Alhambra’s Hank & My Honky Tonk Heroes

Traditional good old country music is alive and well on the stage of the Alhambra Theatre and Dining in the hands of country music star Jason Petty and his show Hank & My Honky Tonk Heroes. Originally scheduled to run through August 19, it has been extended until August 26.

In this tribute to Hank Williams, one of the most popular shows to ever come to the Alhambra, Petty recreates Hank’s iconic stage presence. A terrific four-piece backup band includes Mark Baczynski (fiddle), Rory Hoffman (electric guitar), Eric Lewis (steel guitar) and David Martin, who is the bandleader and on bass.

In a mesmerizing two hours, Petty sings many of the most popular songs written and performed by Williams, like “Your Cheatin’ Heart,” “Hey, Good Lookin’,” “Cold Cold Heart,” and “I Saw the Light,” just to name a few. Williams wrote some 400 songs over the course of his short life, and as we listened closely, we could understand why Williams is referred to as the “Hillbilly Shakespeare.”

Along the way, Petty, who is a fantastic storyteller, tells us about Williams’s life and the impact he had on music before his death in 1953 at age 29 of a heart attack. An impact so huge that it was acknowledged with a number of posthumous awards. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987, and in 2010, was honored with a special citation by the Pulitzer Prize Board acknowledging his contributions to country music.