R.I.P. Tom T. Hall, country music's legendary "Storyteller"

Hall was the songwriter behind Jeannie C. Riley's "Harper Valley P.T.A." and several other hits

By Sam Barsanti | August 21, 2021 | 4:31pm

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R.I.P. Tom T. Hall, country music's legendary

Tom T. Hall Photo: Frederick Breedon IV/Getty Images for ACM

According to Billboard, country music singer and songwriter Tom T. Hall—writer of Jeannie C. Riley’s “Harper Valley P.T.A.” and singer of his own hit “I Love”—has died. Hall, who was nicknamed “The Storyteller,” was inducted into the Songwriters Hall Of Fame in 2019 and the Country Music Hall Of Fame in 2008, was 85.

Hall was born in Kentucky in 1936 and played in bands as a young man, going on to write songs about being in the military during his time in Army and then working as a disc jokey after leaving the service. In 1964, country singer Jimmy C. Newman recorded “DJ For A Day,” a song written by Hall, and he got a job churning out country songs for Newman’s publishing company. He could reportedly pen dozens in a week, making him an in-demand and prolific songwriter over night, with some of his songs being recorded by the likes of Johnny Cash, Alan Jackson, Waylon Jennings, and Loretta Lynn.

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In 1968, Jeannie C. Riley recorded Hall’s “Harper Valley P.T.A.,” a big hit that earned him a Grammy nomination, and the steadily increasing awareness and appreciation for his storytelling capabilities—including his penchant for thoughtful or humorous observations and his strong narratives—got him enough cachet to venture out into a singing career. From the ‘60s to the ‘80s, he recorded songs like “A Week In A Country Jail,” “I Like Beer,” and “Faster Horses (The Cowboy And The Poet).” His biggest hit was 1974's “I Love,” which crossed over to the Billboard Hot 100. By the ‘90s, Hall had retired from writing and performing, though he remained a revered figure in the country music scene.

His wife, fellow songwriter Dixie Hall, died in 2015. Hall is survived by his son, Dean Hall.