Background
Jones and Wynette had divorced in 1975 but they had enjoyed their biggest chart success from that point on,with their 1976 LP Golden Ring hitting number one and spawning two chart topping singles,"Golden Ring" and "Near You". In 1977 they had another top five hit with "Southern California". Their periodic appearances together only fueled speculation among their fans that they might get back together romantically,although this cooled somewhat when Wynette married songwriter George Richey in 1978 and Jones spiraled into an abyss of alcohol and drugs,often disappearing for weeks on end. The couple could still be civil,however,with Wynette contributing to Jones 1979 duet album My Very Special Guests,and some kind of album seemed likely. In September,Together Again was released and produced the hit single "Two Story House",which peaked at number 2 on the charts. The song details how a poor married couple finally obtain all the riches they had dreamed of only to find that their love has died. The duo's harmonies were as shimmering as ever but the LP only reached number 26 on the Billboard country album charts. A second single,"A Pair of Old Sneakers",barely cracked the top twenty. One song,"Love in the Meantime",sounded more like a solo spot for Tammy than a duet,with George only singing harmony on the choruses. Producer Billy Sherrill gave an extremely contemporary edge (for the time) to several of the songs,especially the album's closing track "Night Spell". "We'll Talk About It Later" was written by Wynette,who also had a hand in writing "Two Story House".
In the 2019 Ken Burns documentary Country Music,Sherrill,recalling this period,compared Jones and Wynette to "two wounded animals."
Reception
While "Two Story House" was riding high on the charts,Jones and Wynette made a disastrous appearance on The Tonight Show to promote it. In his book George Jones:The Life and Times of a Honky Tonk Legend,Bob Allen recounts the episode:"George showed up with an ill-suited "uptown" hairdo that had been slapped on him at the last minute by an image consultant,and which made him look like something off the set of Night of the Living Dead...Before the two of them were even halfway through the song,George stopped suddenly,without warning,and confessed sheepishly to the vast live TV audience that he'd forgotten the words. The cameras panned briskly away. The programmers broke for a dog-food commercial,and the Possum was seen no more that night."
Jones himself hated having to work with Wynette so soon after their marriage had failed. "That wasn't my idea," Jones later insisted in his 1996 autobiography. "In fact,I hated to work with her. It brought back too many unpleasant memories,and when some fans saw us together,they got it in their heads that we were going to get back together romantically." It would be over a decade more before Jones was comfortable around Wynette again.
AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine retrospectively concedes that Together Again "doesn't have the spark of some of their earlier duets" but both of the singers "sound terrific...Even when the material isn't up to their talents,the duo sounds recharged,which makes Together Again a thoroughly enjoyable,if inconsistent,listen."
Tammy Wynette was an American country music artist, as well as an actress and author. She is considered among the genre's most influential and successful artists. Wynette helped bring a woman's perspective to the male-dominated country music field that helped other women find representation in the genre. Her characteristic vocal delivery has been acclaimed by critics, journalists and writers for conveying unique emotion. Twenty of her singles topped the Billboard country chart during her career. Her signature song "Stand by Your Man" received both acclaim and criticism for its portrayal of women's loyalty towards their husbands.
George Glenn Jones was an American country musician, singer, and songwriter. He achieved international fame for his long list of hit records, including his best-known song "He Stopped Loving Her Today", as well as his distinctive voice and phrasing. For the last two decades of his life, Jones was frequently referred to as the greatest living country singer. Country music scholar Bill Malone writes, "For the two or three minutes consumed by a song, Jones immerses himself so completely in its lyrics, and in the mood it conveys, that the listener can scarcely avoid becoming similarly involved." The shape of his nose and facial features earned Jones the nickname "The Possum". Jones has been called "The Rolls Royce of Country Music" and had more than 160 chart singles to his name from 1955 until his death in 2013.
Billy Norris Sherrill was an American record producer, songwriter, and arranger best known for his association with country artists, notably Tammy Wynette and George Jones. Sherrill and business partner Glenn Sutton are regarded as the defining influences of the countrypolitan sound, a smooth amalgamation of pop and country music that was popular during the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Sherrill also co-wrote many hit songs, including "Stand by Your Man" and "The Most Beautiful Girl".
