The family tradition he's talking about is his father, country music legend Hank Williams Senior. He had a very good reputation on stage, but behind the scenes he was a massive alcoholic and prescription drug addict (originally from back pain caused by a birth defect) who died at the age of 29 of a heart attack. And when Jr. became more popular but openly smoked pot and was quite a partier, the country music community acted super shocked and judgy. His response here is basically, ya'll didn't judge my daddy as long as he kept it secret, and a lot of you partied with him, but I'm not going to do that. I'm not going to pretend I'm a goodie two-shoes on stage and hide who I really am.
@@caseymcknight2858Outlaw country was already well underway and a thing for quite a few years before this song was released. Not that ole Bocephus wasn't on board with it!
Both Hanks went/go hard. Men of their times though musically and both genre bending compared to their peers. It’s really crazy just how influential this father son duo are in country music when Hank Sr died so so young
I once heard an interview from HWJ. When asked what he felt most accomplished about and the interviewer rattled off a bunch of awards and stats. HWJ said he felt most proud about being able to keep his 40+ person team employed and seeing their families grow with him over the years. Being able to provide a continuous career for his team members.
I think this says the most about HWJ. He was most concerned about the people and families who depended on him for their livlihood. I've heard that from a minister and my daughter who both said something like, If I say one sentence wrong, it could destroy the lives of my entire team. He was committed to people. And his songs show that commitment.
Saw bones was an old time term for a doctor. It comes from pre- antibotics Era and references how doctors would frequently amputate rather than try to fix an arm or leg.
Been to several Hank Jr concerts over the years and some crowd inserts have been incorporated into the chorus over the years. After Hank sings They ask me why do you drink, the crowd chants "to get drunk" then Hank why do you roll smoke crowd chants "to get stoned". Why must you live out the songs that you wrote, the crowd chants "to get laid " Can't tell you who started it but in the 90s I remember hearing it the first time at a concert in Oklahoma and ever since then I've heard it at different venues and I can't listen to the song without chanting it myself😂.
This song was out a long time ago. Hank Jr. is in his 70s now. When he talks about a sawbones, he is referring to a fall off of a mountain in 1973. It almost killed him, and he is referring to the doctor who treated him for months. He has lived through a lot of tragedy and heartache like his dad, Hank Sr.
The whole reason he wears sunglasses all the time and grew a beard was to cover up the scarring from when he fell off that mountain and bashed his face in so severely that they had to Do complete reconstructive surgery on his face.
His father had spina bifida, and was hooked on booze and painkillers. He and a driver left Knoxville, headed to Charleston, NC. He died in the backseat, before they got there, drug related. Actually, it was 1975 when he changed his looks and singing, after he recovered from a 500ft. fall down a Montana mountain. His face looked like a Frankenstein's monster mask, the reason for the beard, hat, and dark glasses.
Reference to being disowned::: He started out singing his father's music and style, but he wasn't happy doing so. He changed his style. Song says 1973 but it was actually 1975, while hiking a Mt he tripped and fell 500 ft down the Mt. Most of the damage was to his face, that's why the beard and glasses to hide the scars. He had many surgeries and 2 years rehab to be able to sing again. The surgeon said he was worse than the men he saw in Vietnam.
His severely fractured skull saved his life, or else the brain swelling from the head injury would have killed him. His manager's teenaged son had to hold Hank's head together with a t-shirt while his dad ran to get help.
This song is especially fun when played at a dance club. This song has a n audience participation element, that I participated in even during this video. It goes something like this. Hank Jr- Why do you drink? Audience- To get drunk H J- Why do you roll smoke? A- To get stoned HJ- Why must you live out the songs that you wrote? A- To get laid The third verse of this line has a mashup that I can’t remember right now, but it’s a good time.
You should really look into his extremely interesting back story, you will be extremely amazed by it , ....he is vet lucky to be alive for many reasons, ..from a suicide attempt ,he mentioned in the song , to falling off a mountain before this song came out, and have major reconstruction surgery to his head , face eyes jaw teeth , ECT,
Fun fact about Sawbones (which as many have already pointed out is an old term for a surgeon): in Star Trek "Bones" is Captain Kirk's nickname for Dr. McCoy. For some reason the '09 Trek movie gave it a completely different origin ("wife left me nothing but my bones in the divorce") but originally it was because he was the ship's surgeon - their "sawbones"
This version of the song is an early one. Over many years it has become more streamlined as far as the opening vocal parts and also become not only unavoidable for the artist but also inspired a third Hank to write music.
