Johnny Cash | ||
| Allmusic Biography : Johnny Cash was one of the most imposing and influential figures in post-World War II country music. With his deep, resonant baritone and spare percussive guitar, he had a basic, distinctive sound. Cash didnt sound like Nashville, nor did he sound like honky tonk or rock & roll. He created his own subgenre, falling halfway between the blunt emotional honesty of folk, the rebelliousness of rock & roll, and the world-weariness of country. Cashs career coincided with the birth of rock & roll, and his rebellious attitude and simple, direct musical attack shared a lot of similarities with rock. However, there was a deep sense of history -- as he would later illustrate with his series of historical albums -- that kept him forever tied with country. And he was one of country musics biggest stars of the 50s and 60s, scoring well over 100 hit singles. Cash, whose birth name was J.R. Cash, was born and raised in Arkansas, moving to Dyess when he was three. By the time he was 12 years old, he had begun writing his own songs. He was inspired by the country songs he had heard on the radio. While he was in high school, he sang on the Arkansas radio station KLCN. Cash graduated from high school in 1950, moving to Detroit to work in an auto factory for a brief while. With the outbreak of the Korean War, he enlisted in the Air Force. While he was in the Air Force, Cash bought his first guitar and taught himself to play. He began writing songs in earnest, including "Folsom Prison Blues." Cash left the Air Force in 1954, married a Texas woman named Vivian Leberto, and moved to Memphis, where he took a radio announcing course at a broadcasting school on the GI Bill. During the evenings, he played country music in a trio that also consisted of guitarist Luther Perkins and bassist Marshall Grant. The trio occasionally played for free on a local radio station, KWEM, and tried to secure gigs and an audition at Sun Records. Cash finally landed an audition with Sun Records and its founder, Sam Phillips, in 1955. Initially, Cash presented himself as a gospel singer, but Phillips turned him down. Phillips asked him to come back with something more commercial. Cash returned with "Hey Porter," which immediately caught Phillips ear. Soon, Cash released "Cry Cry Cry"/"Hey Porter" as his debut single for Sun. On the single, Phillips billed Cash as "Johnny," which upset the singer because he felt it sounded too young; the record producer also dubbed Perkins and Grant as the Tennessee Two. "Cry Cry Cry" became a success upon its release in 1955, entering the country charts at number 14 and leading to a spot on The Louisiana Hayride, where he stayed for nearly a year. A second single, "Folsom Prison Blues," reached the country Top Five in early 1956 and its follow-up, "I Walk the Line," was number one for six weeks and crossed over into the pop Top 20. Cash had an equally successful year in 1957, scoring several country hits including the Top 15 "Give My Love to Rose." Cash also made his Grand Ole Opry debut that year, appearing all in black where the other performers were decked out in flamboyant, rhinestone-studded outfits. Eventually, he earned the nickname of "The Man in Black." Cash became the first Sun artist to release a long-playing album in November of 1957, when Johnny Cash with His Hot and Blue Guitar hit the stores. Cashs success continued to roll throughout 1958, as he earned his biggest hit, "Ballad of a Teenage Queen" (number one for ten weeks), as well another number one single, "Guess Things Happen That Way." For most of 1958, Cash attempted to record a gospel album, but Sun refused to allow him to record one. Sun also was unwilling to increase Cashs record royalties. Both of these were deciding factors in the vocalists decision to sign with Columbia Records in 1958. By the end of the year, he had released his first single for the label, "All Over Again," which became another Top Five success. Sun continued to release singles and albums of unissued Cash material into the 60s. "Dont Take Your Guns to Town," Cashs second single for Columbia, was one of his biggest hits, reaching the top of the country charts and crossing over into the pop charts in the beginning of 1959. Throughout that year, Columbia and Sun singles vied for the top of the charts. Generally, the Columbia releases -- "Frankies Man Johnny," "I Got Stripes," and "Five Feet High and Rising" -- fared better than the Sun singles, but "Luther Played the Boogie" did climb into the Top Ten. That same year, Cash had the chance to make his gospel record -- Hymns by Johnny Cash -- which kicked off a series of thematic albums that ran into the 70s. The Tennessee Two became the Tennessee Three in 1960 with the addition of drummer W.S. Holland. Though he was continuing to have hits, the relentless pace of his career was beginning to take a toll on Cash. In 1959, he had begun taking amphetamines to help him get through his schedule of nearly 300 shows a year. By 1961, his drug intake had increased dramatically and his work was affected, which was reflected by a declining number of hit singles and albums. By 1963, he had moved to New York, leaving his family behind. He was running into trouble with the law, most notably for starting a forest fire out West. June Carter -- who was the wife of one of Cashs drinking buddies, Carl Smith -- would provide Cash with his return to the top of the charts with "Ring of Fire," which she co-wrote with Merle Kilgore. "Ring of Fire" spent seven weeks on the top of the charts and was a Top 20 pop hit. Cash continued his success in 1964 as "Understand Your Man" became a number one hit. However, Cashs comeback was short-lived as he sank further into addiction, and his hit singles arrived sporadically. Cash was arrested in El Paso for attempting to smuggle amphetamines into the country through his guitar case in 1965. That same year, the Grand Ole Opry refused to have him perform and he wrecked the establishments footlights. In 1966, his wife Vivian filed for divorce. After the divorce, Cash moved to Nashville. At first, he was as destructive as he ever had been, but he became close friends with June Carter, who had divorced Carl Smith. With Carters help, he was able to shake his addictions; she also converted Cash to fundamentalist Christianity. His career began to bounce back as "Jackson" and "Rosannas Going Wild" became Top Ten hits. Early in 1968, Cash proposed marriage to Carter during a concert; the pair were married that spring. Also in 1968, Cash recorded and released his most popular album, Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison. Recorded during a prison concert, the album spawned the number one country hit "Folsom Prison Blues," which also crossed over into the pop charts. By the end of the year, the record had gone gold. The following year, he released a sequel, Johnny Cash at San Quentin, which had his only Top Ten pop single, "A Boy Named Sue," which peaked at number three; it also hit number one on the country charts. Cash guested on Bob Dylans 1969 country-rock album Nashville Skyline. Dylan returned the favor by appearing on the first episode of The Johnny Cash Show, the singers television program for ABC. The Johnny Cash Show ran for two years, between 1969 and 1971. Cash was reaching a second peak of popularity in 1970. In addition to his television show, he performed for President Richard Nixon at the White House, acted with Kirk Douglas in The Gunfight, sang with John Williams and the Boston Pops Orchestra, and he was the subject of a documentary film. His record sales were equally healthy as "Sunday Morning Coming Down" and "Flesh and Blood" were number one hits. Throughout 1971, Cash continued to have hits, including the Top Three "Man in Black." Both Cash and Carter became more socially active in the early 70s, campaigning for the civil rights of Native Americans and prisoners, as well as frequently working with Billy Graham. In the mid-70s, Cashs presence on the country charts began to decline, but he continued to have a series of minor hits and the occasional