Popular Culture Review Vol. 13, No. 1, January 2002 | Page 143

Hank Snow, The Singing Ranger

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at him with the same quizzical look as Nipper, the R.C.A. dog cocking his head at
the record player and decided on the spot that he was going to go back to Canada
where at least he was appreciated. However, neither his wife nor Ernest Tubb would
have any of that, and they persuaded him to persevere (Snow, 1994, pp. 290-291,
319-320).
Snow’s life was not off the roller coaster yet. Opry management was not
convinced he had the star power for their show, and they were about to fire him.
Three months after his Opry debut he had no hit record, and his tours did not draw
enthusiastic audiences. Two years before he had sought to record a song he had
written, but the R.C.A. producer disliked the song. Now he rearranged it and had
fiddler Tommy Vaden provide a stunning introduction. Additionally, the sounds of
Joe Talbot’s steel guitar gave the song a haunting draw. Not mentioning to the producer
that he had turned the song down before. Snow simply slipped it into the numbers he
was recording. This time the producer decided to go with it. The song was 'T’m
Movin’ On” and went all the way to number one on the Billboard Magazine country
charts. It remained on the charts for 44 weeks, becoming Snow’s signature song,
and solidifying his position as both an Opry regular and a star on the United States
country music scene. The song was later recorded by Ray Charles on his Soul o f
Country Music album, as well as by Elvis Presley, Hoagie Carmichael, Billy Vaughn,
A1 Hirt, Don Gibson, Connie Francis, and Emmylou Harris (Snow, 1994, p. 494).
The song has also been recorded in 36 different languages. (Stolek, 1999).
Hank Snow’s songs kept coming out and landing at or near the top of the
charts. Several reached the top over the decade. In 1954, his ‘'I Don’t Hurt Anymore,”
was number one for 20 weeks, and remained on the charts for 41 weeks (Malone,
1985, p. 246; Wolf, 1994, p. 536-537). With Vaden and Talbot on most of his records.
Snow’s music brought a unique sound to his listeners and his nasal voice and diction
cut through on records and radio to make him instantly recognizable (Snow, 1994,
p. 322). He was said to have one of the most admired and distinctive styles in
country music (Malone, 1985, p 238). Snow was always a showman who believed
audiences wanted to see flashy colors on the stars on their stage. Thus, he was one
of the few country singers (along with Porter Wagoner, of course) to keep his sequin
laden costumes during his entire career. (Malone, 1985, p. 271).
Interestingly, after moving around and struggling for a music career for
the first 36 years of his life. Snow became a paragon of sameness in his personal
affairs. Achieving stardom in 1950, he bought a home he named ‘T he Rainbow
Ranch,” and he lived there until he died at the end of 1999. He also named his band
“The Rainbow Ranch Boys,” and several of its members performed with him for
many years—an unusual occurrence in an industry in which bands change names
and members frequently. Although he ventured near the line when he recorded
“Hula Rock,” he refused to change his music when the country music industry