"Choices" is a song written by American country music singer Billy Yates and Mike Curtis, first recorded by Yates on his 1997 self-titled album for

Almo Sounds Almo Sounds was a record label which was started in 1994 by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss after they sold A&M Records to PolyGram. The intent for the label was to recreate the initial concept of A&M Records as a small, "boutique" label. The label ...

. It was later covered by

George Jones George Glenn Jones (September 12, 1931 – April 26, 2013) 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", ...

, who released as the first single from his album '' The Cold Hard Truth'' on May 8, 1999, and it peaked at number 30 on the '' Billboard'' country charts. There is speculation that Yates drew inspiration for the song from his time working at a business or firm, where he often had to make choices.

Background

After recording five studio albums for MCA Nashville between 1991 and 1998, Jones signed with Asylum and released the single "Choices." The music video, which features photographs of the singer throughout his life, had a more gripping resonance in light of Jones's March 1999 drunk driving incident with lines like, "Now I'm living and dying with the choices I've made." Radio stations began receiving calls to hear it and the song eventually reached the Top 30 and won Jones the Grammy for Best Male Country Vocal Performance. The song was at the center of controversy when the Country Music Association invited Jones to perform it on the 1999 awards show, but required that he perform an abridged version. Jones refused and did not attend the show.

Alan Jackson Alan Eugene Jackson (born October 17, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter. He is known for blending traditional honky-tonk and mainstream country pop sounds (for a style widely regarded as "neotraditional country"), as well as penning many ...

was angry with the association's decision, and halfway through his performance of "

Pop a Top "Pop a Top" is a country song written and originally recorded by Nat Stuckey in 1966. The first hit version was released by Jim Ed Brown in May 1967 as the third and final single from his album ''Just Jim''. The song was a number 3 Billboard coun ...

" during the show, he signaled to his band and played the chorus of Jones' song in protest, before angrily exiting the stage to a long standing ovation. The performance has since been cited as one of the best and most memorable moments in CMA history. Canadian singer

Leonard Cohen Leonard Norman Cohen (September 21, 1934November 7, 2016) was a Canadian singer-songwriter, poet and novelist. His work explored religion, politics, isolation, depression, sexuality, loss, death, and romantic relationships. He was inducted in ...

, a George Jones fan, released a version of the song on the 2015 LP Can't Forget. The day Jones died in 2013, Cohen performed "Choices" on stage in

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

, Manitoba, Canada as a tribute to the country legend.

Chart performance

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Choices (Song) 1999 singles George Jones songs Grammy Award for Best Male Country Vocal Performance winners Songs written by Billy Yates (singer) Song recordings produced by Keith Stegall Asylum Records singles 1997 songs Billy Yates (singer) songs