chart-topper like 1976s "One Piece at a Time," or Top Ten hits like the Waylon Jennings duet "There Aint No Good Chain Gang" and "(Ghost) Riders in the Sky." Man in Black, Cashs autobiography, was published in 1975. In 1980, he became the youngest inductee to the Country Music Hall of Fame. However, the 80s were a rough time for Cash as his record sales continued to decline and he ran into trouble with Columbia. Cash, Carl Perkins, and Jerry Lee Lewis teamed up to record The Survivors in 1982, which was a mild success. The Highwaymen -- a band featuring Cash, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, and Kris Kristofferson -- released their first album in 1985, which was also moderately successful. The following year, Cash and Columbia Records ended their relationship and he signed with Mercury Nashville. The new label didnt prove to be a success, as the company and the singer fought over stylistic direction. Furthermore, country radio had begun to favor more contemporary artists, and Cash soon found himself shut out of the charts. Nevertheless, he continued to be a popular concert performer. The Highwaymen recorded a second album in 1992, and it was more commercially successful than any of Cashs Mercury records. Around that time, his contract with Mercury ended. In 1993, he signed a contract with American Records. His first album for the label, American Recordings, was produced by the labels founder, Rick Rubin, and was a stark, acoustic collection of songs. American Recordings, while not a blockbuster success, revived his career critically and brought him in touch with a younger, rock-oriented audience. In 1995, the Highwaymen released their third album, The Road Goes on Forever. The following year, Cash released his second album for American Records, Unchained, which featured support from Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers. His VH1 Storytellers outing was released in 1998, and in the spring of 2000, Cash compiled Love, God, Murder, a three-disc retrospective focusing on the major songwriting themes dominant throughout his career. The new studio album American III: Solitary Man appeared later that year. Health problems plagued Cash throughout the 90s and into the 2000s, but he continued to record with Rubin; their fourth collaboration, American IV: The Man Comes Around, was released in late 2002. The following year, the Mark Romanek-directed video for his cover of Nine Inch Nails "Hurt" garnered considerable acclaim and media attention, culminating in an unexpected nomination for video of the year at the MTV Video Music Awards. Not long after the video sparked numerous stories, his beloved wife June Carter Cash died on May 15, 2003, of complications following heart surgery. Four months later, Johnny died of complications from diabetes in Nashville, TN. He was 71. Five months later, the compilation Legend of Johnny Cash became a Top Ten hit. In 2006 Lost Highway released the next-to-last installment of Cashs legendary "American" recordings, American V: A Hundred Highways, from the late singers last sessions with collaborator Rick Rubin. The final installment from those sessions appeared as American VI: Aint No Grave, in early 2010, and is reported to be the last of the American Recordings releases. Sony Legacy started a vigorous "bootleg" series of rare, unreleased, or hard to find Cash tracks in 2011 with the two-disc Bootleg, Vol. 1: Personal File and continued into 2012 with three further two-disc sets of rare material. In 2014, Out Among the Stars -- a collection of unreleased material recorded in the early 80s, produced by Billy Sherrill and finished under the direction of John Carter Cash in 2013 -- appeared in the spring. | ||
 | Album: 1 of 45 Title: Johnny Cash With His Hot and Blue Guitar Released: 1957-10-11 Tracks: 17 Duration: 39:31 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Rock Island Line (02:11) 2 I Heard That Lonesome Whistle (02:24) 3 Country Boy (01:51) 4 If the Good Lord’s Willing (01:43) 5 Cry! Cry! Cry! (02:28) 6 Remember Me (I’m the One Who Loves You) (01:59) 7 So Doggone Lonesome (02:36) 8 I Was There When It Happened (02:16) 9 I Walk the Line (02:44) 10 Wreck of the Old 97 (01:47) 11 Folsom Prison Blues (02:49) 12 Doin’ My Time (02:38) 13 Hey Porter (02:14) 14 Get Rhythm (02:14) 15 I Was There When It Happened (alternate version) (02:18) 16 Folsom Prison Blues (alternate version) (02:34) 17 I Walk the Line (alternate version) (02:40) |
| Johnny Cash With His Hot and Blue Guitar : Allmusic album Review : Johnny Cashs first album, released on Sun in 1957, is a little more folkloric and traditional than what he put on most of his singles, though not pronouncedly so. In fact, four of the tracks ("I Walk the Line," "Cry! Cry! Cry!," "So Doggone Lonesome," and "Folsom Prison Blues") had already been hit singles. For the rest of the set, Cash drew on some older folk ("Rock Island Line," "The Wreck of the Old 97"), country ("[I Heard That] Lonesome Whistle," "Remember Me [Im the One Who Loves You]"), prison ("Doin My Time"), and spiritual ("I Was There When It Happened") songs. Filling out the set is a good, rollicking Cash original, "Country Boy," and a rather sassy tune by the young Jerry Reed, "If the Good Lords Willing." Its a good, solid record thats very much in the mold of his classic early Sun sound, with spare accompaniment that nevertheless often approaches a rockabilly-country bounce. | ||
 | Album: 2 of 45 Title: Sings the Songs That Made Him Famous Released: 1958-11-13 Tracks: 16 Duration: 37:55 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Ballad of a Teenage Queen (02:12) 2 There You Go (02:18) 3 I Walk the Line (02:44) 4 Don’t Make Me Go (02:30) 5 Guess Things Happen That Way (01:51) 6 Train of Love (02:23) 7 The Ways of a Woman in Love (02:16) 8 Next in Line (02:49) 9 You’re the Nearest Thing to Heaven (02:40) 10 I Can’t Help It (If I’m Still in Love with You) (01:46) 11 Home of the Blues (02:40) 12 Big River (02:32) 13 Don’t Make Me Go (originally unissued alternate take) (02:30) 14 The Ways of a Woman in Love (originally unissued alternate take) (02:28) 15 Ballad of a Teenage Queen (originally unissued undubbed master) (02:15) 16 Guess Things Happen That Way (originally unissued undubbed master) (01:57) |
| Sings the Songs That Made Him Famous : Allmusic album Review : These early Cash classics provided him with hits and many other artists with some great material. And the sparse sound of The Tennessee Two holds up well. | ||
 | Album: 3 of 45 Title: The Fabulous Johnny Cash Released: 1959 Tracks: 12 Duration: 28:54 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Run Softly, Blue River (02:25) 2 Frankie’s Man, Johnny (02:18) 3 That’s All Over (01:55) 4 The Troubador (02:16) 5 One More Ride (02:02) 6 That’s Enough (02:42) 7 I Still Miss Someone (02:36) 8 Don’t Take Your Guns to Town (03:03) 9 I’d Rather Die Young (02:32) 10 Pickin’ Time (01:59) 11 The Shepherd of My Heart (02:13) 12 Suppertime (02:49) |
| The Fabulous Johnny Cash : Allmusic album Review : The Fabulous Johnny Cash was Cashs first album for Columbia Records and one of his best for the label. Unlike some of his latter-day albums, there wasnt much filler on the record. At the time of its recording, Cash had just been freed from his contract with Sun. Instead of recording these songs for his last Sun sessions, he wound up saving much of his best material for his Columbia album, and thats what makes The Fabulous so consistent. The album builds on his basic, spare sound, but it is slightly more polished than his Sun records. But what makes it so entertaining are the songs themselves. From "Dont Take Your Guns to Town" and "Frankies Man, Johnny" to "Pickin Time" and "The Troubador," the album is filled with first-rate songs, with only a handful of mediocre songs like "Suppertime," which dont distract from the overall quality of the album at all. | ||
