Midnight in Montgomery
Silver eagle, lonely Road
Was on my way to Mobile
For a big New Year's Eve show
And stopped for just a minute
To see a friend outside of town
With my collar up, I found his name
And felt the wind die down
And a drunk man in a cowboy hat
Took me by surprise
Wearin' shiny boots, a nudie suit, and haunted, haunted eyes
He said, "Friend, it's good to see you
It's nice to know you care"
Then the wind picked up, he was gone
Was he ever really there?

'Cause it's midnight in Montgomery
Just hear that whip-poor-will
See the stars light up the purple sky
Feel that lonesome chill
'Cause when the wind is right
You'll hear his song
Smell whisky in the air
Midnight in Montgomery
He's always singin' there

Well, I climbed back on that eagle
Took one last look around
Red tail lights, shadow moves slow across the ground
And off somewhere a midnight train is slowly passin' by
I can hear that wistle moan'
I'm so lonesome, I could cry

'Cause it's midnight in Montgomery
Just hear that whip-poor-will
See the stars light up the purple sky
Feel that lonesome chill
'Cause when the wind is right
You'll hear his song
Smell whisky in the air
Midnight in Montgomery
He's always singin' there
He's always singin' there

Well, Hank's always singin' there


Lyrics submitted by okeefenokeeGiant

Midnight in Montgomery Lyrics as written by Don Sampson Alan Eugene Jackson

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.

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Midnight in Montgomery song meanings
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6 Comments

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  • 0
    General Comment

    I think this song is about Hank Williams magical presence: ie: feel that lonesome chill cause when the wind is right You hear his song, smell whisky in the air Midnight in Montgomery He's always singin' there and :He's always singin' there O' Hanks always singin' there I dunno, thats my guess. Can anyone help me?

    jenelle182on August 19, 2002   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    hanks grave is in montgomery. and alan jackson is talking about how the presence of a great country music legend filled him that night while he was there. he can almost hear hank singing and smell the whiskey in the air. hank was drunk alot and wore shiney cowboy boots and a "beauty suit". hints the phrase "Then a Drunk man in a cowboy hat took me by surprise wearing shiney boots a beauty suit" this songs meaning is very strong. hank is a country music legend and will never be forgotten. this is kind of a tribute to hank from alan jackson

    pool_shark930on August 20, 2002   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    Hanks always singin' there its only obviouse that it's about Hank Williams. love the song and the video just gives you chills.

    Army123on August 20, 2006   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    Just a correction.

    He wore a Nudie suit, not a "beauty" suit. A suit designed by Nudie Cohn, who made famous suits for Hank Williams, Elvis, Gram Parsons, Porter Wagoner to name a few.

    CdnMapGirlon June 17, 2007   Link
  • 0
    Memory

    I once heard that during the video shoot was an experience Alan Jackson would never forget. The equipment - lights, camera, etc - would keep malfunctioning. AJ and the film crew believed there was a "presence" at the grave during filming, and a lot of the film turned out to be warped (most of it during shots of Hank's grave; it showed spectres, black blots, etc.) possibly proving they were correct. If I remember correctly, they had to go back and do a re-shoot but didn't encounter anymore problems.

    AvalonRoseon May 01, 2010   Link
  • 0
    My Opinion

    I personally LOVE this song. It is so haunting yet beautiful at the same time. As a fan of country music, the reference to Hank Williams Sr is done in a way which really makes you think, and adds to the mystery of the song. Whoever posted the lyrics, however needs to make some changes as there are multiple spelling errors as well as errors within the lyrics as posted by someone else.

    earthgoddesson October 04, 2010   Link

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