Hank Cochran (January 2008)

Hank Cochran is deservedly known as 'The Legend' & when you consider the roll-call of song titles that he has written, it is very easy to see why.  On any given day, in one of Nashville's myriad of recording studios, there is likely to be an artist recording a song written by Hank Cochran.

And what a catalogue of songs they are! 'I fall to pieces', 'She's got you', 'Make the world go away', 'A little bitty tear', 'The chair', 'Don't touch me' & 'Don't you ever get tired of hurting me' are just a number of songs that Hank Cochran has written.

Hank Cochran was born Garland Perry Cochran on 2 August 1935 in Isola, Mississippi.  By the time he was 10 years old, Hank was playing guitar & singing in church.  Like many youngsters, he tuned into the Grand Ole Opry on radio in order to receive musical inspiration.  After completing school, he moved to New Mexico, working in the oilfields during the mid-1950s & eventually made his way to California, where he began entertaining in small clubs.

In 1954, he & Eddie Cochran (no relation) formed a duo, the Cochran Brothers, initially recording country music material but later switching to rock music after watching Elvis Presley perform in Dallas.

Hank & Eddy appeared on Town Hall Party on KTTV & toured with country music legend Lefty Frizzell.  The Cochrans went their separate ways in 1956 when Hank joined the California Hayride TV show in Stockton.

Eddie Cochran found stardom in rock 'n' roll, albeit briefly; he enjoyed a number of hit songs which have gone on to influence a generation namely 'Twenty flight rock', Summertime blues', C'mon everybody', Somethin' else' & 'Three steps to heaven'.

Eddie Cochran died at St. Martin's Hospital in Bath, England at 4.10pm on Sunday 17 April 1960 following a traffic accident in Chippenham in Wiltshire the previous night at 11.50pm; Eddie Cochran was just 21 years old.

In January 1960, Hank arrived in Nashville & immediately began working with Pamper Music for a mere $50 a week.  As well as his duties as a songwriter, Hank also helped the company to sign other artists, acquire songs & get them recorded.

Among the artists that Hank brought on to the company's payroll was Willie Nelson.  Hank even gave up the opportunity to become a recording artist with Liberty Records so that they could sign Willie first.  Eventually Liberty Records signed Hank as a recording artist in his own right.

In April 1961, Hank Cochran became a full-time songwriter with the release of 'I fall to pieces' (co-written with Harlan Howard), which was a No.1 country hit for Patsy Cline that year.

It wasn't long before Hank found himself playing guitar with Justin Tubb on the Grand Ole Opry, touring with Ray Price, scoring his first hit as a recording artist with the Top 20 hit 'Sally was a good old girl' & earning three BMI Awards for songs he'd written on his own.

Hank also became a co-owner (along with Ray Price) of Pamper Music, which was eventually acquired by the Sony/ATV Tree Organisation in 1989.

In 1974, Hank was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Association's International Hall of Fame.

Hank was married for many years to Jeannie Seely who he encouraged to move to Nashville in 1965, where she became a writer for Tree International Music.  Jeannie also signed with Monument Records & had an instant hit with Hank Cochran's 'Don't touch me' in 1966.

Jeannie Seely graciously provided a quote about Gene Watson on Thursday 5 May 2005 & you can read her words here.

The artists who have recorded Hank Cochran's songs reads like a musician's encyclopedia & include Lynn Anderson, Eddy Arnold, Chet Atkins, Tracy Byrd, Johnny Cash, Elvis Costello, Bing Crosby, Don Gibson, Vern Gosdin, Ty Herndon, Merle Haggard, Emmylou Harris, Waylon Jennings, Tom Jones, Loretta Lynn, Dean Martin, Reba McEntire, Buck Owens, Elvis Presley, LeAnn Rimes, Linda Ronstadt, Nancy Sinatra, George Strait, Ernest Tubb & Lee Ann Womack.

As a recording artist, Hank Cochran topped the Americana Music charts in 1996 with the 'Desperate Men: The Legend & the Outlaw' album & saw the release in 2002 of the 'Livin' for a Song: A Songwriter's Autobiography' album.

Here is a list of some of Hank Cochran's songwriting achievements:

'I fall to pieces' (No.1 in 1961 for Patsy Cline)
'She's got you' (No.1 in 1962 for Patsy Cline)
'Don't you ever get tired of hurting me' (No.11 in 1966 for Ray Price & No.11 for Ray Price & Willie Nelson in 1981)
'That's all that matters' (No.34 in 1964 for Ray Price & No.1 for 1 week in December 1980 for Mickey Gilley)
'She's got you' (No.1 for 5 weeks in March/April 1962 for Patsy Cline & No.1 for 1 week in April 1977 for Loretta Lynn)
'Montego Bay' (Merle Haggard, 1972)
'It's not love but it's not bad' (No.1 for 1 week in November 1972 for Merle Haggard)
'Miami, my Amy' (recorded in 1985 by Keith Whitley)
'The chair' (No.1 for 1 week in December 1985 for George Strait)
'Ocean front property' (No.1 for 1 week in April 1987 for George Strait)
'Would these arms be in your way' (recorded in 1988 by Keith Whitley)
'Set 'em up Joe' (No.1 for 1 week in July 1988 for Vern Gosdin)
'Don't you ever get tired of hurting me' (No.1 for 1 week in March 1989 for Ronnie Milsap)

 


During his illustrious country music career, Gene Watson has recorded a number of Hank Cochran songs:

'I fell apart' was included on 'Because You Believed in Me' (Capitol Records, 1976), 'He little thinged her out of my arms' was included on 'Beautiful Country' (Capitol Records, 1977), 'Speak well of me' was included on 'Sometimes I Get Lucky' (MCA Records, 1983), 'A way to survive' was included on 'A Way to Survive' (Step One Records, 1997), while 'Don't you ever get tired of hurting me' was included on 'In a Perfect World' (Shanachie Records, 2007).

Interestingly, Hank Cochran has been quoted as saying that, despite the large number of songs that he has written, his favourite is 'Don't you ever get tired of hurting me' ('It's my favourite because it can still cut me up just like the day I wrote it').  This track was a No.1 country hit for Ronnie Milsap in March 1989, but it has also been recorded by Ray Price, George Jones, Willie Nelson, Jeannie Seely, Don Gibson, Jack Greene & Bobby Bare.

Visit Hank Cochran's Official Site