Born in Texas, Jones first heard country music when he was seven, and was given a guitar at the age of nine. He married his first wife, Dorothy Bonvillion, in 1950, and was divorced in 1951. He served in the United States Marine Corps and was discharged in 1953. He married Shirley Ann Corley in 1954. In 1959, Jones recorded "White Lightning", written by J. P. Richardson, which launched his career as a singer. His second marriage ended in divorce in 1968; he married fellow country music singer Tammy Wynette a year later. Years of alcoholism compromised his health and led to his missing many performances, earning him the nickname "No Show Jones". After his divorce from Wynette in 1975, Jones married his fourth wife, Nancy Sepulvado, in 1983 and became sober for good in 1999. Jones died in 2013, aged 81, from hypoxic respiratory failure.
George Jones has been called "The Rolls Royce Of Country Music" and had more than 160 chart singles to his name from 1955 until his death in 2013. Johnny Cash once said, "When people ask me who my favorite country singer is, I say, 'You mean besides George Jones?'"
Jones tirelessly defended the integrity of country music, telling Billboard in 2006, "It's never been for love of money. I thank God for it because it makes me a living. But I sing because I love it, not because of the dollar signs." Jones also went out of his way to promote younger country singers that he felt were as passionate about the music as he was. "Everybody knows he's a great singer," Alan Jackson stated in 1995, "but what I like most about George is that when you meet him, he is like some old guy that works down at the gas station...even though he's a legend!"
Shortly after Jones' death, Andrew Mueller wrote about his influence in Uncut, "He was one of the finest interpretive singers who ever lifted a microphone...There cannot be a single country songwriter of the last 50-odd years who has not wondered what it might be like to hear their words sung by that voice." In an article for The Texas Monthly in 1994, Nick Tosches eloquently described the singer's vocal style: "While he and his idol, Hank Williams, have both affected generations with a plaintive veracity of voice that has set them apart, Jones has an additional gift—a voice of exceptional range, natural elegance, and lucent tone. Gliding toward high tenor, plunging toward deep bass, the magisterial portamento of his onward-coursing baritone emits white-hot sparks and torrents of blue, investing his poison love songs with a tragic gravity and inflaming his celebrations of the honky-tonk ethos with the hellfire of abandon." In the New Republic essay "Why George Jones ranks with Frank Sinatra and Billie Holiday," David Hajdu writes:
"Jones had a handsome and strange voice. His singing was always partly about the appeal of the tones he produced, regardless of the meaning of the words. In this sense, Jones had something in common with singers of formal music and opera, though his means of vocal production were radically different from theirs. He sang from the back of his throat, rather than from deep in his diaphragm. He tightened his larynx to squeeze sound out. He clenched his jaw, instead of wriggling it free. He forced wind through his teeth, and the notes sounded weirdly beautiful."
David Cantwell recalled in 2013, "His approach to singing, he told me once, was to call up those memories and feelings of his own that most closely corresponded to those being felt by the character in whatever song he was performing. He was a kind of singing method actor, creating an illusion of the real." In the liner notes to Essential George Jones: The Spirit of Country Rich Kienzle states, "Jones sings of people and stories that are achingly human. He can turn a ballad into a catharsis by wringing every possible emotion from it, making it a primal, strangled cry of anguish". In 1994, country music historian Colin Escott pronounced, "Contemporary country music is virtually founded on reverence for George Jones. Walk through a room of country singers and conduct a quick poll, George nearly always tops it." In the wake of Jones's death, Merle Haggard pronounced in Rolling Stone, "His voice was like a Stradivarius violin: one of the greatest instruments ever made." Emmylou Harris wrote, "when you hear George Jones sing, you are hearing a man who takes a song and makes it a work of art - always," a quote that appeared on the sleeve of Jones' 1976 album The Battle. In the documentary Same Ole Me, several country music stars offer similar thoughts. Randy Travis: "It sounds like he's lived every minute of every word that he sings and there's very few people who can do that"; Tom T. Hall: "It was always Jones who got the message across just right"; and Roy Acuff: "I'd give anything if I could sing like George Jones". In the same film, producer Billy Sherrill states, "All I did was change the instrumentation around him. I don't think he's changed at all."
On June 25, 2019, The New York Times Magazine listed George Jones among hundreds of artists whose material was reportedly destroyed in the 2008 Universal fire.