Hank Jr is an outdoorsman and is an avid hunter and fisherman. A "slick" in deer hunter lingo is a female deer. So when he says "some old slick trying to give me some friction" he's talking about a woman trying to give him a hard time...
It's a Family Tradition indeed.... Hank Williams Senior suggestions: I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry; Hey Good Lookin'; Jambalaya on the Bayou; Your Cheatin' Heart; and Lost Highway. Hank Williams III suggestions: Country Heroes; Mississippi Mud; and Damn Right Devil Proud
sawbones is a term for a doctor and slick is just a guy and friction is grief or a hard time, so it's a guy just getting on his case, giving him a hard time, or giving him some grief.
The best lyrics to this song are the bar lyrics "Hank, why do you drink?" - To get drunk - "Hank, why do you roll smoke?" - To get high - "Why must you live out the songs that you wrote?" - TO GET LAID -
Ok country to modern translation: saw bones, old term for doctor because of all the amputations they use to do. With the line about a slick the original line was trying to give him directions meaning a guy in a in a suit like a manager trying to tell him how to perform
Slick was a popular derogatory term that evolved from the marriage City Slicke and Drugstore Cowboy, which resulted in two offspring; Slickr and Greaser. A Slick in a,Honky Tonk giving Hank Williams Jr. friction translates to a Hipster explaining Country Music to Dolly Parton at Dollywood.
Sawbones was a slang term for a doctor. It goes back to the Civil War when all doctors did was sawed off people's limbs to keep them alive. They didn't have time to do any real surgery they simply removed The Gunshot Lim so they could hurry up and get to the next injured Soldier and remove their limbs.
So here’s something you need to add to s(nag along with Ole Bocephus. During the chorus he sings, “Why do you drink?” You answer “To get drunk” then he says, “Why do you roll smokes?” You answer “To get stoned.” Then “Why just you live out the songs that you wrote?” You answer, “To get laid.” It adds so much more enjoyment and fun to the song.
Hank is talking about a Smooth talker trying to tell him to pack up and move along because they're trying to close the bar, or he's being loud and rowdy and trying to throw him out.
Sawbones being an old school term for doctor and I always thought that was why Dr McCoy on zstar Trek was called "Bones", but apparently it was because the character was divorced and his wife goy everything. He told Kirk how she left him with nothing but his bones. (Or maybe it was a bit of both, I'm not really certain)
Well back then a slick, ... would be a old timer who combs his hair back with oil, like like Vaseline,or vitalis, , .... because hank has Long hair, the old timers gave them crap, calling them hippies, Second it could be a person who is a slick talker like a record producer, trying to get him to sign,. But ,i would go with the first one , because he said , giving me friction, problems,
Slick is referring to a city person. Hence the term city slicker. Giving friction would be giving him grief about him being country, because the city person thinks they're better than the country person. Sawbones is an old term for a doctor from the Civil War because of so many amputations.,
I think 1973 was when he fell off ajax mt. His girlfriend had left him and he got drunk and went hiking with a freind and slipped thats why he weres avaitor glasses and keeps his beard long because the fall scared his face
During the Civil War or the War Between the States........ depending where you stand 🤠🤔 Doctors didn't have time or enough medicine to treat the wounds properly??? Amputation and Speed was necessary for survival!!! 🤕 Dr Saw Bones 😱😞..... 🤠✌️👋👋
Some old slick refers to some local boy looking to prove who is the netter man, trying to impress the Ladies. And yes, a fight was what Old Slick was trying to provoke.
Hank Williams Jr. became an "outlaw country" guy, because in the old days the country music community distanced themselves from him after his drug use and drinking became legendary, and they were sort of ashamed of him saying he was embarassing his family name... His dad was a country music legend. Well, in this song he is firing back at the country music "family," because the truth is the country music community covered for his dad's partying for years and tried to cover it up completely. His dad drank himself to death. So this is a bit of a middle finger, because getting drunk and stoned shouldn't be embarassing to the family name because his storied father was doing the same things.
The family tradition he's talking about is his father, country music legend Hank Williams Senior. He had a very good reputation on stage, but behind the scenes he was a massive alcoholic and prescription drug addict (originally from back pain caused by a birth defect) who died at the age of 29 of a heart attack. And when Jr. became more popular but openly smoked pot and was quite a partier, the country music community acted super shocked and judgy. His response here is basically, ya'll didn't judge my daddy as long as he kept it secret, and a lot of you partied with him, but I'm not going to do that. I'm not going to pretend I'm a goodie two-shoes on stage and hide who I really am.
