Keith Richards planned to attend George Jones farewell concert

George Jones was set to play his final show in Nashville Nov. 22 at Bridgestone Arena. The concert was to be the culmination of the 81-year-old’s farewell tour The Grand Tour, named after one of his most popular songs. The list of artists set to participate was dozens deep and included Garth Brooks, Kid Rock, The Oak Ridge Boys, The Charlie Daniels Band, Dierks Bentley, Cyndi Lauper and Billy Ray Cyrus.
The concert sold out of its 15,000 tickets quickly and was shaping up to be one of Nashville’s biggest events of the year.
After the king of country music’s passing on Friday morning at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, the fate of that concert is undecided.
But even today, it looks as if Jones had even bigger plans for the evening than the public realized. A hand-written letter from The Rolling Stones’ Keith Richards was provided to The Tennessean in which the famed guitarist said he would be at the show “by hook or by crook.”
In another letter, President George H.W. Bush wrote that Jones’ invitation meant a lot to them but that he and Barbara had to decline for health reasons.
“But you can bet the Bushes will be there in spirit on Nov. 22, 2013,” he wrote.