JD Wilkes Remembers Touring With Hank Williams III 

I got to work a Hank III show early on in my career and I was so impressed by his work ethic, as JD mentions. He loaded in with the rest of the crew, teched his own gear, played three sets, signed stuff for every #1 fan who wanted to talk to him, and then helped us finish loading out once he sent the last fans off. Definitely not letting that family legacy go to his head.

The “late fiddle boy” was Michael McCanlis

I saw Hank iii /assjack back in the middle 2000's and he is 100% correct its the most diverse and hard-core crowd you will ever see at a concert, a unique vib everyone should experience atleast once.

Hank3 is a awesome entertainer, musician and person. He has always been so kind to his fans. He is a kind, giving man. Hank Williams and Hank3 are the only Hank's for me.

JD Wilkes is the best frontman alive and a historian of all things cool and American. One hell of a musician and doodler as well...

Spirit Rangers of the Sea sounds like it could be a Donovan tune from his Atlantis period.

The Shack Shakers got banned from playing the Cuban Club in Tampa because JD was swinging from the chandelier. Gotta love em' ...

"Spirit Rangers Of The Sea" -Coming to a town near you!

went to see Hank iii several years ago in Dallas. My buddy got kicked out during the opening act for being overly intoxicated.. so he's sittin behind the club, drunk, and Hank see him. He walks over and asks why he's sittin there and not in the club. I told Hank, "he got kicked out for being too drunk". Hank/Shelton, said that's bullshit, no one gets kicked out of my damn show for being too drunk. Then he handed me a guitar case and my buddy a stool, I think it was, and told us, "your working with the band tonight, carry that shit in and put it on the stage. Not only did he get us back in, he gave us a wallet and signed it and a tshirt and signed that as well. I'll never forget how much he impressed me as a man that day.

Awesome story. I come from that punk/country scene he's talking about where 3 bridged the gap between the two. That's a big part of the scene here down here in Arkansas. Also I love that philosophy, leave everyone glad they met you.

Michael was a very good friend who was there for me in 1998…..

Someone should do a documentary on Shelton and get a bunch of interviews like this. Shel was such a hard worker, beatin that road down and gave so much to his dedicated fans.

He didn’t even laugh he just said fuk that guy he’s fired hahahah I probably would have said the exact same thing lmao !! Thanks Otis

Nothing better than road tales... nuttin...👍😎

I love JD Wilkes I have seen him a bunch at muddy roots and I seen him at exitin

I saw III on every tour, and with every lineup that came through Florida and Georgia. Saw JD on the mouth harp in both states. Saw and met Joe Buck, and Zach Shedd(both upright bass players), and hung out on the bus after a show in Melbourne, FL. Shelton has always been nice, and I think genuinely glad to see us(my now wife and I) every time. Got introduced to Lucky Tubb, and Gary Lindsey at III shows too. Great memories from the Damn Band and Assjack shows. Sure wish he’d hit the road again.

This is my introduction to JD. Quite a character, hope he writes those memoirs soon. Thanks guys.😊

Those early 2000s Hank III and Shack Shaker shows were such a blast! We were lucky enough to see the Shack Shakers when Joe Buck was still with them, intense as hell! Mostly The Bottleneck in Lawrence KS, and The Grand Emporium in KC. JD was into poking the ceilings with the mic stand at the time. I have a chunk of tile from The Bottleneck somewhere. Also remember the owner of the Continental Club was extremely pissed when he took out an antique ceiling fan in the club in Houston! 😆😆

I have a great photo of me and Joe Buck, when I met him, at the Jackelope in Salt Lake City in 2009. I went because, I knew who he was. His upright bass playing with Hank 3 at The Nick in Birmingham were legendary. Unfortunately, I didn't get to see it. There were about 20 people there and I think I was the only one who knew who he was. He was doing his One man Hillbilly Punk thing. I got the homemade cassette from him. I would have died to have him in my Jump Blues project, Southside Gentleman's Club. I was stuck out there end of 08 ti November 2009. I met Sturgill Simpson doing an open mic at an Irish Bar early 2009. Great voice, was a railroad worker out there. Nobody knew him, yet.