The beginning of outlaw country!
@@caseymcknight2858Outlaw country was already well underway and a thing for quite a few years before this song was released. Not that ole Bocephus wasn't on board with it!
Mr. Hank knows that weed is the best though. I would love to get stoned with him, Mr. Willie, Snoop and Mr. Cheech and Mr. Tommy.
Both Hanks went/go hard. Men of their times though musically and both genre bending compared to their peers. It’s really crazy just how influential this father son duo are in country music when Hank Sr died so so young
I once heard an interview from HWJ. When asked what he felt most accomplished about and the interviewer rattled off a bunch of awards and stats. HWJ said he felt most proud about being able to keep his 40+ person team employed and seeing their families grow with him over the years. Being able to provide a continuous career for his team members.
I think this says the most about HWJ. He was most concerned about the people and families who depended on him for their livlihood. I've heard that from a minister and my daughter who both said something like, If I say one sentence wrong, it could destroy the lives of my entire team. He was committed to people. And his songs show that commitment.
Saw bones was an old time term for a doctor. It comes from pre- antibotics Era and references how doctors would frequently amputate rather than try to fix an arm or leg.
Exactly......100% correct
Been to several Hank Jr concerts over the years and some crowd inserts have been incorporated into the chorus over the years. After Hank sings They ask me why do you drink, the crowd chants "to get drunk" then Hank why do you roll smoke crowd chants "to get stoned". Why must you live out the songs that you wrote, the crowd chants "to get laid "
Can't tell you who started it but in the 90s I remember hearing it the first time at a concert in Oklahoma and ever since then I've heard it at different venues and I can't listen to the song without chanting it myself😂.
It's impossible not to add that part...it's stuck in our brains from way back.
This song was out a long time ago. Hank Jr. is in his 70s now. When he talks about a sawbones, he is referring to a fall off of a mountain in 1973. It almost killed him, and he is referring to the doctor who treated him for months. He has lived through a lot of tragedy and heartache like his dad, Hank Sr.
There is a movie about Hank Williams Senior as well as a movie about Hank Williams jr. And both of them are well worth watching.
The whole reason he wears sunglasses all the time and grew a beard was to cover up the scarring from when he fell off that mountain and bashed his face in so severely that they had to Do complete reconstructive surgery on his face.
Sawbones is slang for Doctor. Kirk in Star Trek calls McCoy Bones.
WOW, a confluence two of my favorite things in this world, Bocephus and Star Trek!! 🎉
A city slicker, love this song, love his style of singing, beyond awesome 👌
His father had spina bifida, and was hooked on booze and painkillers. He and a driver left Knoxville, headed to Charleston, NC. He died in the backseat, before they got there, drug related. Actually, it was 1975 when he changed his looks and singing, after he recovered from a 500ft. fall down a Montana mountain. His face looked like a Frankenstein's monster mask, the reason for the beard, hat, and dark glasses.
A sawbones is a doctor! A slick, is a city slicker. His Dad was the original party animal, Hank Jr. just took off where his Dad left off!
Slick - city slicker
Saw bones - doctor
During the Civil War Dr's were called saw bones because of the many amputations they had to perform.
He was calling the docter soft bones
@maxhh277 no. No he wasn't. The term is SAW bones. Not soft bones.
This music hits hard ! Heard it my whole life.Good bad and the ugly
Reference to being disowned::: He started out singing his father's music and style, but he wasn't happy doing so. He changed his style. Song says 1973 but it was actually 1975, while hiking a Mt he tripped and fell 500 ft down the Mt. Most of the damage was to his face, that's why the beard and glasses to hide the scars. He had many surgeries and 2 years rehab to be able to sing again. The surgeon said he was worse than the men he saw in Vietnam.
His severely fractured skull saved his life, or else the brain swelling from the head injury would have killed him. His manager's teenaged son had to hold Hank's head together with a t-shirt while his dad ran to get help.
This man has an incredible life story.
I would recommend checking out Hank Williams III. He covers his dad's songs, but sound more like his grandfather.
Country Heroes is my favorite Hank 3 song.
This song is especially fun when played at a dance club. This song has a n audience participation element, that I participated in even during this video. It goes something like this.
Hank Jr- Why do you drink?
Audience- To get drunk
H J- Why do you roll smoke?
A- To get stoned
HJ- Why must you live out the songs that you wrote?
A- To get laid
The third verse of this line has a mashup that I can’t remember right now, but it’s a good time.
