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.
Honey Hush
George Jones Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You look troubled and scared to death
And the chores you missed on your very long list
That won't let you catch your breath.
I know we've had some hard times
But I won't let that get in your way
Before you cry tonight and get up tight
Honey hush, turn the lights down low
Don't push so hard
Leave our cares and woes
And won't you please
Let me lead you across the floor.
Honey hush, it'll be alright
Don't you think we should discuss
Oh, but not tonight
We can worry in the mornin'
But right now, Honey hush.
--- Instrumental ---
Things don't change very easy
It's like our whole world is falling apart
But this love we share shows how much we care
We're forever joined at the heart.
I believe that we will get through this
Though we don't rightly know what to do
If there's a will there's a way with these bills to pay
As long as I know I've got you.
Honey hush, turn the lights down low
Don't push to hard
Leave your cares and woe
And dance with me
Let me lead you across the floor.
Honey hush, It'll be alright
Don't you think we
Oh, but not tonight
We can worry in the mornin'
But right now, Honey hush.
We can worry in the mornin'
But right now, Honey hush.
Honey hush...
The song “Honey Hush” by George Jones is a sincere message from a loving partner to their significant other, offering support, encouragement, and hope. The lyrics describe a situation where the partner seems exhausted and worried, with tasks piling up on their to-do list. However, the singer acknowledges the difficulties they have faced as a couple and the obstacles still to overcome but states that they will face these problems together. The chorus encourages the partner not to push too hard and to let go of their worries for the night. Instead, the singer suggests that they should have a moment of intimacy and enjoyment by dancing together, with all the lights dimmed.
The song's tone is compassionate and reflects the closeness of the relationship, but it is also poignant because the singer is aware of the relationship's challenges. Despite this, they remain optimistic that their love will conquer all. The last lines of the song, “We can worry in the mornin', but right now, Honey hush,” encapsulate this message, emphasizing the need to cherish the moment and take comfort in each other.
Line by Line Meaning
So many things are on your mind
You seem overwhelmed with many different thoughts.
You look troubled and scared to death
Your fear and concern is very evident in your appearance.
And the chores you missed on your very long list
You have an extensive to-do list, and you feel like you're falling behind.
That won't let you catch your breath.
You're struggling to keep up with everything, and it's taking a toll on you.
I know we've had some hard times
We've been through some difficult situations together.
But I won't let that get in your way
But I won’t allow those challenges to affect our relationship.
Before you cry tonight and get up tight
Before you become emotional and stressed out tonight,
There's one thing that I'd like to say.
I want to share one important thing with you.
Honey hush, turn the lights down low
Let's set the right ambiance and atmosphere for this moment.
Don't push so hard
Don't strain yourself and exert too much effort.
Leave our cares and woes
Let's forget about our problems and worries,
And won't you please
And could you kindly
Let me lead you across the floor.
Allow me to guide you as we dance together.
Honey hush, it'll be alright
Things will work out fine in the end,
Don't you think we should discuss
Don't you believe we need to talk about
Oh, but not tonight
But let's not do it this evening,
We can worry in the mornin'
We can address our concerns and troubles tomorrow,
But right now, Honey hush.
But for now, let's enjoy this moment in peace and quiet.
Things don't change very easy
It's not easy for things to change.
It's like our whole world is falling apart
It feels like everything is in complete chaos and disarray.
But this love we share shows how much we care
Our love for each other demonstrates just how much we care about one another.
We're forever joined at the heart.
Our connection and bond will never be broken.
I believe that we will get through this
I have faith that we will overcome these challenges.
Though we don't rightly know what to do
Even though we're not sure of the best course of action.
If there's a will there's a way with these bills to pay
As long as we remain determined, we'll find a way to pay our debts.
As long as I know I've got you.
Knowing that we have each other is all the assurance we need.
We can worry in the mornin'
We can address our concerns and troubles tomorrow,
But right now, Honey hush.
But for now, let's enjoy this moment in peace and quiet.
Honey hush...
Let's keep quiet and enjoy this moment in each other's arms.
Contributed by Lucy V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Lena Andersson
Thanks God for GEORGE JONES 🎤🎸🎼thanks Malla for THIS GREAT song BY the best "possum" 💗💗💗
Lori Riley
Love me some George Jones ❤️🇺🇸
Robert Keys
Hello Lori how are you doing and hope you're staying safe over there?
Laura Bradshaw
My God my whole body aches all over when I hear this man sing. What a voice God gave this man.
Robert Keys
Hello Laura how are you doing and hope you're staying safe over there?
Country at Heart
Love this song ♥️❤️
Robert Keys
Hello Debbie how are you doing and hope you're staying safe over there?
Ronda Rawson
Never heard this one...LOVE IT😇🙏❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
Robert Keys
Hello Rhonda how are you doing and hope you're staying safe over there?
Robert Keys
Hello Rhonda how are you doing and hope you're staying safe over there?