"A Good Year for the Roses" is a ballad written by Jerry Chesnut and originally recorded by American country singer

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", ...

. It rose to #2 on the country singles chart in 1970.

Background

"A Good Year for the Roses" describes the thoughts of a man as his wife leaves him, and is as good an example as any of Jones' ability to deliver an intensely moving vocal, in this case one that conveys both the sadness and profound bitterness that comes with a broken marriage. Although recorded while George was with Musicor, the production is typical of the sound

Billy Sherrill Billy Norris Sherrill (November 5, 1936 – August 4, 2015) 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 Gle ...

would employ when Jones moved to

Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America Sony Corporation of America (SONAM, also known as SCA), is the American arm of the Japanese conglomerate Sony Group ...

the following year. Although supported by a choir of background singers and strings on the chorus, Jones' vocal is the centerpiece throughout, with Chris Woodstra of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

calling it "one of his all-time greatest performances." The lyric, infused by Jones' nuanced delivery, captures the disillusion of the narrator. Jones recorded two versions of the song; the second can be heard on the ''A Good Year for the Roses: The Complete Musicor Recordings 1965-1971''. Jones also cut the song with

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 o ...

as a duet in 1994 for the '' Bradley Barn Sessions'', but was disappointed with its reception by country radio, noting in his autobiography, "Alan was white-hot on the radio, and programmers wanted his voice. But some didn't want his if they had to take mine. The vast majority of Alan's other single records have gone to number one. His duet with me was his first not to crack the top 50." It actually peaked at number 57. In June 1995, the song won the Music City News Country Awards "Vocal Collaboration of the Year."

Other notable recordings

Elvis Costello Declan Patrick MacManus Order of the British Empire, OBE (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. He has won multiple awards in his career, including a Grammy Award in ...

scored a No. 6 hit in the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

with the song in 1981.

Video

The video for the Elvis Costello version of the song was shot at The Meldrum House Hotel, Oldmeldrum, Aberdeenshire on Wednesday 29th July 1981. The band were in the north east of Scotland to appear at the Aberdeen Country and Western Club on the 30th July, with the performance to be filmed by LWT Television.

Chart performance

George Jones version

Elvis Costello version

George Jones and Alan Jackson version

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Good Year For The Roses 1970s ballads 1970 songs 1970 singles 1981 singles 1994 singles George Jones songs Alan Jackson songs Musicor Records singles MCA Nashville Records singles Song recordings produced by Brian Ahern (producer) Songs written by Jerry Chesnut Male vocal duets Elvis Costello songs Country ballads