He rejects the superstar label and coexists uneasily with the words country legend, but Don Williams would welcome acknowledgment of his rightful place in “traditional” country music.

“The only thing that’s under the umbrella of (traditional) country music now is either the honky-tonk sound or the fiddles and banjos,” Williams said. “That’s not right. Johnny Horton, Johnny Cash and Jim Reeves were all big country artists and none of them fit in those categories. I don’t fit in either. When you think about Faron Young and others like him, so much of what they did as far as the instrumentation and the vocal treatment wouldn’t even be considered country now.”

“One of the beautiful things about country music, just like with rock, just like with blues, is that there’s a broad spectrum of things people can relate to that all come under the umbrella of country music,” noted Williams. But, “traditional” as narrowly defined today, refers primarily to the honky-tonk sub-genre of country music and excludes many more than it includes.

“With their use of traditional, a lot of people that brought country music to what it is today, artists, that brought us to where I started, and then whatever contribution I’ve made, all of that, to the greatest extent, has been removed.”

Why the definition of traditional has so narrowed can only be conjectured. Perhaps it’s because the “father” of country music, Jimmie Rodgers, walked the honky-tonk line. Country’s biggest legend, Hank Williams, was a confirmed honky-tonker. Many music historians consider the '50s to be, not only the golden era of honky-tonk, but also the golden era of country music as well. It’s readily apparent that the hard twang associated with the honky-tonk sound is used by outsiders to identify country music, perhaps insiders have unthinkingly appropriated that use. Whatever the reason, the misapplication of the term traditional becomes clear when it excludes artists such as Don Williams, Kenny Rogers, Ronnie Milsap and others who have dominated the charts for decades.

Don Williams, himself, owns 17 number one hits (listed at the end of the article). Between the years 1974 and 1991 he had at least one Top-5 single every year. Even more impressive, between 1972 and 1992, he charted 56 singles, 45 of them hitting the Top 10. He was voted CMA Male Artist of the Year in 1978, the same year "Tulsa Time" was named single of the year. In fact, fifteen years ago this week, (August 15, 1984) Williams was at the top of the charts with "at’s the Thing About Love."

“I loved the song,” Williams said. “It was so different than what was going on. It had a really fresh feeling and I liked what it said.”

Williams finds it impossible to pick out favorites among the songs he has cut but noted, “There’s very seldom a show that I don’t do 'You’re My Best Friend,' 'Till the Rivers all Run Dry,' 'Amanda' (which he released prior to Waylon Jenning’s release), and 'I Believe in You.' Those will pretty much be there all the time.”

He enjoys playing the old songs as long as the audience still wants to hear them. He knows they’ve impacted peoples lives. “I don’t know how many baby girls have been named Amanda because of that song. 'You’re My Best Friend' - I have no idea how many weddings that has been played at. 'Years From Now,' was never a single but we do it in the show now and every time we do it people just love it and recognize it right up front.”

“I think the thing that has affected me as much as anything through the years is people’s stories,” Williams said. “It’s not a certain song that they pick out necessarily but they talk to me about how my music has helped them through a particularly hard time in their lives. That always makes me feel good.”

Williams signed with Giant Records in 1998, the first time he has been with a major label since parting with RCA in 1992. His first album for Giant, I Turn the Page was released in late 1998 and the first single, "Cracker Jack Diamond," was released in September of 1998. Like most veteran artists, Williams, often a mainstay of classic country radio, knows his new material will get little air play on “hot, new” country stations.

“I just make it (a new record) and whatever happens, happens,” Williams philosophized. “I really haven’t spent a lot of time, at any point in my career watching charts, looking at what was happening and analyzing things. The only thing I DO know for sure is that I’ve stayed real active on radio far longer than I ever thought I would. If I’m not that active with some parts of radio now - then that’s the business’ decision. There’s not really a whole lot of reason for me to get upset about it. That’s what I mean about looking at charts and all that - it was just never that entertaining to me.”

But what about when all those songs hit #1?

