AMG Review of Classic Cash: Hall of Fame Series

Stephen Thomas Erlewine
All Music Guide

Johnny Cash's period with Mercury Records was not his finest. It wasn't that he recorded a batch poor records; it was the fact that those records were barely heard by anyone. However, Classic Cash isn't a compilation of those neglected gems -- it's a collection of re-recordings of his biggest hits. As re-recordings go, these aren't particularly bad -- Cash is in strong voice and his band is tight, professional and accomplished -- but they aren't inspired and hardly are substitute for the original records.