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Johnny Cash

TheOldMole Dec 01 2005 01:35 PM

In recognition of the movie (which I loved), the five best Johnny Cash songs? Here's my list: 1. I Walk the Line 2. Ring of Fire 3. Jackson (duet w/June) 4. Folsom Prison Blues 5. Ballad of Ira Hayes The first four are no-brainers to me, though I could probably throw them in the air and come down with any order. The fifth...well, there were a lot I could have chosen, so I went with a dark horse.

Frayed Knot Dec 01 2005 01:45 PM

I usually think of 'Man in Black' as the quintessential Johnny Cash song. I might throw 'Give My Love to Rose' in there as well. He re-did that one on his final album which, with it's starker stripped-down arrangement, took on new meaning as he and June were both then dying. So which ones would I replace on that list of five? Oh hell I don't know!

Johnny Dickshot Dec 01 2005 01:45 PM

One of the weird things about Cash is that seems like he recorded several versions of his biggest songs, with some better than others and I can;t tell all of 'em apart. I like one version of "Tennessee Flat-Top Box" and one "Ira Hayes" but not the other versions as much. That's a pretty good top 5 I suppose. I also like "Cry Cry Cry" and his American recordings series, especially Unchained.

TheOldMole Dec 01 2005 01:47 PM

and Delia.

Edgy DC Dec 01 2005 01:55 PM

"The Singer" and "I've Been Everywhere" jump out at me. Are we judging compositions or recordings? Many of his greatest reecordings coming from the pens of others, the distinction is vital.

seawolf17 Dec 01 2005 02:02 PM

If it's "recordings," count my vote for "Hurt."

TheOldMole Dec 01 2005 02:06 PM

I was thinking recordings. He didn't write Ring of Fire or Ira Hayes.

Edgy DC Dec 01 2005 02:08 PM

Or "Boy Named Sue" or "It's Sunday Morning and Iit's Time I Accepted That I Have a Drinking Problem" or whatever that Kristofferson song is called.

Willets Point Dec 01 2005 02:11 PM

I was sadly ignorant of Johnny Cash until a few years ago so I still don't know much about him but Mole's list looks good.

A Boy Named Seo Dec 03 2005 12:18 AM

I always dug "Hey Porter!". The Sun Records Cash stuff was known so much for that boom-chicka-boom percussion underneath it all, and this song was actually about riding on a train, and was fast-paced, hurried and frantic, and Johnny was in such a rush to get past that Mason-Dixon line and get back to Tennessee, that I wanted to put some coal in the engine, or something, anything to help get the guy there faster. I love the Rubin produced American Recordings stuff a lot ("Let the Train Blow the Whistle" off that first American album would be on my list, too), but "Hey Porter!" makes the cut for me, for sure. "Drive On", a tune about downed Vietnam soldiers telling their mates to go on and leave them behind and save themselves is another favorite of mine. Dylan called Johnny Cash the North Star. Said you could "Guide your ship by him -- the greatest of the greats then and now." Hard to disagree much with that.

A Boy Named Seo Dec 03 2005 12:30 AM

And talking strictly recordings, some of his renditions of Hank Williams tunes, like "Hey, Good Lookin'" and "I Can't Help It (If I'm Still in Love With You)" were so great, that I almost dug them more than the Hank Williams versions, and Hank's one of my favorite performers in American music (forget just country) history. Same words, but Cash's delivery gave them a different feel altogether. He did the same with that Neil Diamond cover and "One" by U2, also.

TheOldMole Dec 03 2005 01:07 AM

One of the great Hank covers is Jerry Lee Lewis's version of "You Win Again."