You should really look into his extremely interesting back story, you will be extremely amazed by it , ....he is vet lucky to be alive for many reasons, ..from a suicide attempt ,he mentioned in the song , to falling off a mountain before this song came out, and have major reconstruction surgery to his head , face eyes jaw teeth , ECT,
Fun fact about Sawbones (which as many have already pointed out is an old term for a surgeon): in Star Trek "Bones" is Captain Kirk's nickname for Dr. McCoy. For some reason the '09 Trek movie gave it a completely different origin ("wife left me nothing but my bones in the divorce") but originally it was because he was the ship's surgeon - their "sawbones"
Hank has lived out many of his songs, I mean he literally fell off a mountain and survived
Twice
They used to call doctors saw-bones.
Sawbones is a doctor because during the civil war they amputated so many limbs!!
This version of the song is an early one. Over many years it has become more streamlined as far as the opening vocal parts and also become not only unavoidable for the artist but also inspired a third Hank to write music.
You should research Hank. He has had pretty amazing life and a lot of huge accomplishment. He is a very talented musician.
Saw bones is a medical doctor. That's why Capt. Kirk is always calling the ships medic bones.
Hank Jr is an outdoorsman and is an avid hunter and fisherman. A "slick" in deer hunter lingo is a female deer. So when he says "some old slick trying to give me some friction" he's talking about a woman trying to give him a hard time...
hank has So many excellent songs. would love to see you react to Country State of Mind
It's a Family Tradition indeed....
Hank Williams Senior suggestions: I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry; Hey Good Lookin'; Jambalaya on the Bayou; Your Cheatin' Heart; and Lost Highway. Hank Williams III suggestions: Country Heroes; Mississippi Mud; and Damn Right Devil Proud
sawbones is a term for a doctor and slick is just a guy and friction is grief or a hard time, so it's a guy just getting on his case, giving him a hard time, or giving him some grief.
The best lyrics to this song are the bar lyrics
"Hank, why do you drink?"
- To get drunk -
"Hank, why do you roll smoke?"
- To get high -
"Why must you live out the songs that you wrote?"
- TO GET LAID -
City slicker = Some old Slick
Slick=city slicker
Sawbones is a old slang word for a surgeon. Remember it was a doctor that he was speaking to.
give me friction..giving him a hard time, .tryin to pick a fight, etc..
Thank you so much for having some Hank Jr on your channel! Please react to Born to Boogie Live version
Ok country to modern translation: saw bones, old term for doctor because of all the amputations they use to do. With the line about a slick the original line was trying to give him directions meaning a guy in a in a suit like a manager trying to tell him how to perform
Slick was a popular derogatory term that evolved from the marriage City Slicke and Drugstore Cowboy, which resulted in two offspring; Slickr and Greaser.
A Slick in a,Honky Tonk giving Hank Williams Jr. friction translates to a Hipster explaining Country Music to Dolly Parton at Dollywood.
Some time in the 19th century the term saw bones was referring to a surgeon.
Slick is a city slicker (urban inhabitants). Saw bones refers to a doctor, popular tem from our civil war
Sawbones was a slang term for a doctor. It goes back to the Civil War when all doctors did was sawed off people's limbs to keep them alive.
They didn't have time to do any real surgery they simply removed The Gunshot Lim so they could hurry up and get to the next injured Soldier and remove their limbs.
Sawbones is an old-timey term for a doctor, probably due to how they used to perform amputations.
Saw bones is an antiquated term for a doctor , especially. In the 1800s when they used saws to amputate injured limbs.
Great karaoke song at a bar. Crowd gets going usually
So here’s something you need to add to s(nag along with Ole Bocephus. During the chorus he sings, “Why do you drink?” You answer “To get drunk” then he says, “Why do you roll smokes?” You answer “To get stoned.” Then “Why just you live out the songs that you wrote?” You answer, “To get laid.” It adds so much more enjoyment and fun to the song.
Hank is talking about a Smooth talker trying to tell him to pack up and move along because they're trying to close the bar, or he's being loud and rowdy and trying to throw him out.
They use to call doctors saw bones back in the country
Saw bones is a old term for dr from the frontier days when amputation were common the dr would saw bones ...
I've heard sawbones mentioned many times on gunsmoke
“SLICK” is another term for an average guy, used in the same way as DUDE, BRUH, HOSS, CUZ - you get the idea.
In the civil war, doctors cut off arms, and legs using a bone-saw, (hence saw-bones.)