O yes,HANK III for sure has that punk edge,and i always liked BLOOD ON THE SADDLE and HICKOIDS or JASON AND THE SCORCHERS. Hank is a even more radical but at the same time he reminds me so much on his grandpy,there is no mistake in that bloodline

I hope Hank 3 is doing better.I do not know the details of his departure from the music scene,just that he is a great talent that is surely missed.

Lawdy!!! Please, Otis MORE J. D. Wilkes. Please! Guys like him help keep me stable. Thanks again, Otis. Just discovered your Old Weird America road videos by accident last night. It’s 94 degrees outside. I didn’t move 3 hours from the Canadian border to experience Memphis weather again. Cheers to Amy, too. She has some very nice music up on RU-vid. Awesome voice.

Love Hank III. Hope to see him recording and touring again soon. The last of the best!

I never with Shelton but i met him at Rams Head in Baltimore, the most down to earth celebrity i ever met it was before they went out back of the venues cause they wouldnt let me in the front door but they put me right right where Hank3 was out back where his rv was shit he talked with me my buddy my daughter and son for 30 min took selfies with the kids and all that shit hes A NO. 1 in my book great song writer and performer

I've met JD and Hank 3. And both of them left me glad that I met them. It's always cool when you meet your music heroes and they turn out not to be a**holes. I've had mostly good experiences with everyone I've met on the road, but those two guys are among the better of the meetings... Hope to meet you one day too, Otis...

I’ll tell you what, the shows in Nashville on lower Broadway and beyond in the mid 90’s to mid 2005 were amazing. Shelton at the Bluegrass Inn 1999-2000. The Duane Dennison version of Ass Jack was my personal fav. Saw them lay Vanderbilt to waste in maybe spring 2000. The Bluegrass Inn on lower broad was the spot back then. The alley behind bluegrass is just as famous as all those old bars down there. It was the way everyone got to the bars from the opry way back when. Roberts was great when BR-549 was the house band. Nashville was a different place in the 90’s and early 00’s. It still felt like the original city.

I opened a festival with hank 3 headlining so I didn’t see him until way after my set. But did get to meet him later, Nice guy.

Shelton is the man.... And this video was awesome

more jd!

This is one of the coolest things ever. I love all those guys

'Spirit Rangers of the Sea', I needed a laugh this morning, thank you Otis and JD Wilkes! :)

I like how the shape of the couch kinda looks like angel wings behind him sometimes.

Hank III is an absolute treasure. Him. Joe Buck . Fuckin magic

I'm really looking forward to reading J.D.'s memoirs.

JD Wilkes is quite the colorful individual. Good stuff, got a real kick out of Spirit Rangers of the Sea!

I remember those days! JD is awesome!

3 does the best shows I've ever been to ! LONG ROCK HANK3 !!!

Thank you so much for the excellent story as most of the Hank Williams dinasty are! Please continue to give us so interesting stories about Country Music! 🙏🙏🙏🍀🍀🍀🌹🌹🌹❤️👏👏👏👏

JD Wilkes is an American treasure; love that guy!

I hope Hank III is OK, he's been off radar for years now

Did not see them with hank but saw him at a little bar in Reno, NV and it was pretty much the best show ever!! I think there is a video on my channel here of them...Shack Shakers Rock

I've seen Hank 3 play at A Burgoo festival in Arenzville, Illinois that was back in my carnival days around 1997 to 99 not sure exact year but I remember meeting him and it was a good show my family owned the carnival that was there we set up in that town 2 or 3 years in a row.

Otis, get Hank 3 on to tell some stories of touring with Super joint and the melvins.

Never saw JD but I did see Fiddleboy in 2001 at the Crystal Palace

Hey saw this guy in Buffalo what a legend

I love him ! I can’t wait for the memoirs !

Fiddleboy was Michael McCanless.

Got to see The SS and Hank III in Santa Fe NM. They tore it up!!

What a CHARACTER,,,,ENJOYED MUCH MR. O

Jd rocks that harp

I have met JD a few times when he has played in Glasgow, Scotland. He is a very humble down to earth guy and a fantastic talent.

