George Jones speaking in September 2009 and performing his signature song, He Stopped Loving Her Today
US country singer George Jones, who had a string of number one songs between the 1950s and 1990s, has died aged 81.
Jones publicist, Kirt Webster, said the Grammy-winning singer was admitted to hospital for fever and irregular blood pressure and died on Friday.
Nicknamed Possum, his signature song was He Stopped Loving Her Today, a track about love and death.
He was married to Tammy Wynette between 1969 and 1975 and the pair recorded several songs together in the 1970s.
Born in Texas on 12 September 1931, Jones played guitar for tips on the streets of Beaumont as a teenager before going on to serve in the US Marine Corps.
He returned to Texas to record for the Starday label in Houston, achieving his first top ten hit in 1955 with Why Baby Why.
Known for his precise baritone and evocative voice, Jones' first number one song, White Lightning, came in 1959, followed by Tender Years in 1961.
Country star Garth Brooks paid tribute to the singer saying: "The greatest voice to ever grace country music will never die. Jones has a place in every heart that ever loved any kind of music."
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