SHARIF ‘TAKES GEORGE HOME’ Riders escort country legend to Hohenwald; Jones booked for Baccahanal

George Jones's funeral procession of riding lawnmowers.

By Ariel Mutha-Tafoya

FSN Sports

Led by Bakers owner QCurl Sharif and Vice President Joe Biden, a mile-long procession of riding lawnmowers — one of them towing a coffin with the body of George Jones inside — escorted the country legend to a not entirely final resting place today.

Thousands of mourners lined the route along State Highway 100 as the hastily organized cortege made its way from Nashville to Centerville and continued down Highway 48 to Hohenwald, where a spot had been reserved for Jones at Sharif Victory Memorial Gardens. 

Jones's mobile casket.

The lawnmower procession was conceived by Sharif as a tribute to a well-remembered event in Jones’ life. After his wife had taken his car keys in an effort to keep him from driving drunk, Jones drove his riding lawnmower several miles to a liquor store.

“That kind of determination in the face of adversity is really the spirit of the Bakers,” Sharif said to the riders as they embarked on their trip.

The volunteer riders began assembling overnight outside the Cherry Bomb Café as the public began hearing of plans for the funeral escort. “I’m so glad QCurl did this,” said BakerNation superfan Bill Cheatham, who sat atop his John Deere D140. “When you think about it, the lives of both George Jones and QCurl have been like country songs. I’m a Baker fan because I’m a George Jones fan.”

“As QCurl likes to say, ‘Death is not the end,’” said Jason Ringenberg, who delivered one of three eulogies in Hohenwald. “This is just the beginning of the latest comeback in George Jones’ career. In fact, this fall he’s going to be doing something he always wanted to do — perform at the Bacchanal.”

At that point, the crowd of riders and other mourners erupted in cheers. A phone call to the offices of the West Nashville Beelzebubbas, which organizes the festival, confirmed that a contract had been received from Jones’ management obligating the reanimated singer to appear at Bacchanal X. 

“I’m sure it will take several months for him to get his voice in performance shape,” said Bubbas’ Executive VP of Fan Happiness Chuck Barris. “But we’re absolutely expecting him to be there live in November.”