In this ever changing world of ours there are only two things
that are unchangeable - death and a George Jones song. I would venture
to say that if George ever recorded a song that didn't sound like
George Jones, the the apocalypse would be upon us, and I reckon I'd
sooner face death than for George to change.
The latest George Jones album incarnation It Don't Get
Any Better Than This, is an enlivened 11 cut set that swings back
to his early '80's stylings.
"Wild Irish Rose" the first single from the album, paints
a heart-wrenching picture of a Vietnam veteran lost to alcohol and
homeless.
Country's elite masters join George on the spirited title
cut, "It Don't Get Any Better Than This." Waylon, Willie, Haggard,
Bobby Bare and Johnny Cash weave their vocals throughout this backdoor
stab at country radio. Cash, who is still justifiably upset with country
radio gets in an added stab at the establishment by having his name
in the liner note credits listed as "Johnny Counterfeit."
The uptempo "Got To Get To Louisiana" features guest vocals
by T. Graham Brown, but "When Did You Stop Lovin' Me" is surely the
highlight of this album with its clear vintage 'tear-in-my-beer' sound.
What George Jones does best, no one else in country music
today even comes close to attaining and for that reason, when all
the others have come and gone, George can say through his music hundreds
of years from now that "I Can Live Forever."
-Charlton Wiggins
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