 |
 |
WINNIPEG - George Jones, this is your life. It sure felt like an episode of the famous 1950s television show at the MTS Centre last night as 6,000 elderly fans were treated to a career retrospective by the Possum, with songs, photos and stories from throughout his 50 years in the music business.
Jones let his longtime six-piece backing band, The Jones Boys, and vocalists Barry Smith and Sheri Copeland get the crowd ready for his appearance with some filler, while pictures from Jones' lengthy career scrolled by on the video screen behind them.
When the man known as No Show Jones stepped on stage he got right down to business with his first single from 1955, Why Baby Why.
But why wasn't the question: it was more like what happened? What happened to your voice George?
When Jones last appeared in Winnipeg two years ago his voice was still as smooth as the liquor he used to love as much as women. Last night it was evident time has caught up with him, even though he recently quit smoking.
His range has diminished and cracked, whether he was singing in his famous deep register or reaching for higher notes.
|
The crowd didn't seem to notice though, maybe because they couldn't always hear him. The sound system was so quiet the chatter of the crowd in the back was louder than the band at times.
Jones may have lost some of his vocal talents, but there's no denying the quality of the material, which covered the spectrum from upbeat honky-tonk to sentimental ballads to old-school twang.
The songs were a cross-section of his career, with classics such as A Picture of Me (Without You) and The Right Left Hand mixed with newer material like Choices and Sinners & Saints.
Along with the abundance of love songs, Jones delivered a touching tribute to country music legends during Who's Gonna Fill Their Shoes?, while images of the stars flashed on the video screen.
Some of the show came across as a bit of a late-night sales pitch, with several offers for audience members to purchase new albums and concert-exclusives. You didn't even have to get up -- just hold up your hand and the product would be delivered right to your seat.
After seeing Jones live this time around, maybe it makes sense to pick up that 50-year collection and remember him at his peak.
Ronnie Prophet opened the show with a half-hour set of musical stand-up comedy.
The Juno-winner was well-known to many in the crowd as the former host of 1970's television shows Country Roads and Grand Old Country.
Lately he's been spending most of his time in the theatre city of Branson, Mo.
The witty 67-year-old kept the crowd amused with impersonations of musicians, actors, cartoon characters, clean jokes and re-interpretations of old country hits.