 | Album: 4 of 45 Title: Greatest! Released: 1959-01 Tracks: 12 Duration: 25:46 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Goodbye Little Darlin’ Goodbye (02:14) 2 I Just Thought You’d Like to Know (02:23) 3 You Tell Me (01:48) 4 Just About Time (02:06) 5 I Forgot to Remember to Forget (02:09) 6 Katy Too (01:57) 7 Thanks a Lot (02:38) 8 Luther Played the Boogie (02:03) 9 You Win Again (02:18) 10 Hey Good Lookin’ (01:42) 11 I Could Never Be Ashamed of You (02:14) 12 Get Rhythm (02:14) |
 | Album: 5 of 45 Title: Hymns by Johnny Cash Released: 1959-05 Tracks: 12 Duration: 26:13 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 It Was Jesus (02:05) 2 I Saw a Man (02:33) 3 Are All the Children In (01:55) 4 The Old Account (02:25) 5 Lead Me Gently Home (02:01) 6 Swing Low, Sweet Chariot (01:53) 7 Snow in His Hair (02:22) 8 Lead Me Father (02:29) 9 I Call Him (01:51) 10 These Things Shall Pass (02:17) 11 He’ll Be a Friend (01:58) 12 God Will (02:20) |
| Hymns by Johnny Cash : Allmusic album Review : Although Sam Phillips steered Cash away from gospel and sacred music in the mid-50s at Sun Records, much of what Cash recorded in his early career still had a devout tone, often filled with piety and imagery that wouldnt have sounded foreign in a gospel context. So although this 1959 album was entirely devoted to religious songs, it didnt really sound that different from his prior work, and remains accessible to Cash fans whether or not theyre religious or have an interest in sacred song. The arrangements remain as sparse as most from his 50s catalog, though stately backup vocals are often present. These arent strictly traditional numbers, as Cash writes or co-writes about half the tunes. Sure, "Are All the Children In" skirts bathos with its spoken sections, but songs like "The Old Account" and "It Was Jesus" have the country-rockabilly bounce characteristic of much of his secular material. Despite its specialized focus, its a somewhat generic 50s Cash CD, though even generic 50s Cash is good. | ||
 | Album: 6 of 45 Title: Songs of Our Soil Released: 1959-09 Tracks: 14 Duration: 29:37 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Drink to Me (01:54) 2 Five Feet High and Rising (01:47) 3 The Man on the Hill (02:09) 4 Hank and Joe and Me (02:13) 5 Clementine (02:30) 6 The Great Speckled Bird (02:09) 7 I Want to Go Home (01:58) 8 The Caretaker (02:06) 9 Old Apache Squaw (01:46) 10 Don’t Step on Mother’s Roses (02:34) 11 My Grandfather’s Clock (02:44) 12 It Could Be You (Instead of Him) (01:50) 13 I Got Stripes (02:05) 14 You Dreamer You (01:49) |
| Songs of Our Soil : Allmusic album Review : One of Cashs earlier pseudo-concept albums, this doesnt exactly follow a specific theme like farming or hymns of the American land the whole way through. Rather, its a collection of a dozen songs that generally are on the folkier and more Americana-centered side of Cashs repertoire, though of course such songs have always had a prominent place in his material. He bagged the songwriting credits for all but one of the songs on Songs of Our Soil, skillfully relaying tales of drinking, disastrous farm flooding ("Five Feet High and Rising"), the vicious circle of sharecropping ("The Man on the Hill"), death and burial ("The Caretaker"), Native Americana ("Old Apache Squaw"), and spiritual-like piety ("It Could Be You [Instead of Him]"). The death-in-the-desert tale of "Hank and Joe and Me" might get unintentionally camp with its rather jaunty depiction (complete with gospel-like backup choral vocals) of the narrator dying of thirst on a quest for gold. Although "J. Cash" gets the songwriting credit for "I Want to Go Home," in fact its his version of the homesick sailor folk tale more commonly known as "Sloop John B," recorded elsewhere by the Weavers, the Kingston Trio, the Beach Boys, and others. Its a good set, though pretty short at 26 minutes, and lacking the hits or classics that decorate some of his other vaguely Americana concept albums. | ||
 | Album: 7 of 45 Title: Ride This Train Released: 1960 Tracks: 8 Duration: 32:28 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Loading Coal (04:59) 2 Slow Rider (04:10) 3 Lumberjack (03:04) 4 Dorraine of Ponchartrain (04:48) 5 Going to Memphis (04:22) 6 When Papa Played the Dobro (02:55) 7 Boss Jack (03:56) 8 Old Doc Brown (04:12) |
| Ride This Train : Allmusic album Review : Ride This Train was the first explicit Americana concept album that Johnny Cash recorded. As the title implies, the album is about railroads, how they developed, and how they changed the land. Apart from a couple of songs, Ride This Train isnt comprised of traditional folk ballads -- they are songs that tell the history of trains and rails, offering an educational lesson. Cash expounds on the songs with brief spoken narratives. Though it is hard to fault Cashs intentions, the songs arent very good (although "The Shifting Whispering Sands" is a standout) and the history is a bit simplistic and silly. On the whole, Ride This Train sounds as if it were of a piece with the Walt Disney educational features produced at the same time, and like those films, it is more interesting as an historical artifact than a piece of art. | ||
 | Album: 8 of 45 Title: Now, There Was a Song! Released: 1960 Tracks: 12 Duration: 27:03 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Seasons of My Heart (02:31) 2 I Feel Better All Over (02:04) 3 I Couldn’t Keep From Crying (02:11) 4 Time Changes Everything (01:50) 5 My Shoes Keep Walking Back to You (02:25) 6 I’d Just Be Fool Enough (To Fall) (02:08) 7 Transfusion Blues (02:34) 8 Why Do You Punish Me (02:21) 9 I Will Miss You When You Go (02:03) 10 I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry (02:40) 11 Just One More (02:14) 12 Honky-Tonk Girl (01:59) |
 | Album: 9 of 45 Title: Sings Hank Williams Released: 1960-09-15 Tracks: 17 Duration: 39:07 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 I Can’t Help It (If I’m Still in Love with You) (01:46) 2 You Win Again (02:18) 3 Hey Good Lookin’ (01:42) 4 I Could Never Be Ashamed of You (02:14) 5 Next in Line (02:49) 6 Straight A’s in Love (02:16) 7 Folsom Prison Blues (02:49) 8 Give My Love to Rose (02:46) 9 I Walk the Line (02:44) 10 I Love You Because (02:26) 11 Come in Stranger (01:42) 12 Mean Eyed Cat (02:30) 13 Cold Cold Heart (02:22) 14 I Heard That Lonesome Whistle (02:24) 15 Come Stranger (02:01) 16 Wide Open Road (01:49) 17 I Love You Because (02:26) |
 | Album: 10 of 45 Title: The Lure of the Grand Canyon Released: 1961 Tracks: 6 Duration: 42:39 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Sunrise (05:58) 2 Painted Desert (03:59) 3 On the Trail (08:34) 4 Sunset (04:46) 5 Cloudburst (08:07) 6 “A Day in the Grand Canyon” Narrated by Johnny Cash (11:15) |
 | Album: 11 of 45 Title: Now Here’s Johnny Cash Released: 1961 Tracks: 12 Duration: 27:08 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Sugartime (01:48) 2 Down the Street to 301 (02:04) 3 Life Goes On (02:00) 4 Port of Lonely Hearts (02:36) 5 Cry! Cry! Cry! (02:28) 6 My Treasure (01:16) 7 Oh, Lonesome Me (02:30) 8 Home of the Blues (02:43) 9 So Doggone Lonesome (02:36) 10 You’re the Nearest Thing to Heaven (02:40) 11 The Story of a Broken Heart (02:11) 12 Hey Porter (02:14) |
| Now Here’s Johnny Cash : Allmusic album Review : Johnny Cash left Sun Records in 1958 to sign with Columbia, and three years later he was a bigger star than ever and well on his way to becoming one of the living legends of country music. Sun, naturally, wanted to take advantage of Cashs growing popularity, and 1961s Now Heres Johnny Cash was a "new" album from their former star tacked together from single sides, unreleased tunes and demos gussied up with overdubs for their release on LP. Now Heres Johnny Cash is a rather curious hodgepodge, but its also a satisfying listen and features a handful of top-shelf tunes. "Cry! Cry! Cry!," "Hey Porter" and "Home of the Blues" had all been hits for Cash, and with good reason, while two of his early compositions, "Port of Lonely Hearts" and "My Treasure," made their first public appearances on this album. While "Sugartime" and "Down the Street to 301" are just too sentimental to sound comfortable coming from Cash, he handles them with graceful aplomb, and his take on Don Gibsons "Oh Lonesome Me" is one of the better renditions of the old chestnut. Much of the rest of the album feels more like filler than anything else, but every song features the voice of Johnny Cash, always an impressive thing to witness, and while there are many better collections of his recordings for Sun, on its own terms its not a bad way to pass 25 minutes. | ||
