George Jones- His Voice Shall Live Forever

Country-folk singer George Jones passed away a few weeks ago at the grand age of 81, after being hospitalized with a fever and irregular blood pressure, but his career will go down as iconic. Jones was known even to the layman as a country musician, which says quite a bit in a day and age when country-folk is a seemingly dying genre in the face of hip-hop and metal. . To dyed-in-the-wool lovers of country, however, Mr. Jones was a king. Though the road to stardom was fraught with personal struggles and professional avalanches, he left us wondering the question, “Who’s going to fill his shoes?”

Beginning his life deep in the heart of Texas, by way of Saratoga, Jones was introduced to music at an early age. After listening to country music for the first time on the family’s radio at the age of seven and receiving his first guitar at the age of nine,  Jones quickly moved on to earning pocket money as a street performer.

And from these humble roots began the career of one of the greats.

Upon leaving home at the age of sixteen and settling roots back down in Jasper, Jones quickly made a small name for himself by singing and playing his guitar on the local radio station. At the age of 19 he married his first wife Dorothy, but in a pattern that would follow him throughout his life he promptly divorced her within a year. Following this, and with the Korean War at full force, Jones felt the need to wear the cloth of his nation and enlist in the Marine Corps. Luckily for him, he managed to spend the entirety of his service in California. It was after his honorable discharge that his music career officially began in earnest.

But the road to stardom wasn’t without its bumps.

George Jones became known for his rollercoaster lifestyle just as much as his sonorous voice and contemplative lyricism. His alcoholism became especially intertwined with his onstage persona of being a rough and tumble songwriter, but that was only the beginning of what would make the ‘70s one of the most professionally outstanding and yet personally tumultuous times in his life. Coinciding with penning some of the most iconic country songs to date, such as “A Good Year for the Roses” and “If Drinking Don’t Kill Me (Her Memory Will),” his personal life took hit after hit with substance abuse, multiple divorces, and even a stint in a psychiatric hospital. He became known as “No Show Jones,” due to his notorious penchant for skipping out on appearances and shows. But he continued to persevere, with continuous support from his devoted fans, friends and family, most notably among his friends Johnny Cash and Waylon Jennings.

And the next decade would prove that it was well worth standing by him.

With the onset of the ‘80s and marrying his fourth and final wife in Nancy Jones (nee Sepulvedo), Jones’ life began an upward spiral towards success and happiness that would be difficult to match.  Creating classic album after classic album with the MCA label, he quickly shed the “No-Show” nickname that had plagued him before. Despite occasional relapses from his hard-earned sobriety, a late-‘90s automobile accident caused him to turn from alcohol for good.

In his lifetime, Jones was honored with a multitude of awards. A multi-time Grammy award winner and “Male Vocalist of the Year,” he was also inducted into two different Hall of Fames, and was presented with the U.S. National Medal of the Arts and a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. With his various awards, coupled with the accolades bestowed upon him by such various fellow legends as Frank Sinatra, Waylon Jennings, and Keith Richards, his status as a king of country music is ironclad.

With admirers from all walks of life and all genres of music, Jones’ legacy shall live on, in both our hearts, and the radio.