I'm a big fan of JD! More of him, please. I enjoyed hearing that side of Sheldon. I saw him twice. When I saw him at sxsw he seemed to throw a fit bc his amp wasnt working & walked off stage. But unless you've played out, u might not know how frustrating that is or if some other factor was involved. I saw him in Lexington, Ky where the dynamics from the 1st set to the 2nd when the hair came down was wild. More JD!

I saw The Shake Shakers open for Hank 3 at The Dame in Lexington

I was luckily enough to have 3, Joe Buck and DAC sign my left arm which I had inked in the next morning. The music scene is far from what it use to be, and I sure do miss the good old days something fierce! Hell, I even hung out with Jessco at the Exit/In at one of 3’s last shows before he went on hiatus.

Thanks for the video. Cool hearing about hanging with HANK3. Wish he would tour again.

I saw hank 3 first time he played Cleveland. Rowdy crowd and great show

Lolol. Love it. Great damn interview ❤️

This triggered some good memories of going to III shows. I've seen him about 13 times over about 10-12 year stretch, starting in 1999. Saw him in 5 different states, and got to know a bunch of cool people from The Cussin' Board, and show meetups. I always enjoyed the shows, never noticed this "dark" or "dangerous" undercurrent. Guess that was all part of the fun. Losing Fiddleboy was a blow, he was a hell of a player, and a great dude.

Excellent

Saw him once in Austin around 2000 but memory is not serving me well this morning. I was a force of nature standing in front of a blast furnace kind of thing. I appreciated the energy and while I like cow punk a lot, it was cow shredders and not my thing-but a lot of the audience dug it

Col Wilkes is one of the best to ever do it, love this channel and these stories and appreciate the attention given to the roots music cats that are real deal out there right now

I saw hank3 4 times in Cleveland. Amazing. Come back brother

I've seen Hank 3 and I seen the legendary shack shakers both bands put on great shows and Hank did wait to the very last person which was me to talk to you at the end of the show! I would love to hear more tails from this Southern Gothic gentleman..

JD never failed to put on a great show whenever I saw him.

I'd like to hear more of his stories!

J.D. Wilkes Kicks so much Ass!!!!! And God bless Hank III

I dig your videos, they’re very interesting and entertaining. It’s nice to see and learn about the music industry from this angle. Looking forward to more! Thanks!

Otis I don’t know what kind of hoops you’d have to jump through to make it happen (sure Kenny could help) but it would be awesome to get Marty Stuart on here telling some stories.

I saw Hank III's band in NC in 2006. Really incredible show.

Yep. So true about 3. I seen him in 2001. When the show was over,he stayed and made sure he talked or signed/ took pics with anyone that wanted to. . One hell of a good dude.

Love th' Shack Shakers and Hank 3 .

Always enjoy these!

This guy is straight up incredible! more more more

I don’t know much about Hank 3 but it’s great to hear some of the backstory. It can be rough keeping a band together especially all under one roof.

Saw Hank lll at The Vogue years ago. My friend and I answered his repeated call to met him out back by the dumpsters after the show. Told him I wanted a handshake instead of an autograph. I got it and a big hug with a heartfelt thank you. Good guy even if we always see eye to eye.

Bring JD back for some more stories !!!

Right on..I am "like" number 666!

I saw him 3 different times in Indy at the Vogue. Great shows and you won't ever see a guy work harder than Hank III. Being your own roadie tech, sing endplay 3 different types of music in as many long sets, it was just so fun and the crowd LOVED it! I saw him with the Damn Band, Assjack and ADD. Every single time, he stayed, just like JD said, and signed for everyone that wanted an autograph. I don't think he turned anyone down for a picture as well. Im thankful to have seen his shows. Great show always.

Good job brother I enjoyed that bean a fan of 3 a long time very down to earth very cool dude I love hard-core metal and old school country so Assjack and the dam band it’s just like a symphony of greatness to me!! The way he gets his live shows fucking great

Wow, thanks Otis,🙏

thank you .

