"Things Have Gone to Pieces" is a song written by

Leon Payne Leon Roger Payne (June 15, 1917 – September 11, 1969), "the Blind Balladeer", was an American country music singer and songwriter. Life He was born in Alba, Texas, United States. He was blind in one eye at birth, and lost the sight in the othe ...

and originally recorded by country music artist

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 was Jones' first single after signing with the Musicor label and spent a total of twenty-one weeks on the ''Billboard'' survey, peaking at #9 in 1965. It was a solo that Jones released on his 1965 album with

Gene Pitney Gene Francis Alan Pitney (February 17, 1940 – April 5, 2006) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. Pitney charted 16 top-40 hits in the United States, four in the top ten. In the United Kingdom, he had 22 top-40 hit singles, inclu ...

, ''

For the First Time! Two Great Stars - George Jones and Gene Pitney For or FOR may refer to: English language *For, a preposition#Definition, preposition *For, a complementizer *For, a grammatical conjunction#Types of conjunction, grammatical conjunction Science and technology * Fornax, a constellation * for lo ...

''. The song lists a litany of negative events that have befallen the narrator since his lover has left him. Despite its comically melodramatic premise, Jones delivers one of his most bluesy, soulful vocals that give the words resonance. In his 2016 Jones memoir ''The Grand Tour'', biographer Rich Kienzle asserts, "George's peerless approach elevated this simple ballad to a masterpiece that became his first solo hit on Musicor in the spring of 1965. Today it remains a high point of his six years with the label."

Merle Haggard Merle Ronald Haggard (April 6, 1937 – April 6, 2016) was an American country music singer, songwriter, guitarist, and fiddler. Haggard was born in Oildale, California, toward the end of the Great Depression. His childhood was troubled af ...

would record the song for the second Jones/Haggard duet album '' Kickin' Out the Footlights...Again'' in 2006.

References

{{George Jones 1965 songs Songs written by Leon Payne Musicor Records singles Song recordings produced by Pappy Daily George Jones songs