Jones grew up in East Texas, near the city of Beaumont.
He developed an interest in music at a young age. He liked the gospel music he heard in church and on the Carter Family records, but he became obsessed with country music when his family bought him a radio when he was seven.
His father gave him his first guitar when he was nine years old. Jones’ father soon had him playing and singing on the streets of Beaumont for spare change. He ran away at the age of 16 to Jasper, Texas, where he sang on a local radio station.
Jones married Dorothy, his first wife, in 1950, when he was 19 years old. After a year of marriage, he enlisted in the Marines at the end of 1951. Despite the fact that the United States was at war with Korea, Jones was stationed at a military camp in California, where he continued to sing in bars. Jones resumed performing as soon as he was released.
Jones was discovered in 1953 by record producer Pappy Daily, who was also a co-owner of the local Texas label Starday Records. Daily signed Jones to Starday after being impressed by his potential. Jones’ first single, “No Money in This Deal,” was released in early 1954 but received little attention. That year, Starday released three more singles, all of which were ignored. Late in the summer of 1955, Jones released “Why, Baby, Why,” which became his first hit, peaking at number four. Its momentum was halted, however, by a cover version by Webb Pierce and Red Sovine, which reached number one on the country charts.
Did George Jones ever have a number-one hit?
The Door. This song was written for Jones by producer Billy Sherrill and Norro Wilson, and it served as one of his most dramatic performances. It reached number one in early 1975, becoming his final solo chart-topper before “He Stopped Loving Her Today” in 1980.
