The Billboard Cover Story: George Jones - Country's King
From his first Billboard hit in 1955 to his last in 2011, Jones defined country music
George Jones--the singer who defined an era of country music and along the way influenced almost every artist in the format who followed--was born Sept. 12, 1931, in Saratoga, Texas. Music took a hold early, as Jones recalled asking his mother to wake him on Saturday nights if he was asleep when Roy Acuff came on WSM's Grand Ole Opry broadcast. Before he was even 10 years old, he was playing his guitar for tips on the streets of nearby Beaumont.
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