Country music ‘storyteller’ Tom T. Hall dies at 85



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Tom T. Hall, singer, songwriter and member of the Country Music Hall of Famer, died Friday, August 20 at his home in Franklin, Tennessee. He was 85 years old.

A prolific songwriter known for his storytelling prowess, Hall was once nicknamed “The Storyteller” by his contemporary Tex Ritter. He was responsible for hit songs such as “That’s How I Got to Memphis”, “I Love” and Jeannie C. Riley’s 1968 pop country crossover “Harper Valley PTA”, which was later adapted for film and television. television.

Born May 25, 1936 in Olive Hill, Kentucky, Hall played in a band and worked as a DJ before joining the military in 1957. He was working on radio when a publisher heard his song “DJ for a Day” and brought it to Jimmy C. Newman, who helped Hall score his first top 10. He went on to write several number one songs, including “Hello Vietnam”, “(Old Dogs, Children and) Watermelon Wine”, “I Love”, “Country Is” and “Faster Horses (The Cowboy and the Poet). “

Hall signed with Mercury Records in 1967 and joined the Grand Ole Opry in 1971. He was nominated for six Grammys, winning the Best Album award in 1972 for Tom T. Hall’s Greatest Hits. He was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1978, the Kentucky Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2002, and the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2008.

His penchant for storytelling is not limited to songs. Hall published five books during his lifetime, drawn from memoirs (1979 Storyteller’s Nashville) to the user manual (years 1976 How I write songs, why you can).

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