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.
Lonely Christmas Call
George Jones Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Writers George Jones and George Riddle
Copyright 1966
Won't you beckon to our lonely Christmas call?
You left a year ago this Christmas and we're wondering if you miss us.
Don't know why you up and left and went away.
The kids are lonely here without you, even wrote old Santa about you.
Don't you miss their arms around you? Do their memories surround you?
Don't you know it's not their fault things are this way?
Why not show consideration to the ones whose heart you're breaking?
Give them your gift of love this Christmas day.
If you could see their little faces, as round the tree they take their places,
They're looking for the biggest gift of all.
So why not show consideration to the ones whose heart you're breaking?
Won't you beckon to our lonely Christmas call?
The song Lonely Christmas Call by George Jones is a heartfelt plea from a family to a loved one who left them a year ago. They are wondering if he misses them, and why he left without any explanation. The kids are especially lonely without him, and they even wrote to Santa about their father's absence. The song is a plea to the absent father, to not leave them all alone on Christmas day.
The lyrics are full of emotion and speak to the pain of abandonment and longing for the absent father. The family is trying to understand why he left and hoping that he will come back and give them the gift of his love. The song captures the essence of the holiday season, which is all about love, togetherness, and forgiveness.
The use of the phrase "lonely Christmas call" in the title emphasizes the loneliness of the family without the father. It also suggests that the family has been trying to reach out to him, but he has not responded. The song is a poignant reminder of the importance of family, especially during the holiday season.
Line by Line Meaning
Won't you beckon to our lonely Christmas call?
We are asking you to respond to our plea for a fulfilling Christmas celebration with your presence.
You left a year ago this Christmas and we're wondering if you miss us.
We are curious if you feel absent from our Christmas celebration for the past year and if you're feeling regretful.
Don't know why you up and left and went away.
We are unsure why you suddenly departed from us without an explanation and that made us emotionally vulnerable.
The kids are lonely here without you, even wrote old Santa about you.
The children feel desolate without your presence during this time of joy and even wrote a letter to Santa asking for you to return.
Please don't leave them all alone this Christmas day.
We beg of you, do not abandon the children to celebrate Christmas by themselves.
Don't you miss their arms around you? Do their memories surround you?
Do you not miss the comfort and affection that the kids provided to you? Do you get reminded of your fond memories with them?
Don't you know it's not their fault things are this way?
We want to remind you that the children are innocent in this situation and it's not their fault that you left us.
Why not show consideration to the ones whose heart you're breaking?
We urge you to empathize with us and our children, whose emotions are in disarray after you've deserted us.
Give them your gift of love this Christmas day.
We ask you to shower your love and affection to our children, and be with us during this cherished holiday season.
If you could see their little faces, as round the tree they take their places, They're looking for the biggest gift of all.
The children are eagerly waiting for you to join them as they gather around the Christmas tree, and your presence is the biggest gift they could ever receive.
So why not show consideration to the ones whose heart you're breaking?
We repeat our plea to you, begging for you to empathize with our feelings and understand the pain that you've caused us.
Won't you beckon to our lonely Christmas call?
Once again, we ask you to heed our request and respond to our lonely Christmas call by joining us for the festive celebration.
Lyrics © GLAD MUSIC CO.
Written by: GEORGE JONES, GEORGIE RIDDLE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Millie Day
There will never be another with a voice like you George Jones ! <3
david willison
So true. He could even sing a christmas song and make it sound sad.
frances odle
For sure never be another George he came from the country voice those times are gone people don t sing like that these days.
Barb Blair
George Jones can make any song the best song ever! No other voice can ever compare to the Possum. Goodness I miss him!
Rickey Esliger
George jones saved my life. When times were hard he was n even now hes here singing now n he hits my heart very hard god bless you george jones. If only i had a way make music like you i would.
frances odle
Yes George can sing i love to hear George singing. The old songs his way some those songs he sings o my gosh. Magic George's voice no one could best him
Judy Hurdle
I just love this man voice he was an awesome soul RIP my love best country singer
Robin Ray Holmes
Another great song sang by one of the greatest singers ever.
CountrynIrish
Wonderful Song ! Love it ! It has a nice melody with great lyrics and his voice is just perfection ! Excellent Upload ! Thank you so much for sharing this fabulous song ! 5*****+
April S
he can make you cry even in a Christmas song