1952 song by Hank Williams and Fred Rose
| Field | Value |
|---|
| name | Kaw-Liga |
| cover | Kaw-liga.jpg |
| caption | Sheet music cover |
| published | Milene Music |
| type | single |
| artist | Hank Williams with his Drifting Cowboys |
| B-side | Your Cheatin' Heart |
| released | |
| recorded | |
| studio | Castle Studio, Nashville, Tennessee |
| genre | Country, honky-tonk, country blues |
| length | |
| label | MGM K11416 |
| writer | Hank Williams, Fred Rose |
| prev_title | I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive |
| prev_year | 1952 |
| next_title | Take These Chains From My Heart |
| next_year | 1953 |
| B-side = Your Cheatin' Heart
"Kaw-Liga" ( ) is a country music song written by Hank Williams and Fred Rose.
Background
Hank Williams was from Alabama, and would vacation on Lake Martin. The Lake Martin area was once the home of Kowaliga, a former unincorporated town and a historically African-American community that was active from roughly 1890 until the mid-1920s. When the song was written, it was originally Kowaliga, but Fred Rose changed the spelling to "Kaw Liga". In 1953, "Kowaliga Day" was proclaimed by Alexander City Mayor Joe Robinson.
"Kaw-Liga" is one of just a handful of songs that Williams wrote with Fred Rose, who produced his records and published his songs through his company Acuff-Rose. Rose often "doctored" the songs Williams composed, making suggestions and revisions, with biographer Roger M. Williams (no known relation) noting that Rose's contribution to Williams' songs was probably craftsmanship, whereas Williams' was genius. Roy Acuff later recalled:
Content
The song tells the story of a wooden Indian, Kaw-Liga, who falls in love with another sculpture in the form of an Indian maid in an antique store, but never tells her how he feels:
Because his heart was made of knotty pine.}}
Meanwhile, the Indian maid waits for Kaw-Liga to signal his affection for her, but because of his stubbornness, Kaw-Liga's love continues to be unrequited. Hank Williams, the narrator/singer of the song, laments:
Poor ol' Kaw-liga, he don't know what he missed,
Is it any wonder that his face is red?
Kaw-liga, that poor ol' wooden head.}}
The song ends with the Indian maid being purchased and taken away, leaving Kaw-Liga alone:
As lonely as can be,
And wishes he was still an ol' pine tree.}}
Recording and release
The song was recorded during Williams' final recording session on September 23, 1952, at Castle Studio in Nashville, Tennessee. The flipside, "Your Cheatin' Heart, remained at number one on the country chart for six weeks.{{cite book
| author-link=Steve Propes
A demonstration version of Williams singing "Kaw-Liga" with just his guitar, likely recorded in 1951, is also available. On the recording, Williams misplays a chord and can be heard muttering "shit" before starting the song again.
The song is featured in two Wes Anderson films: Moonrise Kingdom and Asteroid City.
Other versions
- Marty Robbins included it as the opening track of his self-titled 1958 LP.
- Johnny and the Hurricanes released an instrumental version of the song in 1963.
- The hillbilly comedy duo Homer and Jethro included a parody entitled "Poor Ol’ Koo-liger" on their 1963 album The Humorous Side of Country Music. This album also included a parody of "Your Cheatin’ Heart", which they transformed into "Your Clobbered Heart".
- Del Shannon recorded it for his 1964 album Del Shannon Sings Hank Williams.
- Charley Pride took a live version of the song to number three on the country singles chart in 1969.
- Loretta Lynn recorded it in 1969.
- Roy Orbison recorded it for his tribute album Hank Williams the Roy Orbison Way in 1970.
- Doc Watson recorded a version for his 1974 album Two Days in November.
- Hank Williams's son, Hank Williams Jr., recorded a cover, which peaked at number 12 on the Billboard country singles chart in the summer of 1980. Williams Jr. also performed the song on a television special with Johnny Cash.
- Avant-garde band the Residents recorded the song for their 1986 album Stars & Hank Forever: The American Composers Series, replacing its original backing music with the bassline of Michael Jackson's Billie Jean. This may have been a reference to Williams' wife, who was named Billie Jean.
- Roy Clark and Joe Pass recorded a two-guitar instrumental version for their 1994 album Roy Clark and Joe Pass Play Hank Williams.
- M. H. Benders used it for a poem his 2022 book Gedichten om te Lezen in het Donker.
References
- "U.S. Copyright Office Virtual Card Catalog 1946-1954".
- "Hank Williams 78rpm Issues".
- Snoddy, Glen. (1972). "Nashville, The Recording Center". Record World.
- Huntley, Harold. (1953-03-20). ""Kowaliga Day" Program is 'Success'". The Alexander City Outlook.
- Carlton, Bob. (2013-04-23). "Kowaliga Restaurant, a Lake Martin landmark that dates back to the early 1950s, gets ready to reopen".
- Morris, Bilal G.. (2022-02-14). "The Black Town Under Lake Martin: A Father & Son's Dream Of Greatness".
- Schafer, Elizabeth D.. (2002-11-01). "Lake Martin, Alabama's Crown Jewel". Arcadia Publishing.
- Whitburn, Joel. (2004). "The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition". Record Research.
- (23 June 2023). "Wes Anderson's Asteroid City Soundtrack Out from ABKCO Digitally Today".