Sawbones being an old school term for doctor and I always thought that was why Dr McCoy on zstar Trek was called "Bones", but apparently it was because the character was divorced and his wife goy everything. He told Kirk how she left him with nothing but his bones.
(Or maybe it was a bit of both, I'm not really certain)
Well back then a slick, ... would be a old timer who combs his hair back with oil, like like Vaseline,or vitalis, , .... because hank has Long hair, the old timers gave them crap, calling them hippies,
Second it could be a person who is a slick talker like a record producer, trying to get him to sign,.
But ,i would go with the first one , because he said , giving me friction, problems,
Ol slick is an old man shouting for Hanks daddy's songs
"Slick" is likely a reference to "City Slickers" or "City folk." I'm from the country myself and I'm thinking that's prolly what he means.
Sawbones is an old southern country term for doctor.
You should check out Hank 3- country heroes. He shouts out a few famous country artists
You need to do The Conversation if you haven’t already my friend… excellent vid as always!
When you listen to Hank live you never hear the song as it was recorded, he always changes some of the words
his dad is hank sr and he was 3 when hisvdaddy died
Saw ones is another word for a surgeon
I know you know by now but sawbones was from 1800s for doctors. Hank JR is an all timer
Slick is referring to a city person. Hence the term city slicker. Giving friction would be giving him grief about him being country, because the city person thinks they're better than the country person.
Sawbones is an old term for a doctor from the Civil War because of so many amputations.,
Saw Bones is an old term for a Doctor.
Quick reminder to check out Hank Williams III for the ongoing family legacy
saw bones is country slang for Doctor
Managers, music suits etc...
Slick = City slicker, city boy
Sawbones= doctor/surgeon.
Old Slick= old know it all thinks he himself is all that.
Friction =giving someone a hard time.
Great job explaining those terms 😂😂
if someone is trying to start something with him slick as in another guy
Always trying to get one over on you, Get it!!
Saw bones was something country people would call a Dr. Slick I always took as a "city slicker" or city folk.
Slick is probably a record executive.
I think 1973 was when he fell off ajax mt. His girlfriend had left him and he got drunk and went hiking with a freind and slipped thats why he weres avaitor glasses and keeps his beard long because the fall scared his face
Sawbones is slang for a doctor or surgeon
My old man still call the doctor sawbones
Saw bones = doctor. From back in the days when doctors just sawed off limbs
Sawbones is a country doctor
Nothing more country than the audience clapping on the 1s and 3s
City slicker, saw bones doctor
"Sawbones" is slang for a Doctor
Old slick is referring to an old timer not liking his music in the bat
During the Civil War or the
War Between the States........ depending where you stand 🤠🤔
Doctors didn't have time or enough medicine to treat the wounds properly???
Amputation and Speed was necessary for survival!!! 🤕
Dr Saw Bones 😱😞..... 🤠✌️👋👋
I think slick is referring to someone from the city
its true he fell off a mountain in 1973 drunk
Some old slick refers to some local boy looking to prove who is the netter man, trying to impress the Ladies.
And yes, a fight was what Old Slick was trying to provoke.
Hank Williams Jr. became an "outlaw country" guy, because in the old days the country music community distanced themselves from him after his drug use and drinking became legendary, and they were sort of ashamed of him saying he was embarassing his family name... His dad was a country music legend. Well, in this song he is firing back at the country music "family," because the truth is the country music community covered for his dad's partying for years and tried to cover it up completely. His dad drank himself to death. So this is a bit of a middle finger, because getting drunk and stoned shouldn't be embarassing to the family name because his storied father was doing the same things.
Dig into nursery rimes we used to sing's real meaning, you'll be horrified, and shocked....(just something fun)
SAWBONES IS WHAT THEY USED TO CALL A DOCTOR....
Sawbones referred to a Doctor..Sawbone.
They call city people, city-slickers.
Saw bones is a Doctor.
Saw bones is another name for a doctor.
Sawbones is a doctor...because they saw bones.
City slicker
Saw bones is a doctor. Think bones from Star Trek.
Saw bones started during the Civil War cause the Dr's were mostly amputating soldiers or sawing bones.
saw bones=doctor
Check out his daddy!!!!!
If I’m down in a honkey rink - is a bar, some slick refers to an outsider - city slicker…
Sawbones is a doctor.
Slick is a guy trying to get over on you, sawbones is a small town country doctor.
Saw bones is a doctor
Slick is just a slightly derogatory term for a guy. Sawbones is a doctor.