“The first #1, we had a party and that was real exciting and everything,” Williams said, “but I would far rather spend my time thinking about what I’m doing right now and what I hope I’m going to do than spending my energy worrying and fussing about what I’ve already done and what might or might not happen.”

Don Williams, who co-starred with Burt Reynolds in W.W. and the Dixie Dance Kings and had a cameo appearance in Smokey and the Bandit II also had the first “concept” video way back in 1973. But...there wasn’t any TNN or CMT was there?

“The only thing going on then was - there were a few places around the country that were doing the American Bandstand kind of thing but it was only regional or local programming, and most of them were rock ‘n’ roll. There was no country program out there that would use tapes, there was no network or outlet for that type of thing."

"Jack Clement, who owned the company I was with at the time was really into the whole movie thing and had done a movie, Dear Dead Delilah. He really enjoyed that and decided he wanted to do a movie of a song. So he picked "Come Early Morning" to do that with. There were other people doing things like that at the time, but like I said, they were in rock.” Did the video ever air anywhere? “I really couldn’t tell you,” said Williams.

Williams still tours and while there are always hassles on the road, he still enjoys doing the shows. He has no preference for any type of venue, they all have their up sides and down sides. County fairs “will let you play someplace you might not get to play otherwise,” Williams said. “The smaller venues that seat 1500-2000 people are more intimate, but the big crowds (such as at arena shows) bring their own energy to the situation that makes it kind of exciting to play.”

At a recent show, Williams slipped easily into a high-legged chair, propped his feet on a small raised platform, and, immediately, hits were popping out all over. His universal appeal was evident in the age mix of the audience. The middle-aged and older, who no longer can even pretend to be “with-it”, were singing along, as were the young and hip. A 20-something security guard, his backwards ball-cap, designer shades, and baggy shorts the epitome of young cool, mouthed the words to every song.

A Don Williams concert is both instructive and transportive, the overall effect being the sum of many parts. It is striking how the songs, regardless of content, immediately suffuse one with the feeling of well-being. Life is good if we can accept it on its simplest terms. This almost hypnotic effect is induced by Williams’ enveloping vocals, his self-assured, seemingly effortless delivery and the rhythmic cadence of the music itself. Williams can lighten your heart and deliver warm fuzzies as well as he can evoke pathos and contemplative soul-searching. His real mastery is in his ability to present misfortune, sadness and sentimentality without whining, abject dreariness or becoming unbearably maudlin.

Williams’ “out front” vocals harken back to a time when country music really was “three chords and the truth”, and words and vocal delivery were more important than arrangement and instrumentation. Additionally, the Don Williams’ “live” concert sound is startlingly replicative of the Don Williams CD sound and is a testimonial to the fact that studio techno-wizardry and enhancement are not integral factors in the production or success of his songs.

Don Williams’ music has continued to evolve over the course of his long career. “I’ve felt, with every album I’ve done, that I’ve brought to the scene some material that was different enough that I had concerns about whether or not fans would be upset about it,” Williams said. In 1979, for example, "It Must Be Love" was considered “funky” and very innovative at the time. Cafe Carolina, a 1984 album, introduced a new, breezier sound through the addition of a saxophone player. "Tulsa Time" has noticeable rock licks and was something very different for Williams at the time. “I always hope that they (the fans) will say, ‘yeah, that’s different, I like that’, rather than ‘what’d he do that for?’” he noted.

Williams seems both bewildered and bemused when he says that, “Even though I go through that whole process (of change), through all those years, people still come to me all the time and say, ‘man, don’t ever change’. Like I’ve never changed. But I feel like I have.”

Well, chalk another one up for Williams - he can change, yet he does it so smoothly and easily hardly a ripple is felt. Besides, while music can change, so can performances and people and values and....maybe the plea to not change extends far beyond just the music. So I guess all of us out here can still feel okay when we say, “don’t change”. And, by the way, Don, your place is forever and always safe in 2steppin’s corner of the traditional country music world.

Mountain West Music 2002