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.
Wrong
George Jones Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Some men look for gold
I'm just trying to find myself
Before I get too old
Different people have their ways
Of measuring success
Maybe it's not the right way but wrong's what I do best
Straight to where I don't belong
One time I even tried to love one woman
But that didn't last too long
If my ship was docking in the east
You can bet I'd be headin' west
Right in the wrong direction
'Cause wrong's what I do best
When I'm down and out
And kicked about, I feel right at home
When I got the blues and it's all bad news
That's when I'm in my comfort zone
Well, If they held a loser's playoff
Well, there'd be no contest
'Cause I've had lots of practice
And wrong's what I do best
If my ship was docking in the east
You can bet I'd be heading west
I'm right in the wrong direction
'Cause wrong's what I do best
Right in the wrong direction
'Cause wrong's what I do best
The lyrics to George Jones’s What I Do Best are a reflection on the singer’s personal struggles and faults. The lyrics indicate that while people have their own definitions of success, George’s search for it is a little different from others. He is not searching for materialistic things like diamonds or gold. Instead, he is searching for himself before it's too late.
George then goes on to describe his struggle with staying on the straight and narrow path. He admits to making mistakes and not really fitting into the standards of society. He talks about trying to love one woman but failing, which could signify that he has been unable to maintain a successful relationship. He also talks about how if his ship was docking in the east, he’d head west, implying that he has a tendency to make bad decisions.
Despite being considered a “loser,” George finds comfort in his struggles, making him feel as though he’s in his comfort zone. The song ends with George reaffirming the fact that he’s right in the wrong direction and that wrong is what he does best. In essence, George’s search for himself is flawed, and he realizes that he hasn’t been successful in living up to society’s standards; therefore, he has accepted his shortcomings and is comfortable with his wrongdoings.
Line by Line Meaning
Some men look for diamonds
There are people who spend their time seeking material wealth and status.
Some men look for gold
Some people pursue riches and all its glamour.
I'm just trying to find myself Before I get too old
Rather than material wealth, the artist is trying to establish his true identity before it's too late.
Different people have their ways Of measuring success
Everyone has a unique way of evaluating their achievements.
Maybe it's not the right way but wrong's what I do best
The artist might not be following the correct path to succeed, but he's good at recognizing his failures.
Well, I walk the straight and narrow Straight to where I don't belong
He always tries to do the right thing, but he ends up in situations that he's not comfortable with.
One time I even tried to love one woman But that didn't last too long
The only attempt he made in doing the right thing by trying to love one person resulted in failure.
If my ship was docking in the east You can bet I'd be headin' west
Even if he knows what the correct route is, he tends to take the opposite path.
Right in the wrong direction 'Cause wrong's what I do best
He's good at always choosing the wrong path, even though he knows his true calling.
When I'm down and out And kicked about, I feel right at home
In situations where he's stressed, things feel regular to him.
When I got the blues and it's all bad news That's when I'm in my comfort zone
He understands that being sad and upset is his 'sweet spot,' and it's here where he thrives.
Well, If they held a loser's playoff Well, there'd be no contest
If he was in a tournament for losing, he'd win hands down.
’Cause I’ve had lots of practice And wrong's what I do best
He's experienced so much adversity that he's learned to be at peace with taking bad decisions.
I'm right in the wrong direction 'Cause wrong's what I do best
His strength is that he can remain consistent and authentic in the face of his failures.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Dickey Lee, Freddy Weller, Michael Alan Campbell
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Natty Jones
There can never be a musician As good as George Jones
KatK1960
You obviously have not heard of Cody Jinks!
Bill Mathews
@KatK1960not even a contest george blows him out of the water
Stone Cold Country Podcast & Blog
George's life was a country song. So grateful he blessed us with his voice.
John Land
I agree with that listen him all my life I am 53 know
Dun Can
So blessed he gave me this song when i was born. 28 now
appalachian knight
It seems like George was singing te soundtrack for my life. Anyone else feel the same way? God how I'll miss him.
Barb Byerly
Me, too. Nothing else, at least I'm consistent...
Ryan McCully Mothafukars
Yeah
Robert Shaw
Yes always felt the same way you do