 | Album: 12 of 45 Title: The Sound of Johnny Cash Released: 1962-08 Tracks: 12 Duration: 25:01 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Lost on the Desert (01:58) 2 Accidentally on Purpose (01:54) 3 In the Jailhouse Now (02:23) 4 Mr. Lonesome (02:18) 5 You Wont Have Far to Go (01:48) 6 In Them Old Cottonfields Back Home (02:33) 7 Delia’s Gone (02:01) 8 I Forgot More Than Youll Ever Know About Her (02:24) 9 You Remembered Me (02:05) 10 Im Free From the Chain Gang Now (01:51) 11 Let Me Down Easy (01:46) 12 Sing It Pretty, Sue (01:58) |
 | Album: 13 of 45 Title: All Aboard the Blue Train Released: 1962-11-15 Tracks: 18 Duration: 39:41 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Blue Train (02:03) 2 There You Go (02:18) 3 Train of Love (02:23) 4 Goodbye Little Darlin (02:15) 5 I Heard That Lonesome Whistle (02:24) 6 Come in Stranger (01:42) 7 Rock Island Line (02:11) 8 Give My Love to Rose (02:46) 9 Hey Porter (02:14) 10 Folsom Prison Blues (02:49) 11 Wreck of the Old 97 (01:47) 12 So Doggone Lonesome (02:44) 13 Train of Love (alternate take) (02:38) 14 Give My Love to Rose (alternate take) (02:54) 15 Hey, Porter! (alternate take) (02:13) 16 Leave That Junk Alone (01:28) 17 Youre My Baby (Little Woolly Booger) (Undubbed version) (01:31) 18 Brakemans Blues (Incomplete take) (01:18) |
| All Aboard the Blue Train : Allmusic album Review : Johnny Cash has always been in his best element when singing songs about people, places and trains. Therefore, he comes across as the great storyteller and singer he is with All Aboard the Blue Train. Included here are the now-classic "Folsom Prison Blues," and "Hey Porter," along with standout renditions of "Wreck of the Old 97," which had previously been given its finest reading by Hank Snow, and the immortal "Rock Island Line." Johnny Cash, years before he adopted the infamous "Man in Black" persona, had a firm grip on the handle of traditional country-folk. The song selections are prime, and the performances flawless. | ||
 | Album: 14 of 45 Title: Blood, Sweat and Tears Released: 1963 Tracks: 9 Duration: 29:52 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 The Legend of John Henry’s Hammer (08:26) 2 Tell Him I’m Gone (03:04) 3 Another Man Done Gone (02:37) 4 Busted (02:18) 5 Casey Jones (03:03) 6 Nine Pound Hammer (03:19) 7 Chain Gang (02:41) 8 Waiting for a Train (02:08) 9 Roughneck (02:11) |
| Blood, Sweat and Tears : Allmusic album Review : Where Ride This Train was about railroads and how they shaped America, Blood, Sweat and Tears is not only about the folklore of trains, its about the fables of the American working man. That means there are classic ballads like "Casey Jones" and "The Legend of John Henrys Hammer," but also relatively recent blues like "Busted," the field song "Pick a Bale of Cotton," and the workers lament "Tell Him Im Gone." The delivery is plain, simple, and never overly sentimental, but the thing that makes the record really work is the fact that the album consists almost entirely of first-rate material, without much of the unintentionally corny history lessons that weigh down most of Johnny Cashs Americana records. | ||
 | Album: 15 of 45 Title: The Christmas Spirit Released: 1963-11 Tracks: 12 Duration: 38:20 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 The Christmas Spirit (05:02) 2 I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day (02:30) 3 Blue Christmas (02:23) 4 The Gifts They Gave (03:34) 5 Here Was a Man (02:43) 6 Christmas as I Knew It (03:40) 7 Silent Night (03:29) 8 The Little Drummer Boy (02:36) 9 Ringing the Bells for Jim (02:46) 10 We Are the Shepherds (03:13) 11 Who Kept the Sheep (01:57) 12 The Ballad of the Harp Weaver (04:21) |
| The Christmas Spirit : Allmusic album Review : Released in 1963, The Christmas Spirit was Johnny Cashs first full-length holiday-themed album. Featured were four original songs by Cash, along with eight covers including takes of "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day," "Silent Night," "Blue Christmas," and others. This is a solidly enjoyable entry from Cash, and a must-have for die-hard aficionados of the country icon. | ||
 | Album: 16 of 45 Title: Bitter Tears: Ballads of the American Indian Released: 1964 Tracks: 8 Duration: 31:42 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 As Long as the Grass Shall Grow (06:14) 2 Apache Tears (02:38) 3 Custer (02:23) 4 The Talking Leaves (03:58) 5 The Ballad of Ira Hayes (04:09) 6 Drums (05:07) 7 White Girl (03:05) 8 The Vanishing Race (04:05) |
| Bitter Tears: Ballads of the American Indian : Allmusic album Review : Though on the surface Bitter Tears is just another installment in the seemingly endless series of Americana albums that Johnny Cash released in the 60s, it was a more daring collection than any of its predecessors or successors. Where Cashs previous Americana albums had previously concentrated on cowboys and Western pioneers, Bitter Tears is all about Native Americans and their trials and tribulations. It isnt a crass move -- its a sensitive, clear-eyed take on the unfair treatment of the American Indian that uses traditional folk ballads and newly written songs in the same vein. Its stark and moving, his best Americana album of the 60s. | ||
 | Album: 17 of 45 Title: The Original Sun Sound of Johnny Cash Released: 1964 Tracks: 12 Duration: 26:59 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Always Alone (01:52) 2 Country Boy (01:53) 3 Goodnight Irene (02:40) 4 Wide Open Road (02:36) 5 Thanks a Lot (02:38) 6 Big River (02:32) 7 Belshazzar (02:26) 8 Born to Lose (02:12) 9 New Mexico (02:06) 10 I Forgot to Remember to Forget (01:55) 11 Two Timin’ Woman (01:58) 12 The Story of a Broken Heart (02:11) |
 | Album: 18 of 45 Title: Keep on the Sunny Side Released: 1964 Tracks: 12 Duration: 32:41 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Keep on the Sunny Side (02:26) 2 The Banks of the Ohio (04:04) 3 My Clinch Mountain Home (02:54) 4 Lonesome Valley (02:01) 5 Worried Man Blues (02:36) 6 Will the Circle Be Unbroken (02:42) 7 The Wabash Cannonball (02:29) 8 Broken Hearted Lover (02:20) 9 Brown Eyes (03:21) 10 I’m Working on a Building (02:39) 11 Gathering Flowers From the Hillside (02:34) 12 When the Roses Bloom Again (02:35) |
 | Album: 19 of 45 Title: I Walk the Line Released: 1964-06 Tracks: 25 Duration: 59:27 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 I Walk the Line (02:45) 2 Folsom Prison Blues (02:50) 3 Ballad of a Teenage Queen (02:11) 4 Hey Porter (02:13) 5 Get Rhythm (02:14) 6 Rock Island Line (02:10) 7 Cry Cry Cry (02:28) 8 Luther Played the Boogie (02:02) 9 Hey Good Lookin’ (01:42) 10 I Still Miss Someone (02:35) 11 You Win Again (02:22) 12 Suppertime (02:52) 13 I Forgot to Remember to Forget (01:53) 14 Run Softly, Blue River (02:21) 15 Franky and Johnny (02:17) 16 Five Feet High and Rising (01:46) 17 Train of Love (02:23) 18 Next in Line (02:47) 19 The Troubadour (02:15) 20 That’s Enough (02:41) 21 Don’t Take Your Guns in Town (03:02) 22 I’d Rather Die Young (02:30) 23 Pickin’ Time (01:59) 24 Shepherd of My Heart (02:11) 25 Ring of Fire (live) (02:47) |
| I Walk the Line : Allmusic album Review : These 17 songs are offered with no information, but they are, in fact, some of the cornerstone songs and recordings of Johnny Cashs long and remarkable career. Set opener "Hey, Porter!" for instance, was his first recording for Sam Phillips and Sun Records. Many of these songs have become American classics--"I Walk the Line," "Get Rhythm," and "Folsom Prison Blues" being three instantly recognizable numbers. "Luther Played the Boogie" pays tribute to Luther Perkins, who was part of Cashs first band and instrumental in shaping his combo sound (Perkins perished in a fire less than a decade after his seminal recordings first appeared). This is another in the numerous sets which serve as helpful introductions into Cashs voluminous output--THE SUN YEARS, THE ESSENTIAL JOHNNY CASH (1955-1983), and THE VINTAGE YEARS (1955-1963) being three more. | ||
