Lawton Williams

Songwriter Lawton Williams remains best remembered for Bobby Helms' "Fraulein," a crossover smash that topped the country charts in the spring of 1957. Born July 24, 1922, in Troy, TN, Williams was the son of a sharecropper who moonlighted as a fiddle player with local string bands. A devout fan of radio's Grand Ole Opry, he worshiped Roy Acuff and Gene Autry, and as a teen taught himself guitar. While stationed in Houston during World War II, Williams befriended country singer Floyd Tillman, whose insight and advice were instrumental in nurturing his latent songwriting skills...