Uber-classic George Jones

Further down on this page I blogged an entry with some Willie Nelson tunes, but they aren't real country music, and I've been feeling a mite guilty. For classic country music one needs to listen to George Jones.

I do understand that not everyone like the genre, at least not when they're sober. There are, however, certain pieces of music that everyone should have a passing acquaintance with. You don't have to like opera to be impressed by Paul Potts' rendition of Nessun Dorma. The Ashokan Farewell should be familiar, which when accompanying Sullivan Ballou's letter should bring a tear to your eye. You have to recognize the voice of Edith Piaf.

For country music, one of the consensus legends is George Jones. Embedded above is a YouTube video of his rendition of "He Stopped Loving Her Today." Below is a somewhat-better-fidelity studio rendition of the same piece in MP3 format.