One is the ninth and final studio album by American country music artists George Jones and Tammy Wynette. This album was released on June 20, 1995 on the MCA Nashville Records label. It was Jones and Wynette's first album together in 15 years; it would also turn out to be their last album together. The album was Wynette's last studio album she would record before her death in 1998.
You Oughta Be Here with Me is an album by American country music singer George Jones. This album was released in 1990 on Epic Records. It includes the singles "Hell Stays Open " and "Six Foot Deep, Six Foot Down", neither of which charted.
My Very Special Guests is a duet album by American country music artist George Jones released in 1979 on the Epic Records label.
Golden Ring is the seventh studio album by American country music artists George Jones and Tammy Wynette, released in August 1976 on the Epic Records label. It reached No. 1 on the Billboard Country Album chart. The singles "Near You" and "Golden Ring" both reached No. 1 on the Country Singles chart.
The Grand Tour is an album by the American country music artist George Jones, released in 1974 as his fifth album for Epic Records. It peaked at #11 on the Billboard Country Albums chart and contained the hit title track, which reached a peak of #1 in August 1974.
Let's Build a World Together is the fourth studio album by the country music artists George Jones and Tammy Wynette. The album was released in 1973 on the Epic Records label. It peaked at number 12 on the Billboard Country Albums chart.
Me and the First Lady is the second studio album by country music artists George Jones and Tammy Wynette, released on August 7, 1972, on the Epic Records label.
We Go Together is the first studio album by American country music artists George Jones and Tammy Wynette. This album was released on October 18, 1971 on the Epic Records label. This is Jones' first album with Epic and his then wife Tammy Wynette. This is also Jones' first album with producer Billy Sherrill.
I'll Share My World with You is an album by American country music artist George Jones. This album was released in 1969 on the Musicor Records label. Tammy Wynette, who married Jones that year, is pictured on the cover.
Walk Through This World with Me is an album by American country music artist George Jones released in 1967 on the Musicor Records label.
"Golden Ring" is a song written by Bobby Braddock and Rafe Van Hoy, and recorded by American country music singers George Jones and Tammy Wynette. It was released in May 1976 as the first single and title track to their duet album of the same name. It was a number-one hit on the Billboard country chart.
"The Door" is a song written by Billy Sherrill and Norro Wilson, and recorded by American country music artist George Jones. It was released in October 1974 as the first single from the album The Best of George Jones. "The Door" was George Jones' sixth number one on the country chart as a solo artist. The single stayed a single week at number one and would spend a total of ten weeks on the country chart.
"Take Me" is a song written by George Jones and Leon Payne. Jones originally released the song on the Musicor label in 1966 and scored a No. 8 hit. However, the song is best remembered for being the first single release by Jones and his third wife Tammy Wynette in 1971 on Epic Records. That version was also a top ten hit, peaking at No. 9.
"The Ceremony" is a duet by country artists George Jones and Tammy Wynette. It was released by Epic Records as the married couple's second single together in 1972 and reached No. 6 on the Billboard country survey.
"Southern California" is a song written by George Richey, Billy Sherrill and Roger Bowling, recorded by American country music artists George Jones and Tammy Wynette. It was released in June 1977 as the first single from their Greatest Hits. The reached number five on the Billboard country chart.
The Ways to Love a Man is a studio album by American country artist, Tammy Wynette. It was released on January 26, 1970 via Epic Records and was the seventh studio album in Wynette's career. The disc consisted of 11 tracks which included both original material and cover recordings. Its title track was the album's only single included. It became a number one song on the North American country charts while also reaching chart positions in other musical genres as well. The album itself also reached chart positions on the country albums chart following its release. Critics and journalists gave the album a positive reception in the years that followed.
My Elusive Dreams is a studio album by American country artists David Houston and Tammy Wynette. It was released on Epic Records in August 1967 and contained ten tracks. It was the duo's first and only collaborative album together. My Elusive Dreams contained mostly duets between Houston and Wynette. The album was named for the title track, which topped the American country songs chart in 1967. Another single titled "It's All Over" also became a commercially-successful country song. The album received positive reviews following its release.
