The fact that Johnny Cash does not yet have his own category on Ciao is shameful and they should hang their heads in shame until they rectify this. One of my ambitions as a Kid was to walk on a stage and say “Hello I’m Johnny Cash”; I fulfilled this ambition but, as a I launched into a unique Karaoke Version of A Boy Named Sue. The bloke doing the Karaoke told me later that he had never quite witnessed anything like my quite performance. It was at this point I realised that I would never be Johnny Cash. Bono out of U2 once said that “Every man knows that they are a sissy compared to Johnny Cash” this is true, but it is also true that Bono is a pretentious twonk, who makes uninspiring music. Johnny Cash on the other hand made totally inspiring music, I always imagined that god sounds a bit like Johnny Cash, but god speaks in Hebrew or something. (1)
Ok this album released in 1996 was Johnny Cash’s first with American recordings and Rick Rubin at the helm producing it. For most of the album the backing band are Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers, and this album sounds exactly like you would expect collaboration between Johnny Cash and Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers to sound like (2). In an interview at the time Johnny Cash mentioned that Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers seem to have a unique musical language of their own, which he was impressed by, this is high praise indeed, I have never had Johnny Cash comment on my musical style or abilities boo hooo. However I am Glad That Johnny Cash never witnessed my version of A Boy Named Sue(3).
The album comes with extensive sleeve notes written by the Man (4) himself in which he explains the songs selected for this project and he writes a bit about how he dislikes red lights in studios which is truly enlightening.(5)
Ok before I get to the nity gritty here let me explain that Johnny Cash is COUNTRY not COUNTRY and WESTERN there is a difference and that difference is what makes COUNTRY great and the other pants ok…………………
The first track “Rowboat” Written by Beck, is a beautiful piece of American folk music, with Johnny’s’ voice on top form, strong yet tender and loving with a bit of menace behind it. You know what I was saying about Johnny sounding like God where her is your proof matey boy or girl. On the sleeve notes he says that he is not going to ask Beck what he means by the line “I’ll be home with the gasoline” because he has been like that before himself. This is what country is about simple songs played from the heart with experience. “Sea of Heartbreak” is a tender ballad which he dedicates for the most part to his wife (the woman that tamed him) June Carter. “Rusty Cage” is a song about almost everything that Johnny liked singing songs about, and is dirty as hell, written by Tom Petty and this is probably the one song that sounds most like Tom Petty and The Heart Breakers.
“The One Rose (That is Left in My Heart)” is obviously one of Johnny’s favourite songs you can tell just by the way he writes about it in the sleeve notes, and that voice of God thing starts creeping in again. “Country Boy” is about just that being a Country Boy, the joy of standing barefoot on a steam locomotive, the joy of being poor but having a richness of the soul cause who needs money when you got that?? (6) and is proof that Johnny did not always write about depressing things. The Johnny Cash Treatment of “Memories Are Made Of This” has that dam Johnny sounding like god would thing going on and it is simply a beautiful song done beautifully, what more could one ask for a German techno remix??? I think not.
“Spiritual” deals with Mr Cash’s more spiritual side and the opening line of “Jesus I don’t wanna die alone” sends shivers up my spine. Johnny like me transcended the need for all that organised church nonsense that so many people need to express their spirituality, and once again this song is just beautiful and uplifting, thanks for that one Johnny.
“The Kneeling Drunkards Plea”, written by his wife and sisters in law is a prayed by a drunkard looking for forgiveness, only in country music do you get songs like this and I love it. “Southern Accents” is as Johnny said is a better anthem for the south than “Dixie”, and even though I don’t come from there I have to agree with him, as it covers what the south is really about, and is full of soul and love as well as poverty and desperation, 4 things that Johnny knew all about. You see there it is again great country music is sung from the heart from experience. “Mean Eyed Cat” is a song that took over 40 years to write, Johnny was never happy with the version Sam Phillips put out in 1955. this niggled at Johnny until he finally wrote the third verse in 1995, this is one of my favourite songs on the album a great dancing country rockabilly song, but if you square dance to this I’ll punch you in the face ok.
“Meet Me In Heaven” was a song Johnny had written for his wife June but was also the words written into his brothers tombstone, and really I can’t say much more about a song that personal to the writer other than it is a beautiful piece of country gospel, and that listening to it with an open ear just might make you understand something about love. “I Never picked Cotton” is more of a statement of intent than a song, rebellion, betrayal and redemption are classic elements of country music and here it is for you in its full glory. The last two songs “Unchained” is a superb piece of gospel, if the music was this good in our churches then more people would go, and “I’ve Been Everywhere” finish off this album but I have grown weary of writing as the codeine is wearing off so I will leave you in one paragraphs time.
This Album won the Grammy for best country album in 1997, and started off a relationship between Johnny Cash and Rick Rubin. During the rest of his life Johnny world produce several more albums with Rick Rubin which arguably were among the best of his carrier, a true fitting epitaph for the man in black.
RIP Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash and thanks for all the inspiration.
(1) How many times did I fit in the words Johnny Cash into that first paragraph? (2) If that is not enough to make you want to rush out and buy the album now then I don’t know what would be. (3) How many times did I fit in the words Johnny Cash into the second paragraph? (4) Impressed that I did not put the words Johnny Cash into there aren’t you. (5) A whole paragraph without the words Johnny Cash in it, but it was only a short one though. (6) I want richness of the soul and pocket please Mr Cash
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