He Stopped Loving Her Today

Infobox Song
Name = He Stopped Loving Her Today


Border =
Caption =
Type =
Artist = George Jones
alt Artist =
Album = I Am What I Am
Published =
Released = March 1980
track_no = 1
Recorded =
Genre = Country
Length = 3:15
Writer = Bobby Braddock
Curly Putman
Composer =
Label = Epic Records
Producer = Billy Sherrill
George Jones
Tracks =
# "He Stopped Loving Her Today" – 3:19
# "I've Aged Twenty Years in Five" – 3:19
# "Brother to the Blues" – 2:53
# "If Drinkin' Don't Kill Me (Her Memory Will)" – 3:13
# "His Lovin' Her Is Gettin' in My Way" – 2:32
# "I'm Not Ready Yet" – 3:00
# "I'm the One She Missed Him With Today" – 3:02
# "Good Hearted Woman" – 3:00
# "A Hard Act to Follow" – 2:07
# "Bone Dry" – 2:18
# "I'm a Fool for Loving Her" – 3:26
# "Am I Losing Your Memory or Mine?" – 3:35
# "The Ghost of Another Man" – 3:09
# "It's All in My Mind" – 2:44
prev =
prev_no =
next = "I've Aged Twenty Years in Five"
next_no = 2
Misc = Infobox Single
Name = He Stopped Loving Her Today


Artist = George Jones
from Album = I Am What I Am
B-side =
Released = March 1980
Format =
Recorded =
Genre = Country
Length = 03:15
Label = Epic Records
Writer = Bobby Braddock
Curly Putman
Producer = Billy Sherrill
George Jones
Certification =
Last single =
This single = "He Stopped Loving Her Today"
(1980)
Next single =
"He Stopped Loving Her Today" is a song by country music artist George Jones that has been named in some surveys as the greatest country song of all time.Fact|date=June 2007 It was a single on the album "I Am What I Am". Released in 1980, the song was Jones's first #1 single in six years. The melancholy song was written by Bobby Braddock and Curly Putman.

It is about a man who was betrayed by his lover. Despite her actions, he never stopped loving her the rest of his life – the day he stopped loving her turned out to be the day he died.

Jones stated in a 2002 Country Music Television interview that he told the producer he "...would record the song," but did not think it would sell "because it [was] too sad." Jones also bet the record producer that it would do poorly. Jones gladly lost his bet, for it would be the biggest hit of his career and for nearly three decades would be his trademark song.

The song was recorded in Nashville, Tennessee at CBS Studio B. The recording process was lengthy. Jones was frequently intoxicated and later said in an interview that the four spoken lines of the song had to be recorded over and over because he could not speak without slurring his words.

Jones credits the song with reviving his flagging career, stating that "a four-decade career had been salvaged by a three-minute song." George Jones earned the Grammy Award for Best Male Country Vocal Performance in 1980. The Academy of Country Music awarded the song Single of the Year and Song of the Year in 1980. It also became the Country Music Association's Song of the Year in both 1980 and 1981. This was only the second time that the same song won this honor two years in a row. (The first instance was the song "Easy Loving", sung by Freddie Hart.)

In 2003, CMT ranked this song #2 on its "100 Greatest Songs in Country Music". In 2004, CMT ranked it #13 on its "100 Greatest Country Love Songs". Other surveys have shown it as the #1 country song of all time.Fact|date=June 2007

Other versions

* On Shooter Jennings' 2005 album "Put the "O" Back in Country", George sings the chorus of "He Stopped Loving Her Today" at the end of the track "4th Of July". (Jones' guest appearance was removed from the song's radio edit.)
* George Canyon covered the song for his 2007 album "Classics".
* Josh Turner covered the song in 2006 for his Cracker Barrel Exclusive album live from the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville.
* Trent Summar & The New Row Mob covered the song on their 2006 album "Horseshoes & Hand Grenades".
* David Allan Coe recorded a version in the 1980s.
* A version appears by Johnny Cash on the "Unearthed" set.

External links

* [http://www.hestoppedlovinghertoday.com He Stopped Loving Her Today Official Website]
* [http://mixonline.com/mag/audio_george_jones_stopped/ The Story Behind The Song]
* [http://bosqueboys.com/index.php?itemid=34/ The Perfect Country Song?] from the Bosque Boys [http://bosqueboys.com/]