Hank Thompson, born on 3 September 1925 in Waco, Texas, became one of country music's most enduring stars, blending honky-tonk and Western swing across a career spanning six decades. He served in the US Navy as a radioman during the Second World War, studied electrical engineering at three universities including Princeton, and nearly pursued that career before music took over following a regional hit in 1946. His influence shaped later traditionalist artists such as Dwight Yoakam and George Strait, and he was also a technical pioneer, building his own sound and lighting systems and becoming one of the first country stars to headline in Las Vegas.

After signing with Capitol Records in 1948, Thompson scored a string of hits including "Humpty Dumpty Heart" and "Green Light", continuing to chart into the 1970s with his final top-10 single, "Who Left the Door to Heaven Open", in 1974. His 1952 hit "The Wild Side of Life" inspired Kitty Wells's answer song "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels", which made her the first woman to top the country chart. He kept performing and recording until shortly before his death, releasing his last album in 2000 and playing his final show in October 2007, before being diagnosed with lung cancer and dying on 6 November 2007.