Thomas T. Hall (born May 25, 1936) is an American country music songwriter, singer, instrumentalist, novelist, and short-story writer. He has written 12 No. 1 hit songs, with 26 more that reached the Top 10, including the No. 1 international pop crossover smash "Harper Valley PTA" and the hit "I Love," which reached No. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100. He is included in Rolling Stones list of 100 Greatest Songwriters. He became known to fans as "The Storyteller," thanks to his storytelling skills in his songwriting.
Hall was born in Olive Hill, Kentucky, United States. As a teenager, he organized a band called the Kentucky Travelers that performed before movies for a traveling theater. During a stint in the Army, Hall performed over the Armed Forces Radio Network and wrote comic songs about Army experiences. Following his time in the army he used the G.I. Bill program to enlist in Roanoke College, where he worked as a disc jockey. His early career included being a radio announcer at WRON, a local radio station in Ronceverte, West Virginia. Hall was also an announcer at WMOR 1330AM in Morehead, Kentucky. Hall was also an announcer at WSPZ, which later became WVRC Radio in Spencer, West Virginia, in the 1960s.