 | Album: 20 of 45 Title: Johnny Cash Sings the Ballads of the True West Released: 1965 Tracks: 22 Duration: 1:08:16 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Hiawatha’s Vision (02:25) 2 The Road to Kaintuck (02:43) 3 The Shifting, Whispering Sands Part I (02:54) 4 The Ballad of Boot Hill (03:48) 5 I Ride an Old Paint (02:57) 6 Hardin Wouldnt Run (04:19) 7 Mr. Garfield (04:35) 8 The Streets of Laredo (03:39) 9 Johnny Reb (02:50) 10 A Letter From Home (02:34) 11 Bury Me Not on the Lone Prairie (02:26) 12 Mean as Hell (03:07) 13 Sam Hall (03:15) 14 25 Minutes to Go (03:13) 15 The Blizzard (03:53) 16 Sweet Betsy From Pike (03:57) 17 Green Grow the Lilacs (02:46) 18 Stampede (04:00) 19 The Shifting, Whispering Sands Part II (02:28) 20 Reflections (02:44) 21 Rodeo Hand (02:27) 22 Stampede (Alternate Instrumental) (01:07) |
 | Album: 21 of 45 Title: Orange Blossom Special Released: 1965 Tracks: 12 Duration: 33:59 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Orange Blossom Special (03:07) 2 The Long Black Veil (03:07) 3 It Ain’t Me, Babe (03:03) 4 The Wall (02:12) 5 Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright (03:00) 6 You Wild Colorado (01:47) 7 Mama, You’ve Been on My Mind (03:06) 8 When It’s Springtime in Alaska (It’s Forty Below) (02:40) 9 All of God’s Children Ain’t Free (02:16) 10 Danny Boy (05:13) 11 Wildwood Flower (02:15) 12 Amen (02:08) |
| Orange Blossom Special : Allmusic album Review : Even if the best and most popular songs on this 1965 album are the ones most likely to show up on greatest-hits compilations ("The Long Black Veil, "Orange Blossom Special," "It Aint Me Babe"), it certainly rates as one of Cashs finer non-greatest-hits releases. If nothing else, it would have historical importance for the inclusion of three Bob Dylan covers, at a time when Dylan was just starting to get heavily covered by pop musicians (and not often covered by country ones). "It Aint Me Babe," with duet vocals by June Carter, was the most notable of them, although hearing it these days, some may be taken aback by the mariachi horns. Ditto for "Mama, You Been on My Mind" (which Dylan himself had not released when Cash recorded it), where its startling to hear Boots Randolphs yakety sax come in for a bit. "The Long Black Veil," though, is an ageless classic, and the title cut one of his best train-oriented songs. The rest of the album is respectable and diverse, if not as outstanding, and includes the stark Cash original "You Wild Colorado," more duet vocals from Carter on the Johnny Horton cover "When Its Springtime in Alaska," a bouncy rendition of the Carter Familys "Wildwood Flower," the spiritual "Amen," and, less successfully, a sentimental reading of "Danny Boy." The 2002 CD reissue adds three bonus tracks that were previously unavailable in the United States (and had been included on the Bear Family box set The Man in Black: 1963-1969), among them an acoustic cover of A.P. Carters "Engine 143" and a different version of "Mama, You Been on My Mind" (this time with mariachi horns!). | ||
 | Album: 22 of 45 Title: Everybody Loves a Nut Released: 1966 Tracks: 11 Duration: 29:52 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Everybody Loves a Nut (02:04) 2 The One on the Right Is on the Left (02:47) 3 Cup of Coffee (04:37) 4 The Bug That Tried to Crawl Around the World (02:54) 5 The Singing Star’s Queen (02:55) 6 Austin Prison (02:09) 7 Dirty Old Egg Sucking Dog (02:05) 8 Take Me Home (02:37) 9 Please Don’t Play Red River Valley (02:51) 10 Boa Constrictor (01:44) 11 Joe Bean (03:08) |
| Everybody Loves a Nut : Allmusic album Review : Supposedly at odds with this country artists image as the somber Man in Black, this collection of humorous songs actually isnt that much of a departure for Johnny Cash. Listeners who may have grown up during his days as a Top Ten artist will recall his steady stream of singles that always seemed to have a clever gimmick or catchy twist; why, some of those arent even on this collection, meaning there ought to be a second volume! More than three decades later, Cash would release concept CDs collecting songs based around particular themes -- Love, God, and Murder -- so perhaps this album is a thematic link, or a theme he could return to. The songs are just basically nutty. If one could imagine a project combining Cash with the cartoon character Screwy Squirrel, then this would be it, meaning not all the material is in good taste all the time. There are some real choice roasted nuts here, especially the duet with Ramblin Jack Elliot, in which for once it is OK that the performers get drunk while playing. There is no credit for Elliot in the original liner notes. Some of these songs were favorites of Cash, including "Dirty Old Egg Sucking Dog," which, as a highlight of his career, he performed on The Muppet Show. Cashs sense of humor is really great, and although he certainly makes brilliant music when totally in a dark mood, there is something to be said for a project like this, where he gives free rein to that side of his personality that has always made him popular with children, for example. And incidentally, this album has proven to be a very popular item with younger listeners. Cashs romping, stomping buddy Jack Clement actually has a large hand in the proceedings, although one has to read the fine print on the label to know it. He wrote practically all the best songs, except for the hilarious "Please Dont Play Red River Valley," which is a request from the Man in Black himself. | ||
 | Album: 23 of 45 Title: Happiness Is You Released: 1966 Tracks: 11 Duration: 30:11 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Happiness Is You (02:51) 2 Guess Things Happen That Way (01:51) 3 Ancient History (02:18) 4 You Comb Her Hair (02:36) 5 She Came From the Mountains (04:50) 6 For Lovin’ Me (02:31) 7 No One Will Ever Know (02:25) 8 Is This My Destiny (02:29) 9 A Wound Time Can’t Erase (02:33) 10 Happy to Be With You (03:09) 11 Wabash Cannonball (02:38) |
 | Album: 24 of 45 Title: Carryin’ On With Johnny Cash & June Carter Released: 1967 Tracks: 13 Duration: 32:49 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Long-Legged Guitar Pickin’ Man (02:35) 2 Shantytown (02:23) 3 It Ain’t Me, Babe (03:03) 4 Fast Boat to Sydney (02:31) 5 Pack Up Your Sorrows (02:29) 6 I Got a Woman (03:15) 7 Jackson (02:46) 8 Oh, What a Good Thing We Had (02:44) 9 You’ll Be All Right (01:48) 10 No, No, No (01:52) 11 What’d I Say (02:53) 12 The Wind Changes (02:50) 13 From Sea to Shining Sea (01:35) |
| Carryin’ On With Johnny Cash & June Carter : Allmusic album Review : Johnny Cash has called June Carter-Cash one of the most neglected artists in country music, whose contributions will always be overlooked in the shadow of her husbands own success -- his only regret, he says, in having married her. On the couples 1967 release Carryin On With Johnny Cash and June Carter -- recorded a year before their marriage and while Cash was still officially, unhappily wed to his first wife Vivian -- June emerges briefly not merely as a longtime backup singer or opening act, but as an equal and able performer and partner. Indeed, her gritty country voice is one of the albums greatest strengths, providing a nice complement and counter to Cashs famous, unadorned bass. Carryin On contains the hit single "Jackson," along with "Long-Legged Guitar Pickin Man," a boisterous, rocking and rolling minor hit featuring Johnny in the lead role and June as his lovably nagging "Big-Mouthed Woman." Other performances include less effective detours into folk-rockish and pseudo-soulful realms: They cut a fine cover of Richard & Mimi Farinas then-popular "Pack Up Your Sorrows" and wade a little awkwardly through Bob Dylans "It Aint Me, Babe," Johnny gracelessly spitting out the "babe" of the title against "Ring of Fire" mariachi horns. Both sides of the record end with versions of Ray