When George Jones Changed Label 

Before George Jones and Tammy Wynette got married on February 1969, they were already on the road to become a duo. However, even though they had the strong desire to record together, they were separated by their record labels.

George Jones wanted his deal with Musicor to be over. Unfortunately, he still had three years left on the contract, and the record label refused to release him as their artist. According to reports, George not only paid $100,000. But, he also gave up all his rights to his Musicor royalties to get out of the deal. Predictably, he signed a new contract with Epic Records. He joined Epic on October 1, 1971, where he started to record materials with his wife freely.

On December 25, 1971, George Jones and Tammy Wynette had their debut act as a duet on Billboard’s Hot Country Singles Chart. The song that they had was a remake of George Jones’ 1965 hit, “Take Me.”

George Jones and Tammy Wynette Sing “We’re Gonna Hold On.” Photo from YouTube via Screengrab

Tammy Wynette Filed for Divorce, and George Jones Sang “We’re Gonna Hold On”

George Jones and Tammy Wynette’s married was in big trouble in 1973. Tammy filed a divorce in August of that year, and the central problem was George’s drinking. He had just returned from a binge that lasted several days when he introduced Tammy to “We’re Gonna Hold On.”

Jones met up with Tammy and his songwriter friend, Earl Montgomery. Of course, Tammy was very mad about the whole situation, and George knew it. He attempted to apologize by bringing out his guitar, strumming it and sings,

“We’re gonna hold on, we’re gonna hold on….”

However, Tammy wasn’t impressed.

At that time, the song was far from being a hit. However, the all-important hook line had been established. After George Jones got sober, he took a pen and paper and started to write down some lyrics based on what he sang to Tammy before. After that, the three of them drove to that night’s concert and just before George went into the dressing room, he handed what he started with Earl Montgomery and asked him to finish it.

The Song’s Success

George Jones and Tammy Wynette projected a happy image as they waved to on-lookers and TV cameras on Thanksgiving Day of 1973. They were riding a turtle float at Macy’s Parade in New York City and “We’re Gonna Hold On” wafted from the float’s speakers that day. One month after, the song became a hit by reaching the No. 1 spot on Billboard’s Hot Country Singles Chart. It became the only No. 1 hit for George Jones and Tammy Wynette during their marriage. “Golden Ring” and “Near You” are also No. 1 hits by the duo, however, it only occurred after their divorce on March 13, 1975.