Singin' seems to help a troubled soul
For those who don't know, thats a line from the song "Daddy Sang Bass" by Johnny Cash, its a song about a family that came together to sing when times were tough. As I'm sure most of you have heard, the country music legend died today.
Bill read it on Yahoo news before he went to school, and woke me up at 7 to tell me. I couldn't believe it. When i woke up again at 10 i went online to find out if it was true, maybe i had dreamt it, but it was true. I was devastated. I had just gotten into his music last summer, mostly through the encouragement of U2's music, they're huge fans of his, as well as collaborators (they wrote the song "The Wanderer" for him, its an amazing song). He was an amazing musician, my grandfather loved him a lot, he died a couple of summers ago, so maybe the music helped me keep his memory alive.
So of course what does MTV and other such networks do? In trademark fashion, they play the "Hurt" video more often then when it came out. Thats just what i needed. Everytime it came on i just started crying. To see him in that video (which SHOULD have won at the VMA's), its so powerful, and next to him is his wife June Carter Cash, who died in May, so hopefully they're in Heaven, seeing eachother again.
Johnny Cash was the only part (in my mind) of country music that was decent. He made it mainstream in the early days of Rock and Roll. He'd been making records since the 1950's, on the same record label as Elvis, and recorded a couple of times with The King. His early songs were very simplistic musically, but he had great lyrics. I consider him one of music's best storytellers, along with Bob Dylan (who sited Cash as a major influence, they also played together on Cash's 70's tv show, forever linking Country and Folk), and Tupac Shakur. In the 60's and 70's he joined the anti-war movement, becoming "The Man In Black" in mourning to the men dying in the war. In the 80's and 90's he revamped his career, often teaming up with profucer Rick Rubin (whos produced for Run-DMC, The Beasite Boys, and Limp Bizkit, amoung others) and continued to get the accolades he deserved. He often battled drug and alcohol addiction. He recorded an entire concert in Folsom Prison, years before Metallica were even born. I consider him Rock's first REAL rebel, and still a blueprint for future bad-asses everywhere. His voice in itself was amazing, he sounds like a giant, its so deep, i can't think of any famous basses, besides in groups of course.
Its just not fair, I had always wanted to meet him. I encourage anyone reading to give his music a chance, he's one of those legendary artists that every generation will be able to find, and appreciate, not just for country music, but for all music, for all time.
Bill read it on Yahoo news before he went to school, and woke me up at 7 to tell me. I couldn't believe it. When i woke up again at 10 i went online to find out if it was true, maybe i had dreamt it, but it was true. I was devastated. I had just gotten into his music last summer, mostly through the encouragement of U2's music, they're huge fans of his, as well as collaborators (they wrote the song "The Wanderer" for him, its an amazing song). He was an amazing musician, my grandfather loved him a lot, he died a couple of summers ago, so maybe the music helped me keep his memory alive.
So of course what does MTV and other such networks do? In trademark fashion, they play the "Hurt" video more often then when it came out. Thats just what i needed. Everytime it came on i just started crying. To see him in that video (which SHOULD have won at the VMA's), its so powerful, and next to him is his wife June Carter Cash, who died in May, so hopefully they're in Heaven, seeing eachother again.
Johnny Cash was the only part (in my mind) of country music that was decent. He made it mainstream in the early days of Rock and Roll. He'd been making records since the 1950's, on the same record label as Elvis, and recorded a couple of times with The King. His early songs were very simplistic musically, but he had great lyrics. I consider him one of music's best storytellers, along with Bob Dylan (who sited Cash as a major influence, they also played together on Cash's 70's tv show, forever linking Country and Folk), and Tupac Shakur. In the 60's and 70's he joined the anti-war movement, becoming "The Man In Black" in mourning to the men dying in the war. In the 80's and 90's he revamped his career, often teaming up with profucer Rick Rubin (whos produced for Run-DMC, The Beasite Boys, and Limp Bizkit, amoung others) and continued to get the accolades he deserved. He often battled drug and alcohol addiction. He recorded an entire concert in Folsom Prison, years before Metallica were even born. I consider him Rock's first REAL rebel, and still a blueprint for future bad-asses everywhere. His voice in itself was amazing, he sounds like a giant, its so deep, i can't think of any famous basses, besides in groups of course.
Its just not fair, I had always wanted to meet him. I encourage anyone reading to give his music a chance, he's one of those legendary artists that every generation will be able to find, and appreciate, not just for country music, but for all music, for all time.