He was born in Texas in 1946. His mother, Lucille Marie (née Scott), was a police officer, school teacher, and beauty shop owner, and his father, Clyde C. Jones, was an oil field worker. The two were married and divorced twice. Jones has stated that his grandmother was of Cherokee ancestry. He was raised in Midland, Texas. Jones was given an athletic scholarship to go to a school in Dallas, Texas. After finishing school he worked on the oil rigs before going to Harvard University to study English.