Family Bible
George Jones Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Each [Am] page is torn and [D] hard to [G7] read
But [C] The Fam'ly [F] Bible on the [C] table
Will [F] ever be my [C] key to [G] memo-[C] ries.
[C] At the close of [F] day when work was [C] over
And [Am] when the evening [D] meal was [G7] done
Dad would [C] read to us [F] from The Fam'ly [C] Bible
Refrain:
I can [F] see us [Bb] sittin' 'round the [F] table
When from The Fam'ly Bible Dad would [C] read
(1) I can hear my [F] mother softly [C] singing
(2) I can hear my [F] mama softly [C] singing
Rock of Ages, [F] Rock of [C] Ages [G7] cleft for [C] me.
This old world of ours is full of troubles
But this world would oh, so better be
If we'd find more Bibles on the table
And mothers singing Rock of Ages cleft for me.
Refrain:
The lyrics of "Family Bible" by George Jones speak of the importance of the family Bible in the lives of the people in the singer's family. The song expresses nostalgia for the days when the family would gather around the table, and the father would read from the Bible after dinner. The images of torn pages and hard-to-read letters on the pages indicate that the family Bible has been used, loved, and treasured over the years. For the singer, the family Bible serves as a key to memories of happy times spent in the family's company.
The lyrics depict a happy, close-knit family, who took comfort and solace from their faith. The song's refrain speaks of the singer's mother singing "Rock of Ages" while gathered around the table with her family. The image of the mother singing softly evokes a feeling of warmth and tenderness that is palpable in the lyrics. The song speaks to the idea that a family's faith can provide a foundation of stability and love in a world that is full of troubles.
Overall, "Family Bible" speaks to the power of tradition, family, and faith in providing a sense of meaning and purpose in life. The lyrics suggest that the family Bible served as a source of comfort, guidance, and inspiration for the singer and his family, and that it continues to do so today.
Line by Line Meaning
There's A Fam'ly Bible on the table
There's a Bible at home that is very important to the family.
Each page is torn and hard to read
The Bible is old and worn out, making it difficult to read.
But The Fam'ly Bible on the table
Despite its condition, the Bible is still treasured and valued by the family.
Will ever be my key to memories.
The Bible is a source of cherished memories for the singer.
At the close of day when work was over
At the end of the day when work was done.
And when the evening meal was done
After dinner.
Dad would read to us from The Fam'ly Bible
The singer's father would read from the family Bible to the family.
And we'd count our many blessings one by one.
The family would reflect on their blessings while listening to the Bible readings.
I can see us sittin' 'round the table
The singer remembers fondly the times when the family would gather around the table to read the Bible.
When from The Fam'ly Bible Dad would read
The father would read from the family Bible during these times.
I can hear my mother softly singing
The singer remembers his mother singing during these family gatherings.
I can hear my mama softly singing
The same as the above line, just using a different word for mother.
Rock of Ages, Rock of Ages cleft for me.
The mother would sing the hymn 'Rock of Ages'.
This old world of ours is full of troubles
The world can be a difficult place.
But this world would oh, so better be
The world would be a better place if there were more Bibles in it.
If we'd find more Bibles on the table
If more families had Bibles on their tables, the world would be a better place.
And mothers singing Rock of Ages cleft for me.
The mother's singing of 'Rock of Ages' is a symbol of the importance of faith in making the world a better place.
Lyrics © GLAD MUSIC CO., Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Willie Nelson
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Kathleen Murray
Praise God for this song!!
Alan Humphrey
Truly our families need to be reading the Bible more today than ever before!!!
Bear
One of my favorite songs of all time. And what a wonderful performance George did.
Leslie Fontenelle
No one else does that song like George. Unforgettable.
Phoebe Fugate
love love this song family bible Thank you Mr George Jones ,for giving us such beautiful songs
Roger Redferin
Love George Jones and this song
Daniel Burns
this song went to #16 on the country charts in 1961!!!
Fred Pickett
What a beautiful song By one of the best. R.I.P. George.
okie fan
thank you Mr . Jones today we laid my grandfather to rest this was one of his favorite songs every time i hear it i can think of him he was the best man i have ever known so thnx for the memories and the way tostay connected with loved ones
rnorwood1946
Thanks to Willie Nelson for this one.