5 Years Ago Today, Country Music Lost the Master Storyteller Behind “Harper Valley PTA” and Countless Unforgettable Songs

August 20, 2026, 6:20pm

On this day (August 20) in 2021, Tom T. Hall died by suicide in his Franklin, Tennessee, home at the age of 85. He was a legendary songwriter who penned hits for himself and other artists throughout the 1960s and ’70s. Moreover, he helped to revive the storytelling aspect of country music with a long list of songs that unfold like novels with unforgettable plots and characters.

Hall started writing stories and poems long before he started writing songs. While serving in the Army in the 1950s, he began working his humor and narrative-building skills into songs.

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When he returned to the United States, Hall took advantage of the G.I. Bill and enrolled at Roanoke College to study journalism. While there, he also worked at various radio stations as a disc jockey and announcer. According to the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, he was working as a DJ when he was discovered. Before long, he had a publishing deal with Newkeys Music–operated by Jimmy C. Newman and Jimmy Key–and began turning out hit singles. His first came in 1963, when Newman took “DJ for a Day” to the top 10. A year later, Dave Dudley gave Hall his second top 10 hit with “Mad.”

He penned several more hit songs throughout the decade. However, none were as successful as “Harper Valley PTA.” Jeannie C. Riley took the song to the top of the country and pop charts in 1968. It sold millions of copies and inspired a feature film and a TV series. The song also boosted Hall’s recording career.

Tom T. Hall’s Recording Career

Tom T. Hall had released a handful of moderately successful singles before “Harper Valley PTA” became a hit. Then, in 1968, “Ballad of Forty Dollars” went to No. 4, giving Hall his first top 10 hit. A year later, “A Week in County Jail” became his first chart-topper.

He carried that momentum into the 1970s, notching multiple major hits throughout the decade. Hall’s No. 1 singles from the decade include “The Year That Clayton Delaney Died,” “Country Is,” “I Love,” “(Old Dogs, Children, and) Watermelon Wine,” “I Care,” and “Faster Horses (The Cowboy and the Poet).”

A Collection of Timeless Stories Set to Music

Tom T. Hall earned the nickname “The Storyteller” from the content of his songs. Over the years, many artists took the stories he wrote and sent them up the country chart. Below are a few highlights from his extensive catalog.