Hank Penny

Herbert Clayton Penny (September 18, 1918 – April 17, 1992) was an American musician who sang and played banjo mainly in the Western swing subgenre of country music. He blended country and western music with dixieland, swing, and most notably bebop jazz styles, earning the nickname “the king of hillbilly bebop”. He also worked as a comedian best known for his backwoods character "That Plain Ol' Country Boy" on TV with Spade Cooley. He was married to country singer Sue Thompson from 1953–63.

Career In the 1930s, Penny was the leader of the Radio Cowboys with guitarist Julian Akins, steel guitarist Sammy Forsmark, tenor banjoist Louis Dumont, bassist Carl Stewart, and vocalist, guitarist, and fiddler Sheldon Bennett.

Penny's "Bloodshot Eyes," a country novelty number, was recorded in 1951 by rhythm and blues singer Wynonie Harris, who also recorded for King Records, Penny's label at the time. Harris recorded the song because the publishing was controlled by King, whose owner Syd Nathan encouraged his other artists to record songs he published. Harris' version of "Bloodshot Eyes" remained on the American R&B charts for three months. It was also popular in the Caribbean, where Harris had a large following. Along with other Wynonie Harris records, it was being played in Jamaican dance halls as early as 1951. In 1958, Jamaican mento group Denzil Laing and the Wrigglers recorded a version for their Arawak Hotel album, with guitarist Ernest Ranglin. Sydney Bean also recorded it, releasing it around 1955. In 1971, the song was a Top 40 regional hit in Detroit when it was recorded by the band 'Lucifer' for Invictus Records.

A lifelong fan of jazz, Penny recorded an instrumental "Hillbilly Be-Bop" (King 795, 1949).

By 1954, Penny moved to Las Vegas, where he began a seven-year run as a performer at the Golden Nugget casino, fronting a band that included steel guitar virtuoso Curly Chalker and at the same time, Roy Clark, whose own comedy delivery was influenced considerably by Penny's onstage comic timing. Penny's band backed Clark on his first album for Capitol Records.

Penny made a 1970s appearance with Peggy Conner on America 2-Night, playing a country husband-and-wife singing duo called Buck and Harriet Pine.

Personal life Penny was born in Birmingham, Alabama, United States. He died in 1992 at his Southern California home of heart failure. He was the father of actress Sydney Penny and producer Greg Penny. Country music historian Rich Kienzle began researching and writing about Penny's career in the late 1970s, and devoted a chapter to him in his 2003 book Southwest Shuffle.

Discography Hank Penny Sings (Audio Lab AL-1508, 1958) It's War Again! (Jazz War, That Is) (NRC LPA-7, 1959) The Hank Penny Show On Stage (Pen-Sound HP-100, 1967) Tobacco State Swing (Rambler RR-103, 1980) Hollywood Western Swing: The Best of Hank Penny 1944-1947 (Krazy Kat KK CD-25, 1999) Crazy Rhythm: The Standard Transcriptions (1951) (Bloodshot Revival BS-806, 2000) The Penny Opus #1 (Jasmine JASMCD-3520, 2000) Hillbilly Be-Bop: The King Anthology 1944-1950 (Westside WESA-914, 2001) King of Hillbilly Bebop (Proper PVCD-134 [2CD], 2003) Flamin' Mamie (1938-1941) (Krazy Kat KK CD-31, 2004)