Henry William Thompson, born September 3, 1925 in Waco, Texas, was an American country singer whose career spanned seven decades. After serving as a Navy radioman in World War II and studying electrical engineering at Princeton, Henry William Thompson returned to Waco in 1946 and began recording for local labels; his first single, "Whoa Sailor", released on Globe Records, marked his entry into the commercial music scene. By 1950 the single "Green Light" had reached the Top 40, and in 1952 he achieved his first Number 1 hit with "The Wild Side of Life", a track that would inspire Kitty Wells’s response hit, "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky‑Tonk Angels".Henry William Thompson’s early output included a series of EPs such as The New Green Light (1955) and North Of The Rio Grande 1955), followed by the full‑length New Recordings Of Hank Thompson's All‑Time Hits (1956). His 1957 releases Hank! and the 1958 Dance Ranch showcased his “ight” Western‑swing style, characterized by a dance‑beat emphasis and meticulous arrangements that distinguished his work from Bob Wills’s more instrumental approach. Throughout the 1960s Henry William Thompson released several chart‑friendly albums, including This Broken Heart Of Mine (1960), The Number One Country And Western Band (1962), and Golden Country Hits (1964), and maintained a steady presence on the country charts with singles such as "Honky‑Tonk Girl" (1954) and "Tuxedo Junction" (1959).From 1947 to 1964 Henry William Thompson recorded for Capitol Records, then moved to Warner Bros. (1966–1967), and later to Dot and its successors (1968–1980). In 1997 he issued Hank Thompson and Friends, featuring duets with prominent country artists, and in 2000 released Seven Decades on Hightone, a retrospective that highlighted his long‑standing influence. Henry William Thompson was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1989 and inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1997. He continued touring through the 2000s, performing at venues such as Billy Bob’s Texas, until his final concert on October 8, 2007, in his hometown of Waco. After a brief hospitalization for lung cancer, he died on November 6, 2007, at age 82.
