The Man In Black shows hints of gray on American III: Solitary Man, his first studio album since being diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 1997. While the inevitability of aging has been the downfall of many of his contemporaries, ending usually in dismissal and often in death, Johnny Cash's dark convictions and powerful presence have gone from rough hardwood to solid stone. The stark beauty of his 1994 release American Recordings and the warm, friendly collaborations on 1996's Unchained combine on this album to create two distinct moods: one of living room jam sessions with invited friends, and another of stark solo (and near-solo) songs highlighting Cash's years and stories.
Like his two previous studio albums, Solitary Man is sparsely produced by Rick Rubin, and continues the themes of love, faith, and loneliness that their previous collaborations have chillingly embraced. Partnering once again with Tom Petty, the two join together on Petty's own "I Won't Back Down" and the Neil Diamond-penned title track. Cash also lays his lonesome hands on U2's "One" and reunites with fellow outlaw Merle Haggard on the stubborn "I'm Leavin' Now," which could serve as the soundtrack for the notorious photo of Cash's sneering middle finger published in Billboard after his Grammy award. These duets and well-known covers show an inviting side of Johnny Cash. But the real highlights of the album are those reminiscent of his American Recordings songs; they feature just the man and his guitar, with nothing else to clutter the story. The creaks and despair of the vaudeville song "Nobody" tell of a man who has become hardened by his solitude, while the Palace hymn "I See a Darkness" soars with the passion of a thousand gospel choirs, even though there are only two men singing.
In the liner notes, Cash writes: "The song is the thing that matters. Before I can record, I have to hear it, sing it, and know that I can make it feel like my own, or it won't work. I worked on these songs until I felt like they were my own." Although at times it is difficult to hear past Tom Petty's growl or Sheryl Crow's young harmonies in the more popular songs he covers, the obscure prison songs and country ballads he has chosen to interpret sound as honest and heartfelt as his own compositions. At age 68, his warm baritone may waver but his passion never does.
I'm such a bad person. I stumbled in at 1.30 with a gang of folks and blasted music 'til 2.30, waking up my room mate. What an a-hole. She woks the same hours as me, and while it was my decision to stay up stupidly late and suffer for it at work today, it wasn't hers. So so so danged sorry.Here's my remorseful song, Johnny Cash covering Bonnie 'Prince' Billie (with Billie doing backing vocals)
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Well here let's give up for the musicians who played on this project:Norman Blake - GuitarMike Campbell - GuitarJune Carter Cash - Vocals on "Field of Diamonds"Laura Cash - FiddleSheryl Crow - Vocals on "Field of Diamonds," Accordion on "Wayfaring Stranger" and "Mary of the Wild Moor"Merle Haggard - Vocals on "I'm Leavin' Now," GuitarWill Oldham - Vocals on "I See a Darkness"Larry Perkins - Gui...
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Who doesn't love this song.American III, American Recordings, and Unchained arrived recently. Nights, mornings I've lain in bed listening. American Recordings and Unchained have yet to have the hearings they deserve. After washing dishes to the accompaniment of American III, I sat in my chair and listened again. This time unfolding the oversized liner notes. Reading these casual reminiscences w...
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I began this album as the last one, in the cabin, in the middle of a 50-acre compound surrounded by cedar trees, deer, goats, and peacocks. The window unit air conditioner doesn't work anymore. We had buffalo, and every time it came on, they rammed it with their horns. Sometimes we have to stop tape for a thunderstorm. We play back the songs and the mockingbirds sing along with it.
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Laying on our backs and looking at the stars at our house in Jamaica Jack Routh and I wrote "Field of Diamonds." The unlikely duet of June and Sheryl Crow sang along with me, and it really felt comfortable.
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God I love this song. Its realness and intimacy and honesty. It seems absolutely right for Cash and sweeter still to have Oldham contribute a vocal. It's one of those songs that when I start playing it I don't really know how to stop. The lyrics that speak to me most directly:Well you know I have a love A love for everyone I know And you know I have a drive To live I won't let go But can you se...
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I sat on the porch and talked to Haggard about the road. "I play Chattanooga tonight," he said. His bus waited just outside my gate while we recorded "I'm Leavin' Now." "Tell them I said hello." I'm glad I didn't have to go. "You'll be back out there," he said, with a slight grin. "We'll see," I said. We recorded the song without a hitch. Marty Stuart played the Hank Snow style guitar, and Laur...
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It's hard for music geeks to get passionate about music that's actually popular. We tend to get passionate about these bands that seem to speak to us but not to other people in adolescence, and this habit sticks with us. Thus we complain when a band that was formerly "ours" gets popular--they sold out, we cry, when what we really mean is "liking this band no longer identifies me as a cool out...
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 "American III: Solitary Man")