Charles classics, "I Got a Woman" and an especially shaky "Whatd I Say," which, like "Babe," may prove as endearing to Cash fans as irritating to less-dedicated listeners. While Cash seems a little uncomfortable, or at least out of place, on the Charles numbers, June sounds surprisingly at home and rescues the performances with her soulful, growling vocals. The albums lowest moment, meanwhile, is its second track, "Shantytown," in which syrupy female voices provide sentimental, Hee Haw routine choruses of "I live down in Shantytown/Where the chickens 20 cents a pound." Despite such moments, though, the album manages to overcome its weaknesses by the strength of the couples collaboration; Johnny and June, eternally genuine and altogether unembarrassed even in the midst of their worst or most ridiculous arrangements, can perform corny or ill-fitted material with such honesty and conviction that you have almost no choice but to believe and enjoy it. Along with the duos unforgettable voices, the records mix of harmonicas, banjo, dobro, and hot electric guitar licks lends a down-home, carefree spirit to the entire effort. This, on some level, is Johnny and June at home, or -- as on the cover -- kicked back in a grassy field, Carryin On, and the world is better off for having witnessed the whole thing. | ||
 | Album: 25 of 45 Title: The Holy Land Released: 1969-01 Tracks: 21 Duration: 43:53 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Prologue (00:54) 2 Land of Israel (02:50) 3 A Mother’s Love (01:32) 4 This Is Nazareth (00:43) 5 Nazarene (02:03) 6 Town of Cana (01:36) 7 He Turned the Water Into Wine (02:47) 8 My Wife June at Sea of Galilee (01:32) 9 Beautiful Words (01:52) 10 Our Guide Jacob at Mount Tabor (01:54) 11 The Ten Commandments (03:59) 12 Daddy Sang Bass (02:21) 13 At the Wailing Wall (00:46) 14 Come to the Wailing Wall (02:49) 15 In Bethlehem (01:46) 16 In Garden of Gethsemane (01:57) 17 The Fourth Man (02:08) 18 On the Via Dolorosa (03:53) 19 Church of the Holy Sepulchre (01:07) 20 At Calvary (02:33) 21 God Is Not Dead (02:43) |
| The Holy Land : Allmusic album Review : Johnny Cashs "The Holy Land" is such a personal recording that it should have stayed in his vaults. Cash mixes many self-penned country/gospel songs with a recorded narrative account of a trip he took with June Carter to the Holy Land. Cashs narration is passionate and personal, but ultimately it is uninteresting, because he ends up sounding more like a tour guide than a spiritually enlightened artist. As for the music, most of it is unsatisfactory. Songs like "Land of Israel" and "God Is Not Dead" have a really dated sound and a forced sense of religious politics. The two standout tracks on the album are the big hit "Daddy Sang Bass" (written by Carl Perkins) and "Nazarene," a religious song that could have fit next to "Greystone Chapel" on Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison. It should be noted that the original vinyl copies of The Holy Land included a really cool 3-D image on the cover, a la the Rolling Stones At Their Satanic Majesties Request. | ||
 | Album: 26 of 45 Title: Hello I’m Johnny Cash Released: 1970-01 Tracks: 12 Duration: 36:53 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Southwind (03:22) 2 The Devil to Pay (03:30) 3 Cause I Love You (02:34) 4 See Ruby Fall (02:51) 5 Route 1 Box 144 (02:30) 6 Sing a Traveling Song (03:07) 7 If I Were a Carpenter (02:59) 8 To Beat the Devil (04:20) 9 Blistered (02:24) 10 Wrinkled, Crinkled, Wadded Dollar Bill (02:34) 11 I’ve Got a Thing About Trains (02:48) 12 Jesus Was a Carpenter (03:54) |
| Hello I’m Johnny Cash : Allmusic album Review : The energy that Johnny Cash and the Tennessee Three captured on the legendary Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison live record can probably never be duplicated. That being said, Hello, Im Johnny Cash comes very close, blending slow talking-blues songs with steam-engine-paced country rockers. This forgotten album may be one of the five best in the Cash discography. It is fueled by great originals (like "Southwind" and "Route #1, Box 144") and well-executed covers (Kris Kristoffersons "To Beat the Devil" and Tim Hardins "If I Were a Carpenter"). On top of that, those songs are upstaged by "See Ruby Fall" (co-written with Roy Orbison) and one of his best 70s hits, "Blistered." The lean, minimalist instrumentation of the Tennessee Three insures the album with great rhythm, and Johnny Cashs voice is as affecting as ever. Note: this album, which is currently out of print, should not to be confused with the 1995 Sony Music Special Products compilation of the same name. | ||
 | Album: 27 of 45 Title: Johnny Cash & Jerry Lee Lewis Sing Hank Williams Released: 1971-04 Tracks: 10 Duration: 22:16 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Hey Good Lookin (01:42) 2 I Could Never Be Ashamed of You (02:12) 3 I Can’t Help It (If I’m Still in Love with You) (01:46) 4 I Heard That Lonesome Whistle (02:24) 5 Cold, Cold Heart (02:18) 6 Lovesick Blues (02:10) 7 You Win Again (02:56) 8 Your Cheatin Heart (02:20) 9 Jambalaya (On the Bayou) (01:58) 10 Settin the Woods on Fire (02:30) |
 | Album: 28 of 45 Title: America: A 200-Year Salute in Story and Song Released: 1972 Tracks: 21 Duration: 32:45 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Opening Dialogue (00:07) 2 Paul Revere (02:33) 3 Begin West Movement (00:26) 4 The Road to Kaintuck (01:21) 5 To the Shining Mountains (00:48) 6 The Battle of New Orleans (02:21) 7 Southwestward (00:37) 8 Remember the Alamo (02:26) 9 Opening the West (00:34) 10 Lorena (02:16) 11 The Gettysburg Address (02:15) 12 The West (01:24) 13 Big Foot (02:36) 14 Like a Young Colt (00:38) 15 Mister Garfield (03:53) 16 A Proud Land (00:24) 17 The Big Battle (03:05) 18 On Wheels and Wings (00:56) 19 Come Take a Trip in My Airship (00:39) 20 Reaching for the Stars (00:42) 21 These Are My People (02:38) |
| America: A 200-Year Salute in Story and Song : Allmusic album Review : America: A 200-Year Salute in Story and Song is the culmination of all of Johnny Cashs Americana albums: an attempt to tell the entire history of America over the course of a 40-minute album. Of course, Americas history is a bit too convoluted to be adequately told with one album, but theres no denying theres a certain kitsch value in hearing songs like "Come Take a Trip on My Airship" and "The Gettysburg Address." Cash doesnt just sing the history, he tells it with narratives that tie the tracks together. On the whole, the album doesnt amount to much more than a curiosity, but it is an entertaining -- if campy -- one. Just dont expect to learn anything from America. | ||
 | Album: 29 of 45 Title: Johnny Cash and His Woman Released: 1973 Tracks: 10 Duration: 28:20 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 The Color of Love (02:43) 2 Saturday Night in Hickman County (02:32) 3 Allegheny (03:31) 4 Life Has Its Little Ups and Downs (02:32) 5 Matthew 24 (Is Knocking at the Door) (02:39) 6 The City of New Orleans (03:45) 7 Tony (03:27) 8 The Pine Tree (02:56) 9 We’re for Love (02:01) 10 Godshine (02:10) |
 | Album: 30 of 45 Title: Ragged Old Flag Released: 1974-04-05 Tracks: 12 Duration: 29:41 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Ragged Old Flag (03:08) 2 Don’t Go Near the Water (02:52) 3 All I Do Is Drive (02:10) 4 Southern Comfort (02:10) 5 King of the Hill (02:44) 6 Pie in the Sky (02:27) 7 Lonesome to the Bone (02:40) 8 While I’ve Got It on My Mind (02:20) 9 Good Morning Friend (02:05) 10 I’m a Worried Man (02:10) 11 Please Don’t Let Me Out (02:42) 12 What on Earth Will You Do (for Heaven’s Sake) (02:08) |
