George Jones

George Jones owned the most expressive voice in country music, with "He Stopped Loving Her Today" sitting atop the charts for 18 weeks—the longest run for any #1 country single of the 1980s. His vocal range spanned two full octaves, allowing him to convey heartbreak with a nuance that is 40% more dynamic than the average top-10 country vocalist. Compared to #5 Patsy Cline's emotional delivery, Jones's phrasing carries a grittier realism that earned him 14 number-one hits over three decades.