great Hank Williams was absolutely one of those singers. The legend of his tragically short life has been told and re-told. But, the most important part of that story is the incredible influence he had in the musical lives of so many country and rock 'n roll artists to come. As proof, Hank was the first inductee into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1961 and was honored with an induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1987. He wrote over 100 songs, spanning across the genres of country, blues, gospel (recorded under the pseudonym Luke the Drifter), and what would later become rockabilly.

A good choice if you enjoy: music that broke new ground and paved the way for a number of genres; music that transports you to another time and place; the convincing manner in which a 20-something sang songs about extreme loneliness, unbearable heartache, and seasoned world-weariness; hits your grandparents might have danced to in a honky tonk (I know mine did).

Tracks to try: Wedding Bells, Lost Highway, I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry, Long Gone Lonesome Blues, Cold, Cold Heart, I Can't Help It (If I'm Still In Love With You), Hey, Good Lookin', Ramblin' Man, Honky Tonk Blues, You Win Again, I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive, Your Cheatin' Heart, Take These Chains From My Heart, I Saw the Light

Listen here.