He is regarded as one of the most significant and influential American singers and songwriters of the 20th century. Both Payne and Roy Acuff significantly influenced his musical style. After winning an amateur talent contest, Williams began his professional career in Montgomery in the late s playing on local radio stations and at area venues such as school houses, movie theaters, and bars. He formed the Drifting Cowboys backup band, which was managed by his mother, and dropped out of school to devote his time to his career.
Because his alcoholism made him unreliable, he was fired and rehired several times by radio station WSFA , and had trouble replacing several of his band members who were drafted during World War II. In , Williams married Audrey Sheppard , who competed with his mother to control his career. In , Audrey divorced him and he married Billie Jean Horton. He was dismissed by the Grand Ole Opry because of his unreliability and alcoholism. Years of back pain, alcoholism, and prescription drug abuse severely compromised Williams's health, and at the age of 29, Williams suffered from heart failure and died unexpectedly in the back seat of a car near Oak Hill, West Virginia , en route to a concert in Canton, Ohio , on New Year's Day Despite his relatively brief career, he is one of the most celebrated and influential musicians of the 20th century, especially in country music.
In , he was posthumously awarded a Pulitzer Prize Special Citation for his "craftsmanship as a songwriter who expressed universal feelings with poignant simplicity and played a pivotal role in transforming country music into a major musical and cultural force in American life. He suffered severe injuries after falling from a truck, breaking his collarbone, and receiving a severe blow to the head.
A daughter, Irene, was born a year later. Williams was named after Hiram I of the Book of Kings. Lillie also joined singing the hymns that influenced the singer's later compositions. Williams received his first musical instrument, a harmonica, at the age of six.
Williams's father frequently relocated for work, and as a result the family lived in several southern Alabama towns. In , when Williams was seven years old, Elonzo began experiencing facial paralysis. From that point on, Lillie assumed responsibility for the family. Their daughter, Opal, went in exchange to live with Lillie to attend school in Georgiana, Alabama. Williams learned to play basic guitar chords from his aunt and listened to music that was played at dances and in area churches.
