Greatest hard-core country singer of his generation. His vocal quirks and decorative gulps are the cliche of hurting country today. Of course he's open to criticism on a personal level and vulnerable to decline with age, etc., but he has recorded dozens of essential heartbroken hits over the last 50 years. Imagine how shallow mid-century country music would have been without "Window Up Above," "She Thinks I Still Care," "We Must have been Out of our Minds," "A Good Year for the Roses" and ...how many others would you like? Elvis Costello, for one, knows a good singer and songwriter when he hears one, and he loves to do George Jones songs. With the exception of Merle Haggard, George Jones is simply all that true country has left.