| Ragged Old Flag : Allmusic album Review : Its a little hard to recover from the over-the-top patriotism of the opening title cut on this mid-70s release, with its overbearing spoken narrative and shamelessly melodramatic orchestral production. Actually, however, that song is not typical of this release, which otherwise finds Cash backed only by the Tennessee Three (Carl Perkins, Larry McCoy, and Ray Edenton), with the Oak Ridge Boys singing backup on a couple of tracks. "Dont Go Near the Water" is, in contrast to the title song, rather radical for a country singer in its ecological protest with its chorus of "Dont go near the water children/See the fish all dead upon the shore/Dont go near the water/Cause the water isnt water anymore." The rest of the album is agreeable low-key Cash country, though with something of a more-of-the-same feeling that makes it a middle-of-the-road Cash release at best; "All I Do Is Drive" sounds like a hybrid of old Sun singles like "Cry, Cry, Cry" and "Big River," for instance. The songs go over familiar Cash territory like drifting, loneliness, and the struggle to keep your head above water. But none of them rate among his best, though "Please Dont Let Me Out" puts a twist on his prison stories by taking the viewpoint of a prisoner who wants to stay put as he now considers jail his home. | ||
 | Album: 31 of 45 Title: The Junkie and the Juicehead Minus Me Released: 1974-09-01 Tracks: 12 Duration: 30:07 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 The Junkie and the Juicehead (Minus Me) (02:58) 2 Don’t Take Your Guns to Town (02:44) 3 Broken Freedon Song (02:58) 4 I Do Believe (02:27) 5 Ole Stewfoot (02:13) 6 Keep on the Sunny Side (02:12) 7 Father and Daughter (Father and Son) (02:58) 8 Crystal Chandeliers and Burgundy (02:21) 9 Friendly Gates (02:16) 10 Billy & Rex & Oral & Bob (02:22) 11 Jesus (02:16) 12 Lay Back Woman (02:22) |
| The Junkie and the Juicehead Minus Me : Allmusic album Review : Aside from some fine performances from Cash, this album also features solo tracks by two future country music stars: daughter Rosanne and step-daughter Carlene. | ||
 | Album: 32 of 45 Title: Johnny Cash Sings Precious Memories Released: 1975 Tracks: 11 Duration: 30:19 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Precious Memories (02:54) 2 Rock of Ages (02:21) 3 The Old Rugged Cross (02:50) 4 Softly and Tenderly (02:48) 5 In the Sweet by and By (02:49) 6 Just as I Am (03:11) 7 Farther Along (03:08) 8 When the Roll Is Called Up Yonder (02:07) 9 Amazing Grace (02:29) 10 At the Cross (02:48) 11 Have Thine Own Way Lord (02:50) |
 | Album: 33 of 45 Title: Destination Victoria Station Released: 1975 Tracks: 12 Duration: 33:26 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Casey Jones (02:47) 2 Hey Porter (02:39) 3 John Henry (02:51) 4 Wabash Cannonball (02:42) 5 City of New Orleans (03:47) 6 Folsom Prison Blues (02:49) 7 Crystal Chandeliers and Burgundy (02:27) 8 Wreck of the Old 97 (02:09) 9 Waiting for a Train (02:29) 10 Orange Blossom Special (03:07) 11 Texas 1947 (03:16) 12 Destination Victoria Station (02:20) |
 | Album: 34 of 45 Title: The Johnny Cash Childrens Album Released: 1975-01 Tracks: 11 Duration: 26:34 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Nasty Dan (02:07) 2 One and One Makes Two (02:24) 3 I Got a Boy (02:55) 4 Little Magic Glasses (02:21) 5 Miss Tara (02:08) 6 Dinosaur Song (01:28) 7 Tiger Whitehead (03:13) 8 Call of the Wild (02:54) 9 Little Green Fountain (01:50) 10 Old Shep (02:23) 11 The Timber Man (02:45) |
| The Johnny Cash Children's Album : Allmusic album Review : Anybody thats only familiar with Johnny Cash the outlaw or the brooding mythic figure of his latter-day albums will find the very idea of a Johnny Cash childrens album improbable, or at the very least amusing. Truth is, Cash always showed a fondness for novelty tunes and silly songs, dating all the way back to his Sun sides (and this is not even counting the unintentional silliness of his corny Americana records), so it was not a stretch for Cash to do a childrens album -- particularly in 1975, when he was coming off a stretch of hosting a TV variety show and about to enter a mid-career decline. It was an opportune time to kick out a good childrens album, which Childrens Album is, a sweet, good-natured collection of novelties, ditties, and the occasional standard. Musically, this isnt miles away from Cashs usual territory, but its much lighter and mellower than even his poppiest work of the 60s and 70s, which only makes sense: he is singing for kids, after all. But what makes this Childrens Album click is that Cash is never singing down to his audience, hes singing straight to them, just like he sings to any other audience. This lack of condescension makes up for the occasionally spotty material, as it gives the album heart and makes it an album that feels like a Johnny Cash album in addition to a kids album. In that sense, its a good "my first Johnny Cash LP" -- it provides a good introduction to the Man in Black for little ones. | ||
 | Album: 35 of 45 Title: John R. Cash Released: 1975-03 Tracks: 10 Duration: 28:40 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 My Old Kentucky Home (Turpentine and Dandelion Wine) (02:49) 2 Hard Times Comin’ (02:39) 3 The Lady Came From Baltimore (02:43) 4 Lonesome to the Bone (02:33) 5 The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down (03:27) 6 Clean Your Own Tables (03:36) 7 Jesus Was Our Saviour (Cotton Was Our King) (02:45) 8 Reason to Believe (02:08) 9 Cocaine Carolina (02:38) 10 Smokey Factory Blues (03:18) |
| John R. Cash : Allmusic album Review : This album, mostly made up of covers, is one of Johnny Cashs most enjoyable albums of the 70s. Cash has long been recognized for his ability to pick great material by other writers, and this is a prime example of that talent. | ||
 | Album: 36 of 45 Title: Look at Them Beans Released: 1975-09 Tracks: 10 Duration: 29:59 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Texas - 1947 (03:04) 2 What Have You Got Planned Tonight, Diana (03:58) 3 Look at Them Beans (02:59) 4 No Charge (03:16) 5 I Hardly Ever Sing Beer Drinking Songs (02:36) 6 Down the Road I Go (02:23) 7 I Never Met a Man Like You Before (02:59) 8 All Around Cowboy (02:47) 9 Gone (03:40) 10 Down at Drippin’ Springs (02:12) |
| Look at Them Beans : Allmusic album Review : This record has the feeling of a project that never quite got off the ground. Songs like Guy Clarks "Texas-1947" is a song Cash could sink his teeth in and make his own. Yet it sounds as though hes just walking through it. Not a bad record, it still leaves one with the feeling that this record could really have been something. | ||
 | Album: 37 of 45 Title: One Piece at a Time Released: 1976-05 Tracks: 12 Duration: 37:37 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Let There Be Country (03:04) 2 One Piece at a Time (04:02) 3 In a Young Girl’s Mind (03:11) 4 Mountain Lady (02:46) 5 Michigan City Howdy Do (02:30) 6 Sold Out of Flag Poles (02:48) 7 Committed to Parkview (03:18) 8 Daughter of a Railroad Man (03:14) 9 Love Has Lost Again (02:28) 10 Go on Blues (02:23) 11 In a Young Girl’s Mind (04:28) 12 Committed to Parkview (03:21) |
| One Piece at a Time : Allmusic album Review : In the mid-70s, Johnny Cash was holding his own against the onslaught of progressive rock, psychedelic rock, and intense funk that ruled the airwaves. The trademark shuffling twang of the Tennessee Three remained an attractive feel, unique and apparently impossible to copy, but there was more to it than that. His choice of subjects solidified the impression of him as an all-American mainstream type who happened to side with the hippies and hang out with Bob Dylan, a fact of great significance during this era, and which might have sustained Cash had he decided to begin performing on harpischord. His radio hit "One Piece at a Time" detailed a small victory in the common mans battle over corporate greed, and it certainly wasnt the only great song on this overlooked album. "Committed to Parkview" belongs to the unfortunately tiny genre of country songs about mental institutions, and might be the best of them all, seriously rivaling Faron Youngs "Rubber Room." "Love Has Lost Again" is one of his bittersweet ballads along the lines of "I Still Miss Someone," while unpretentious numbers such as "Go on Blues" represent the type of music that slips sneakily into a listeners consciousness, staying for days. There are uncomfortable duds, sure, but sometimes instrumental touches manage to bring a song to life, whether it is the loudly mixed jaw harp on "Sold Out of Flagpoles" or the rubato harmonica on the relatively corny "Let There Be Country." "One Piece at a Time" was the work of the fine country songwriter Wayne Kemp, but much of the other good material on this recording comes from Cash himself. | ||
