Who the hell is Johnny Cash?
Not necessarily rumbling, Johnny Cash is coming down train track towards a whole breed of
listeneres - the youth brigade. Without jumping the tracks to the neo-pseudo-Nashvillized sounds
of today, Mr. Cash coninues his tradition of writing and singing country songs that people complain about.
American Recordings, Cash's debut on banshee Ric Rubin's American Records label, draws a
silhouette of the man in black; still politicizing, tranquilizing, and gospelizing. Mr. Cash is picking his
sins away, smetimes dreary, raw, and somewhat forgiving. He has stuck to his deep throated
storytelling ways while adding a collection of eclectic cover songs.
Contributing songwriters on American Recordings include the Rockpile man, Nick Lowe, who also
brought the Pretenders out with "Stop Your Sobbin'"; Kris Kristofferson, the other cool country
rebel; Tom Waits, the ex-homeless man who once lived in his car; metal man Glenn Danzig; the
eccentric Leonard Cohen; and Loudon Wainwright who brought us the Seventies "Dead Skunk." But
Mr. Cash doesn't need cover song acclaim, and he didn't intend to straddle that fence. ItŐs just
kind of an honor to have your song sung by this powerful icon.
Mr. Cash begins the disc through the festered waters of "Delia's Gone," singing "If I
hadn't shot poor Delia, I'd had her for my wife." The strum, bass string pluck of "Let the
Train Blow the Whistle" is a two minute wonder of word and rhyme, selling tickets on
his guitar and saying hello to the girls at the Ritz. "Drive On" mixes Mr. Cash's ease of
talk and subtle chorus hum while tackling the political espionage with which many Vietnam
Veterans struggle, and the deep-soul feel of "Redemption" will make it much easier when
Mr. Cash passes on. Finally, the last original, "Like a Soldier" brings on a reminiscent
lyric and "a lot of things I choose not to recall" in a thankful manner from an older, wise man.
Other treats include two live recordings at the Viper Room (Johnny Depp's club) and a couple of
ghost written songs, a medley of "Cowboy's Prayer" and "Oh Bury Me Not" and the
shanker, "Tennessee Stud."
"Hello, I'm Johnny Cash."
Reviewer: Bonn Garrett, courtesy of Flash Magazine.