So, it was Johnny Cash’s birthday yesterday and I didn’t get a chance to post something. I feel like I’ve let myself down.
Johnny Cash was more than just a singer of songs. He was a shining light and although many find his baritone to be somewhat depressing, I always found his voice and music (regardless of the subject matter) to be uplifting. I firmly believe that there’s a Johnny Cash song for everyone … he’s written things down that will relate to someone, somewhere.
I first heard Johnny Cash when a Levi’s ad carried ‘Ring of Fire’. I never really thought that much about country music. My ol’ man had a cassette with ‘A Boy Named Sue’ and ‘Folsom Prison Blues’, which I later discovered were recorded at San Quentin. But, I never really thought that much about the man or the music other than the cool song about the boy with the girls name, the one with the trumpets and shooting “a man in Reno/just to watch him die”.
A good few years later I discovered the music of Johnny Cash. I had stumbled upon a cassette with ‘I Walk the Line’, ‘I Still Miss Someone’ and I remembered ‘A Boy Named Sue’ and ‘Folsom Prison Blues’. I duly purchased the ‘Man In Black’ compilation and I found myself immersed in the music and the words. I pretty much went from there.
There’s much more to Mr. J R Cash than ‘Hurt’.