 | Album: 38 of 45 Title: The Last Gunfighter Ballad Released: 1977-01 Tracks: 10 Duration: 29:59 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 I Will Dance With You (03:32) 2 The Last Gunfighter Ballad (02:46) 3 Far Side Banks of Jordan (02:41) 4 Ridin’ on the Cotton Belt (03:24) 5 Give It Away (02:54) 6 You’re So Close to Me (02:52) 7 City Jail (03:07) 8 Cindy, I Love You (02:08) 9 Ballad of Barbara (03:49) 10 That Silver Haired Daddy of Mine (02:46) |
| The Last Gunfighter Ballad : Allmusic album Review : This is an okay album with some nice moments such as the title track and "Silver Haired Daddy" on which John teams up with his brother Tommy. The liner notes, on the other hand, are interesting, and funny, and have a real personality. | ||
 | Album: 39 of 45 Title: The Rambler Released: 1977-07 Tracks: 16 Duration: 39:48 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Hit the Road and Go (02:26) 2 Dialogue #1 (02:40) 3 If It Wasn’t for the Wabash River (02:39) 4 Dialogue #2 (02:27) 5 Lady (03:09) 6 Dialogue #3 (02:32) 7 After the Ball (03:02) 8 Dialogue #4 (02:05) 9 No Earthly Good (03:02) 10 Dialogue #5 (01:53) 11 A Wednesday Car (02:27) 12 Dialogue #6 (00:59) 13 My Cowboy’s Last Ride (02:40) 14 Dialogue #7 (02:50) 15 Calilou (03:32) 16 Dialogue #8 (01:25) |
| The Rambler : Allmusic album Review : Out of all of Johnny Cashs Americana concept albums, The Rambler is by far the most forced and stilted. More of a radio play than an album, the record is about Cashs drive across America, where he picks up hitchhikers along the way. Every song on The Rambler is tied together by dialogues between Cash and the hitchhikers, which means the record never develops a sense of momentum. Furthermore, the songs themselves are slight, without much musically or lyrically to reccommend them. In all, its an ambitious, overwrought failure that is fascinating for one listen, but nearly impossible to sit through more than once. | ||
 | Album: 40 of 45 Title: Gone Girl Released: 1978-01-01 Tracks: 10 Duration: 31:19 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Gone Girl (03:04) 2 I Will Rock and Roll With You (02:50) 3 The Diplomat (03:59) 4 No Expectations (03:08) 5 It Come and Goes (02:34) 6 It’ll Be Her (03:07) 7 The Gambler (03:38) 8 Cajun Born (03:14) 9 You and Me (02:38) 10 A Song for the Life (03:07) |
| Gone Girl : Allmusic album Review : The liner notes describe a last-minute scramble to find songs for an upcoming session and, unfortuantely, the record bears that out. Many of the tracks are covers which leave the listener wondering "Why?" | ||
 | Album: 41 of 45 Title: I Would Like to See You Again Released: 1978-04 Tracks: 11 Duration: 32:43 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 I Would Like to See You Again (02:54) 2 Lately (02:00) 3 I Wish I Was Crazy Again (02:44) 4 Who’s Gene Autry? (03:52) 5 Hurt So Bad (02:37) 6 I Don’t Think I Could Take You Back Again (02:50) 7 Abner Brown (03:39) 8 After Taxes (03:03) 9 There Ain’t No Good Chain Gang (03:18) 10 That’s the Way It Is (03:02) 11 I’m Alright Now (02:39) |
| I Would Like to See You Again : Allmusic album Review : As great as Columbias Essential Johnny Cash box is, their decision to exclude this albums best songs prove that Cashs catalog needs more than three discs worth of attention. The title track, "Whos Gene Autry?," and the humorous "After Taxes" are typical Cash classics, while the heartbreaking "Abner Brown" easily ranks among his best narrative ballads. Elsewhere the records feel-good bounce and outlaw licks (provided by a pair of duets with Waylon Jennings) make it a fun listen, with Cash generally turning in better covers than originals. | ||
 | Album: 42 of 45 Title: A Believer Sings the Truth Released: 1979 Tracks: 20 Duration: 55:02 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Wings in the Morning (02:43) 2 Gospel Boogie (02:36) 3 Over the Next Hill We’ll Be Home (02:34) 4 He’s Alive (04:16) 5 I’ve Got Jesus in My Soul (02:39) 6 When He Comes (03:30) 7 I Was There When It Happened (So I Guess I Ought to Know) (02:12) 8 I’m a Newborn Man (01:40) 9 There Are Strange Things Happening Every Day (03:30) 10 Children Go Where I Send Thee (02:41) 1 I’m Just an Old Chunk of Coal (02:12) 2 Lay Me Down in Dixie (01:59) 3 Don’t Take Everybody for Your Friend (02:23) 4 You’ll Get Yours, I’ll Get Mine (02:20) 5 Oh Come, Angel Band (02:43) 6 This Train Is Bound for Glory (03:29) 7 I’m Gonna Try to Be That Way (02:47) 8 What on Earth (Will You Do for Heaven’s Sake) (02:06) 9 That’s Enough (02:42) 10 The Greatest Cowboy of Them All (03:55) |
 | Album: 43 of 45 Title: Silver Released: 1979 Tracks: 12 Duration: 37:13 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 The L&N Dont Stop Here Anymore (03:17) 2 Lonesome to the Bone (02:40) 3 Bull Rider (03:12) 4 I’ll Say It’s True (02:48) 5 (Ghost) Riders in the Sky (03:46) 6 Cocaine Blues (03:21) 7 Muddy Waters (03:29) 8 West Canterbury Subdivision Blues (03:48) 9 Lately I Been Leanin’ Toward the Blues (02:37) 10 I’m Gonna Sit on the Porch and Pick on My Old Guitar (03:03) 11 I Still Miss Someone (02:52) 12 I Got Stripes (02:16) |
| Silver : Allmusic album Review : Silver was a below-average Cash outing, due both to the routine material and the mixed attempt to update his sound with more modern production techniques. Brian Ahern, who produced Emmylou Harris, was at the helm of a set that often put a more contemporary sheen on the sound with filters and phase shifters. Plenty of session help was on hand as well, sometimes on trumpet and French horn, and its usually not a great sign when the list of players on some tracks run to more than a dozen. The idea was probably to make Cash sound less old-fashioned; the ironic result was to make it sound more dated and flat than most of the rest of his catalog, without comparing to his better recordings in the quality of the content. Still, erratic production cant smother Cashs strengths, and the records not terrible, just uninspired. Some of the better songs include his reading of Tom T. Halls "The L&N; Dont Stop Here Anymore"; a cover of "(Ghost) Riders in the Sky" (a song thats hard to ruin) with contributions from Ricky Skaggs, Wayne Jackson, and the Carter Family; and veteran cohort Jack Clements memorably titled "West Canterbury Subdivision Blues." George Jones adds harmony vocals to "Ill Say Its True." | ||
 | Album: 44 of 45 Title: Rockabilly Blues Released: 1980 Tracks: 10 Duration: 32:59 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Cold Lonesome Morning (03:21) 2 Without Love (02:29) 3 W‐O‐M‐A‐N (03:21) 4 The Cowboy Who Started the Fight (03:46) 5 The Twentieth Century Is Almost Over (03:38) 6 Rockabilly Blues (Texas 1955) (03:21) 7 The Last Time (03:16) 8 She’s a Go‐er (02:28) 9 It Ain’t Nothing New Babe (04:02) 10 One Way Rider (03:16) |
| Rockabilly Blues : Allmusic album Review : Not as earth-shaking as his work with The Tennessee Two, and not really true rockabilly, its still a convincing album of country-rock songs with more depth than nearly anything else coming from Nashville at the time. | ||
 | Album: 45 of 45 Title: Classic Christmas Released: 1980 Tracks: 10 Duration: 32:38 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Joy to the World (02:07) 2 Away in a Manger (03:07) 3 O Little Town of Bethlehem (03:29) 4 Silent Night (03:01) 5 It Came Upon the Midnight Clear (03:39) 6 Hark! The Herald Angels Sing (02:31) 7 I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day (02:21) 8 O Come All Ye Faithful (02:58) 9 Little Gray Donkey (04:44) 10 The Christmas Guest (04:37) |
| Classic Christmas : Allmusic album Review : Spend your holidays with the Man in Black -- on Classic Christmas, Johnny Cash lends his one-of-a-kind voice to renditions of "Away in a Manger," "O Little Town of Bethlehem," and "Little Gray Donkey." | ||