Country Music Singer, George Jones died Friday, April 28, 2013, at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee, he was 81. Jones was admitted to the hospital April 18, 2013, with a fever and irregular blood pressure, forcing him to cancel two shows.
He had a precise, expressive baritone voice. Jones appeared on the country charts 167 times. He had fourteen singles from “White Lightning” in 1959 to “I Always Get Lucky with You” in 1983; hit Number 1 on the Billboard chart. Approximately 20 more of his songs made it to the top five including “Why Baby Why,” his first national hit in 1955.
Frank Sinatra, Pete Townshend, Elvis Costello, James Taylor, and many others idolized Jones.
When Jones’s career was just beginning, he favored honky-tonk music, a traditional form of country. HE turned country-pop in the early 1970’s after marrying singer Tammy Wynette, returning to his original sound after they got divorced.
Jones’s love for liquor and cocaine were a part of his legend. Before he kicked his addiction, he had canceled numerous shows and earned the nickname “No-Show Jones.” He was also given the nickname, Possum, by Nashville disc jockeys because of his close set eyes and upturned nose.
Jones accepted the Kenney Center Honors, a lifetime achievement award, in 2008. He was also a recipient of the 2002 National Medal of Arts, the U.S. government’s highest honor for artist. Jones was also indicted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1992. Jones will be missed by many country music lovers.
