The Definitive 1000 Songs Of All Time 1955 to 2005: Number 705

Number 705

Johnny Cash

"Folsom Prison Blues"

(1956)

Genre:Country

Anybody who dresses all in black has to be cool, right? In this case... Dead Bloody Right! Johnny Cash is a legend and no denying that, whether it be his music or persona. I haven't seen the film yet, but i am looking forward to watching it.

26.02.32 to 12.09.03

As an emeritus member of both the Country Music and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, winner of the 1991 Grammy Legend Award, and with more than a hundred and fifty charted hits to his credit, Johnny Cash is the Grand Old Man of Nashville. The son of an Arkansas sharecropper, Cash grew up dirt-poor (he nearly died of starvation as an infant). He went on to stints in the Army and as an appliance salesman before making it big. In 1955, he signed with Sam Phillips Sun Records, joining Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Carl Perkins (the foursome known as "The Million-Dollar Quartet"). "Folsom Prison Blues" ("I shot a man in Reno, just to watch him die . . . "), "I Walk the Line," "Guess Things Happen That Way," and other hits quickly established Cash as a major player on both the pop and country scenes, and by the mid-sixties, with a continuing stream of top-sellers (such as "Ring of Fire") to his credit, he was one of the most popular artists in the country. But as his career soared, Cash reached a personal low. Battles with drugs and liquor affected both his performances and his marriage to his first wife, Vivian Liberto. He became so violent during one 1965 Nashville show that he was banned from playing at the Grande Ole Opry.

Johnny discovered the Bible in the late sixties; God and singing partner June Carter, who he married in 1968, helped him clean up his act. In 1969, Cash won two Grammys for his smash live album, Johnny Cash Live at Folsom Prison, and sold more records in the U.S. than the Beatles. He also starred in a hit variety program for ABC which ran until 1971. While continuing to record dozens of secular and spiritual albums, he began a modest movie career. Now in his sixties, the Man in Black is making headlines again after a number of years out of the spotlight. In 1992 he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and 1993 saw him contribute a vocal performance to U2's Zooropa album.

He then signed to American Recordings--formerly a rap label--and his 1994 album featured songs written by such diverse performers as Tom Waits, Leonard Cohen, Nick Lowe, Glenn Danzig, and Cash himself. The first single, "Delia's Gone," was backed by a video featuring waif-extraordinaire Kate Moss, and introduced Cash to the MTV generation. The album won him a Grammy for Best Contemporary Folk Album and an offer to appear at the most sacred bastion of alternativeness, Lollapalooza. Cash had the good sense to decline. His 1996 album, Unchained, included covers of Soundgarden and Beck tunes, and backing by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. ~ [Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide]
For Elvis Presley see Number 840, #501 & #443

For the Beatles see Number 489, #587, #894 & #947

For Nick Lowe see Number 998

For Tom Petty see Number 585

For more Johnny Cash see Number 624

What does Rolling Stone think about Johnny Cash?

Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings and Kris Kristofferson are about as familiar as the faces on Mount Rushmore, and it's easy to assume that they are equally frozen in time, equally nonthreatening. They organize benefits, sing for presidents, even pitch products on occasion. But in decades past, they were the bad boys, the self-described "outlaws" who introduced a bold frankness to country songwriting and declared their independence from tired-and-untrue Music Row formulas, shaking the Nashville establishment to its roots. New traditionalists like Steve Earle and Dwight Yoakam – not to mention a renegade son like Hank Williams Jr. – are celebrated for their menacing attitudes and rock & rolling sound, but these grand old men invented contemporary country cool ~ [Source: Rolling Stone]