Sam Williams has a last name with a lot of musical history. The grandson of Hank Williams and the son of Hank Williams Jr., Williams is carving his own musical trail. With songs encompassing rock, folk, and country, Williams released a debut full album in 2021, Glasshouse Children. One of my favorite tracks from the album is “Can’t Fool Your Own Blood.”
And you can lie to a liar,
Go ahead and flame the fire,
And Burn down everything you love;
You can steal from a thief,
I’ll act like I believe,
But you can’t fool your own blood.
One might be tempted to speculate that the heavy weight of being in a legendary family has led Sam Williams to reflect on what a family means. And is that a reference to Hank’s “Lost Highway” in the line, “And then the lost highway claims me its own.”
But the song is after something more universal. Beginning with the portrait of an alcoholic mother, the song remarks on how you might be able to hide a lot from the world, but ultimately you can’t hide from those that know you best.
It’s a stunning song on a wonderful debut album from a young artist. Here’s hoping we have Sam Williams around for a long time.
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