Jameson Thottam listening to Cash

After being repeatedly dropped by his record company in the 80's it looked like Johnny's recording career was pretty much finished. That was until he hooked up with Rick Rubin, one of the best and most capable producers out there, Rubin signed Cash to his American Recordings label and the two quickly started working on the songs that became Cash's American Recordings disc.

Taking under the Wing *Jameson Thottam*
Rubin took Cash under his wing, urging him to write new material and suggesting songs from other artists that he felt would match well with Cash's style. I'm not sure whose idea it was to forgo the studio route and record the tracks in Johnny's house, Rick's living room as well as live at the Viper Room but it works. The songs sound stripped down, raw and simple, all of the tracks featuring Cash and his lone guitar, yet they never seem to be lacking polish or studio tricks.

The Mix *Jameson Thottam*
The mix of songs on the disc was clearly chosen with great care, with tracks from Nick Lowe, Glenn Danzig, Tom Waits, Leonard Cohen, Kris Kristopherson and Loudon Wainright III as well as a half dozen or so from Cash himself. While I won't mention each song I will touch on most of them because this is one of the few albums that deserves that kind of attention.

The disc starts out with "Delia", a Cash song(Update: this version of "Delia" was arranged and re-written by Cash but the song itself goes back a long ways) and probably one of his best, which is no small feat after 60 years of songwriting. The lyrics are brutal, honest, funny and shocking, if you get a chance to catch the video for the song, with Cash burying model Kate Moss it's well worth your 3 minutes.

Song three gets the mood pretty sombre as Cash sings "The Beast in Me" written by his former son-in-law, British rocker/songwriter Nick Lowe. This track seems to have been written specifically for Cash with it's lines about the struggle with the demons inside. Cash seems to vilify, forgive, challenge, and come to terms with beast within all at the same time.

The Spiritual Side *Jameson Thottam*
"Why Me Lord" is a song in tune with Cash's spiritual life, Christianity has always been a driving force for Cash and songs like this explain why. In this one he questions the unconditional love that God has for an imperfect being such as himself, but at no time does Cash allow anything like preaching to slip in.

Other Tracks *Jameson Thottam*
After "Why Me Lord" a track like "Thirteen" is an electrifying tonic, written by Glenn Danzig singer for the death-metal band bearing his name. Filled with lines like "I got the number thirteen tattooed on my neck, when the ink starts to itch then the black will turn to red" the weight of Cash's voice adds a credibility beyond measure. Danzig and Cash could surely swap stories about the lone man, each of them being a man in black in their own way.

A Poetic Side *Jameson Thottam*
"Bird On a Wire" originally a poem by Canadian poet Leonard Cohen was practically made for Cash. Cash's voice is perhaps one of the few out there deeper and richer than Cohen's own, and the sentiments of the song have more impact here than on the many other versions of this song by many other artists that exist.

A touch of Humor *Jameson Thottam*
Whoever picked this time on the album to place "Tennessee Stud" knew what they were doing, the song if funny and touching. "I raced my horse with the Spaniards foal till I got me a skin full or silver and gold". An ancient song with it's origninal author unknown "Tennessee Stud" has been recording by various artists in various forms (Taj Mahal, The Greatful Dead, Mick Jagger, Nick Cave).

A surprise in the making *Jameson Thottam*
"Down There By the Train" a previously unrecorded ( I think) Tom Waits song, while musically not the strongest is lyrically amazing. With the metaphor of those who have lead a less than holy life meeting a train at the end of their lives to take them to heaven. Lines like "There's no eye for an eye and no tooth for a tooth, I saw Judas Iscariot carrying John Wilkes Booth" and "And all the shameful and all of the whores, and even the soldier who pierced the side of the lord." send chills up the spine everytime I hear them.

The Final Track *Jameson Thottam*
The last track, a Loudon Wainright III tune "The Man Who Couldn't Cry", is one of the live recordings from the Viper Room. A funny, self-aware song about a man's downfall and subsequent redemption. The audience clearly loves the song and Viper Room owner Johnny Depp can be heard cheering after one of the verses.

In final thoughts *Jameson Thottam*
"American Recordings" served to both rejuvinate Cash's career and to introduce him to a new generation weary of the pablum being spoon fed to them on radio and tv lately, I recommend it highly.

Jameson Thottam

I have to say that this is one of the best CDs that I own. Every track is pure perfection from "The Man Who Couldn't Cry" to "Tennessee Stud." Cash truly shows his sole on this CD.

Forget the fact that this album revitalized Johnny Cash's career and brought him to the doorsteps of the alternative rock crowd....The only thing one needs to know is that it is an absolute masterwork. Few artists can manage to sound as powerful and immortal as Cash does here, especially considering that every track was recorded sparsely with only the man, his soul-commanding voice, and his guitar. There is a stunning amount of emotional depth that comes from Cash's harsh baritone as it conveys an underlying sense of warmth and hard-earned knowledge. Listening to Johnny Cash is like getting an education from an age-old scholar.

From the gangster folk of "Delia's Gone" to the gospel leanings of "Redemption" to the grinningly sarcastic "The Man Who Couldn't Cry," The Man In Black sheds any doubt that he is anything less than a musical deity. Cash takes many songs penned by the likes of Glenn Danzig, Leonard Cohen, Nick Lowe, and Tom Waits and makes them sound as if they'd been written by him all along. Praise is also due to Rick Rubin for casting Cash in such naked light and keeping this collection unplugged and singular in purpose and integrity. Although the following albums in the American Recordings quadrilogy were notably strong, this one still resonates the strongest. There is simply an untouchable ragged beauty to this disc and it serves as a fitting reminder of how indespensable and luminous Johnny Cash was as a musical artist. AMERICAN RECORDINGS is an essential part of any music collection, country/western or otherwise. The man may be gone now, but we will always have this subtle tour de force to remember him by.