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Country legend Hank Snow tops the charts

Broadcast Date: Sept. 25, 1982

On Nov. 23, 1962, Hank Snow's catchy travelling song, I've Been Everywhere, tops the charts. The Nova Scotia native was one of most influential figures in country music. Dubbed the "Singing Ranger," Snow recorded over 100 albums and sold more than 70 million copies. Despite his life of poverty and hardship, Snow was a man of great principle who sang about travelling and trains rather than drinking and cheating.

Snow focused on the positive, as heard in this 1982 CBC interview. As record companies cut old-timers like him loose to concentrate on flashy newcomers, Snow remained optimistic. "I had accomplished things far beyond my wildest dreams in recording... I have done everything I set out to do. I'm very satisfied. I'm not a greedy person. I am very happy."

Country legend Hank Snow tops the charts

• Clarence Eugene (Hank) Snow was born in Brooklyn, N.S., on May 9, 1914.
• A series of events, including his parents' divorce, an abusive grandmother and a cruel stepfather forced Snow to leave home at age 12. He joined the merchant marine and worked as a cabin boy and labourer.

• Snow discovered music during his years at sea. At age 16, Snow made his first public performance in Bridgewater, N.S. A year later, in 1933, a radio station in Halifax offered Snow a trial music show. It was an instant success.
• By 1934, Snow had his own radio series and started calling himself "The Yodelling Ranger."
• In 1935, Snow married Minnie Blanche Aalders. They had a son named Jimmie Rodgers Snow.

• In 1950, Snow hit the musical jackpot with his monster hit I'm Movin' On. The song stayed at No. 1 for 21 weeks.
• Snow was as well-known for his sparkling rhinestone jackets as he was for his precise guitar playing and enunciated singing style.
• Although Snow became an American citizen in 1958, he kept his ties to Canada. He remembered his roots with his 1968 album, My Nova Scotia Home.

• Hank Snow mentions a few Canadian cities in this excerpt from the song I've Been Everywhere:
Been to Reno, Chicago, Fargo, Minnesota, Buffalo, Toronto, Winslow, Sarasota, Wichita, Tulsa, Ottawa, Oklahoma, Tampa, Panama, Mattawa, La Paloma, Bangor, Baltimore, Salvador, Amarillo, Tocopilla, Barranquilla, and Padilla. I'm a killer.

• The song I've Been Everywhere was written by Australian country musician Geoff Mack in 1958 and has been covered by countless artists including Willie Nelson and Johnny Cash.
• In 1978, Snow was inducted into the Songwriting Hall of Fame in Nashville. The following year he was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame.

• He was also inducted into the Canadian Country Music Association Hall of Honour in 1985 and the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame in 1989.
• In 1994, Snow published his autobiography, The Hank Snow Story.
• Snow died on Dec. 20, 1999, in Nashville. He was 85.

Country legend Hank Snow tops the charts

Medium: Radio

Program: The Entertainers

Broadcast Date: Sept. 25, 1982

Guest(s): Hank Snow

Reporter: John A. Cameron

Duration: 4:12

I've Been Everywhere written by Geoff Mack

Last updated:
Jan. 16, 2006