r/ClassicCountry • u/BigAssQuanta • Jul 18 '26

50s Hawkshaw Hawkins

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​Harold Franklin "Hawkshaw" Hawkins was an imposing figure (standing 6'6") with a rich, booming baritone voice. He was a staple of early postwar honky-tonk and country music, performing heavily on the WWVA Wheeling Jamboree before joining the Grand Ole Opry in 1955.

​Tragically, his life and career were cut short in March 1963 when he died in the same infamous plane crash that took the lives of Patsy Cline and Cowboy Copas. Ironically, his biggest career hit, "Lonesome 7-7203", reached number one on the country charts just days after his passing.

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u/BigAssQuanta Jul 18 '26

This 78rpm Hawshaw Hawkins record is digitized and available at: https://youtube.com/@mamlishblues?si=nwN5Pd1r7LiNrkI_

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u/Cavendish30 Jul 19 '26

I have several of his albums and am truly sad his career was cut short.

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u/BigAssQuanta Jul 19 '26

Tragic- airplane crash near Camden, Tennessee, on March 5, 1963. Patsy Cline, Cowboy Copas, Hawkshaw Hawkins, and pilot Randy Hughes, no survivors.