Watch George Jones and Johnny Paycheck Perform “The Race Is On” in the Early 60s

The country music world is a small one. This is especially true when one looks into the history of the genre. It’s not rare to see seemingly odd pairings. For instance, Waylon Jennings and Buddy Holly were friends and performed together. Also, Johnny Paycheck was a member of George Jones’ band in the early ‘60s, long before he became an Outlaw Country legend.

In fact, when he was performing with Jones, he hadn’t yet become Johnny Paycheck. At the time, Donald Lytle was going by the name Donny Young. He was an up-and-comer who saw minor chart success as a solo artist and played in Ray Price’s Cherokee Cowboys alongside Willie Nelson for a while. He also tried his hand at writing songs for other artists. Young penned “Apartment No. 9” which was Tammy Wynette’s debut single in 1966. However, maybe the most formative job he had during that time was his stint with Jones. He sang harmony and played bass and steel guitar. In the video below, Young/Paycheck sings harmony and plays bass.

[RELATED: 3 Hit Country Songs That George Jones Did First (And Better)]

The video above is likely from 1964, the year that Jones originally recorded and released “The Race Is On” as the second single from I Get Lonely in a Hurry. By that time, fans and critics alike were already hailing him as the greatest country singer to ever live. So, Paycheck had to be on top of his game to keep up with Jones. More importantly, listening to his later recordings including “Slide Off Your Satin Sheets” or “(Don’t Take Her) She’s All I Got” it seems that Paycheck learned from Jones while they worked together.

George Jones and Johnny Paycheck Recorded Hits

According to an artist profile from the iconic dancehall Billy Bob’s Texas, Johnny Paycheck joined George Jones’ band, The Jones Boys, in 1962. He stayed in the band for four years, leaving in 1966. As a result, Paycheck sang on hits like “The Race Is On,” “A Girl I Used to Know,” “Open Pit Mine,” and “Your Heart Turned Left (And I Was on the Right)” among others.

[RELATED: 3 Johnny Paycheck Songs Every Outlaw Country Fan Should Know by Heart]

This period covers Jones’ entire run with United Artists. He released 11 albums on that label between 1962 and 1965. Then, he moved to Musicor Records and, according to the abovementioned timeline, Paycheck performed on the first five albums that Jones cut for the label. The fifth album, I’m a People dropped in April 1966.

Paycheck’s debut album At Carnegie Hall dropped the next month on Little Darlin’ Records thus beginning the solo career of one of the heroes of the Outlaw Country movement.

Featured Image by