Chapter 14: Rock and Roll Pt. 2
Johnny Cash was one of the most influential and genre-defying artists in 20th-century American music. With a career spanning nearly five decades, he recorded over 1,500 songs and sold more than fifty million albums. Known for his deep bass-baritone voice, stripped-down instrumentation, and thematic focus on the lives of working-class Americans, Cash became a towering figure across multiple genres, including country, rock and roll, gospel, folk, and blues. He is one of the few musicians inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (1992), the Country Music Hall of Fame (1980), and the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame (1977), underscoring his far-reaching impact.
Born in Kingsland, Arkansas, on February 26, 1932, Johnny Cash grew up during the Great Depression in the rural town of Dyess, a New Deal-era agricultural cooperative. He was one of seven children in a family of sharecroppers, and the hardship of cotton-field labor and the sounds of the gospel and country music he heard as a child became recurring motifs in his songwriting. As a boy, Cash regularly listened to the Carter Family on the radio. After serving in the U.S. Air Force as a radio operator stationed in Germany from 1950 to 1954, where he formed a string band with fellow servicemen, Cash returned to the U.S. and moved to Memphis to pursue a career in music.
In 1955, he auditioned at Sun Records as a gospel singer, performing sacred songs for producer Sam Phillips, who reportedly advised him to "go home and sin, then come back with a song I can sell." Taking Phillips’s advice to heart, Cash shifted to secular material and soon began recording for the label. Backed by the Tennessee Two—guitarist Luther Perkins and bassist Marshall Grant—Cash developed a minimalist yet powerful sound rooted in the rhythmic "boom-chicka-boom" pattern that became his signature. With the later addition of drummer W.S. Holland in 1960, the group became the Tennessee Three. His early Sun singles, including “Hey Porter” (1955), “Cry! Cry! Cry!” (1955), “Folsom Prison Blues” (1955), and “I Walk the Line” (1956), brought him national recognition. “I Walk the Line” marked Cash’s first major crossover success, charting on both country and pop lists. Though his musical style leaned more toward country than rhythm and blues, Cash is often included among the foundational figures of rockabilly. Alongside Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins, and Jerry Lee Lewis, he formed part of the so-called “Million Dollar Quartet” of Sun rockabilly stars.
In 1958, Cash left Sun for Columbia Records, where he sought greater artistic freedom, including the opportunity to record gospel and concept albums. His Columbia hits include “Don’t Take Your Guns to Town” (1958), “Ring of Fire”(1963), and “A Boy Named Sue” (1969). During the 1960s, Cash recorded a series of concept albums that explored themes of American identity, history, and justice. Albums like Blood, Sweat and Tears (1963) addressed the struggles of the working class, while Bitter Tears: Ballads of the American Indian (1964) advocated for Native American rights. Later releases, such as America: A 200-Year Salute in Story and Song (1972) and The Gospel Road (1973), further reflected his interest in national history and Christian faith.
Two live albums recorded in prisons—Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison (1968) and Johnny Cash at San Quentin (1969)—earned him widespread acclaim and commercial success. At the start of each performance, Cash greeted the inmates with his now-iconic introduction: “Hello, I’m Johnny Cash,” and immediately launched into “Folsom Prison Blues.” San Quentin topped both the pop and country charts and outsold even The Beatles in 1969, with Cash becoming the year’s best-selling recording artist internationally. His stark black stage attire, originally chosen for its simplicity, became a political and personal symbol, codified in his 1971 protest anthem “Man in Black,” in which he expressed solidarity with the poor, the imprisoned, and the downtrodden.
From 1969 to 1971, Cash hosted The Johnny Cash Show on ABC, where he featured a wide range of musical guests including Bob Dylan, Stevie Wonder, Joni Mitchell, and members of the Carter Family. His collaborations with Dylan, especially on Nashville Skyline (1969), helped bridge country and folk rock, pioneering a country rock aesthetic. He also frequently toured with his second wife, June Carter Cash, the daughter of Maybelle Carter and a touring member of the Carter Family.
In the 1980s, Cash’s popularity declined, and Columbia dropped him from its roster. He signed briefly with Mercury Records (1986–92) but found greater success as a member of the Highwaymen, a supergroup formed with Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, and Kris Kristofferson. His solo revival came in the 1990s, when producer Rick Rubin signed him to American Recordings. The stripped-down production and confessional tone of the American series reintroduced Cash to a younger audience, with American IV: The Man Comes Around (2002) and his stark, emotional cover of Nine Inch Nails’ “Hurt” earning critical acclaim.
Cash passed away in Nashville, Tennessee, on September 12, 2003, just months after the death of June Carter Cash. His legacy has only expanded in the years since, driven by renewed interest in American roots music and the rise of alternative country.