For some reason I didn't get to hear Hank 3 stuff until after he quit touring I hope he starts back as I would like to see him I've heard a lot of good things about his show

I dont remember a harp player but i saw a bunch of early III shows with fiddleboy and the guitar player from jesus lizard. Pretty crazy but I found it pretty interesting at the time. He opened for Beck during midnight vultures era, and I remember seeing a show in waterloo park and a really crazy one at Stubbs during SXSW prob late 90s or 2000ish.

HILARIOUS!!

That was so much fun to listen to! I was in the mood for buying some albums and I'm noticing a lot of Hank 3's catalogue is hard to come by. I wanted a copy of Straight to Hell on vinyl or CD but the price is outrageous. I'm tempted to order a copy of 3 cattle ranch just to have in my collection because GOODNESS that thing is wild. When he was talking about the crowd at a Hank 3 show, I totally got what he meant. I love punk rock and Country, and a blend of the two is amazing when the positivity of both comes through. But the bad side of both blending together, that could be scary for sure. To all my positive punk and country folks, see you at a show! I'm looking into catching an IV show. That just might be my return to live music, WOOHOO! I mean, YEEHAW!

Loved all the Hank III records frankly I had trepidations about wading in amongst a Hank III crowd at the clubs he would play around DFW friends that went said the shows were amazing but the crowds were packed and rowdy with impromptu mosh pits and some fights so I stayed home. Now I wished I’d have gone. Maybe Shelton will tour again someday, I hope so.

Saw hank 3 in 2014. Wish he'd tour again. Seeing IV and the string band next week. That should be interesting

This was the best! I have seen many Hank 3 shows, but unfortunately didn't catch any with JD. I really enjoy everything JD puts out and is involved in. 3's crowds are definitely a mixed bag and I love that, I wish he would get back on the road so we can enjoy them again. He is so damn talented and always very personable.🖤

Otis, I attended Hank III at Billy Bob's Ft worth years ago, late 90's early 2000's. Was JD with him then? I took alot of pics with a real camera.

Hunnypot Approved!

Hope to go experience some proper Americana music soon. Prolly have to jump a plane I reckon. Y'all are blessed to have such rich music tradition

Anybody know if Hank 3 is ok these days? Kinda concerning how he just dropped out.

He's a great interview

Great Video Otis! Wish JD had his Banjo !!

I never saw JD with Hank's band but I did see the Shack Shakers twice with Joe Buck. After he left I asked JD what happened and he said that he was now with Hank III so guessing this tour may have led to that.

I was on my way to the Sunflower Festival, Clarksdale, MS.. I was supposed to play harp with Archie Lee Hooker’s show at the John Lee Hooker tribute and memorial shortly after his passing. It was loose and uncertain but I made the trip anyway, reckoning I’d find Archie, whom I had played with in the West Coast when he was living with his Uncle John Lee at the house in Redwood and estate in Los Altos Hills. I was traveling out of Ohio where I had been visiting bassist and songwriter, Fuzz Samuel, maybe doing some recording too ‘cause I had released his CD, Organic Blues, around then on my indie label. Anyway, I had occasion to pass through Nashville, spending the night in a motel off 16th Ave. After dinner we went for a walk looking for some cool music. We stopped by one place and from the sidewalk, they sounded pretty good but decided to check out a few other places to see where it sounded best. So after a few stops we decided to go back to the first place with the pretty good sounding band, went in to the standing room only establishment, club, bar, whatever, and grabbed a couple beers, the girlfriend and I. The guy singing looked like a Tommy Smothers ringer and sang like he was impersonating Hank Williams. He wore a beat up cowboy straw hat, and there was a dark bushy haired fiddler with him. Both stood out, but the rest faded in memory to shadows. They looked young, but judging by the size and reverence (not a whole lot of dancing going on), and age diversity of the crowd, one could assume this wasn’t just ‘new’ talent. The fellow next to me leaned over and said, “do you know who that is?” I said, “no but he does a spot on, Hank.” He chuckled and said “that’s because he is Hank . . . the third!” So I guess that night, we had chose wisely.

Thanks ya all

We saw an early Hank III tour. Cincinnati 1999. If JD was on that tour, I do have some recollections that I could share.

Mildly Interesting Factoid: I made a Mason's logo tattooed pig foot for JD many years ago.

Got any stories involving Kinky Friedman coming up? :)