On March 6, 1999, George Jones was driving along Highway 96 near Franklin, Tennessee, when his vehicle slammed into a concrete bridge abutment. The 67-year-old country legend nearly lost his life. And the song playing in the vehicle made the accident especially haunting.
It was “Choices,” a recording about regret, responsibility, and living with the consequences of past decisions.
George Jones had been trying to play the recording for his stepdaughter over the phone. Distracted while handling the music and the call, George Jones lost control. Alcohol was also involved in the crash.
But the strange history of “Choices” had begun years earlier. George Jones almost never recorded the song at all.
The Song George Jones Didn’t Want to Record
Songwriters Billy Yates and Mike Curtis wrote “Choices” in 1994. The song wasn’t originally written specifically for George Jones. It was a straightforward account of a man confronting mistakes that could no longer be undone.
When Billy Yates first played “Choices” for George Jones, the singer listened but declined to record it.
Some time later, Billy Yates tried again. George Jones passed on the song a second time.
Only in 1999, after hearing “Choices” for a third time, did George Jones finally agree to record it.
By then, George Jones had spent decades living through the kind of trouble described in the lyrics. Drinking, missed performances, damaged relationships, and a reputation that sometimes overshadowed extraordinary musical talent had all become part of the public story.
What Billy Yates and Mike Curtis had written years earlier suddenly sounded deeply personal when George Jones sang it.
The Accident That Changed Everything
The recording was completed before the March 1999 accident. According to Billy Yates, George Jones had picked up a copy of the finished recording and was listening to it while driving.
George Jones later explained that trying to operate the recording and talk on the phone had taken his attention away from the road.
Investigators also established that alcohol had been involved, and George Jones subsequently pleaded guilty to driving while impaired.
The accident became a major turning point. George Jones later spoke openly about quitting drinking and smoking after surviving the crash.
When the album Cold Hard Truth arrived in June 1999, “Choices” carried a significance nobody could have planned.
The single reached No. 30 on Billboard’s country chart. But its impact extended far beyond chart positions.
Why George Jones Refused the CMA Awards
In September 1999, “Choices” was nominated for Single of the Year at the Country Music Association Awards.
George Jones was offered an opportunity to perform, but the television producers wanted a shortened version of the song to fit the broadcast schedule.
George Jones believed the song deserved a complete performance and declined the invitation.
For a singer once nicknamed “No Show Jones” because of missed appearances, the decision carried an unexpected irony. This time, George Jones stayed home deliberately.
Then Alan Jackson stepped onto the stage.
Alan Jackson’s Unexpected Tribute
On September 22, 1999, Alan Jackson began performing “Pop a Top” at the Grand Ole Opry House during the televised CMA Awards.
Partway through the performance, Alan Jackson unexpectedly switched to the chorus of “Choices.”
The audience rose in a standing ovation. Alan Jackson finished the tribute and walked offstage.
The gesture was deliberate.
Alan Jackson later explained that George Jones had spent roughly four decades making records and deserved more respect than the proposed shortened performance suggested.
Alan Jackson also pointed to a painful contradiction: had George Jones died in the March accident, the awards show might have devoted a lengthy tribute to the country legend. Yet George Jones had survived, and organizers had been unwilling to provide enough time for the entire song.
It was a public statement about how country music should treat the artists who helped build its history.
George Jones and Nancy Were Watching at Home
George Jones and wife Nancy Jones watched the CMA broadcast from home that evening.
George Jones later revealed that Alan Jackson’s unexpected performance moved both George Jones and Nancy Jones to tears.
George Jones said the gesture meant more than words could adequately express. Alan Jackson had defended both a personal friend and the tradition of country music, without knowing what the professional consequences might be.
Five months later, at the Grammy Awards in February 2000, George Jones won Best Male Country Vocal Performance for “Choices.” It was the second Grammy victory of George Jones’s career.
Why “Choices” Still Matters
George Jones died on April 26, 2013, at age 81, leaving behind one of the most influential catalogs in country music history.
But “Choices” remains remarkable for reasons beyond its Grammy recognition.
George Jones initially rejected the song twice. Then George Jones recorded it shortly before an accident that nearly ended his life. Months later, Alan Jackson used that same song to honor George Jones in front of the country music industry.
For longtime fans, the 1999 CMA performance wasn’t simply about one artist standing up for another.
It was about recognizing a lifetime of music while the person who created it was still here to hear the applause.
And somewhere in Tennessee that night, George Jones and Nancy Jones were watching, deeply moved by a performance George Jones hadn’t expected to hear.