Johnny Cash, American V Release Date Announced...

[Hobo]

On the day he finished 2002's American IV: The Man Comes Around, an ailing Johnny Cash began recording with longtime producer and friend Rick Rubin. They wrapped up the last of 60 tracks a week before the country giant died at 71 on Sept. 12, 2003.

Now the Man in Black is coming around again on American V: A Hundred Highways, featuring a dozen songs from sessions recorded at Rubin's studio in Los Angeles and Cash's cabin in Nashville.

Their fifth collaboration, due July 4 on American Recordings/Lost Highway Records, holds the final song Cash wrote, The 309, a poignant and amusing train yarn.

It also includes a prayerful version of Larry Gatlin's Help Me, a new take on I'm Free from the Chain Gang Now, Hugh Moffatt's Rose of My Heart, the traditional God's Gonna Cut You Down, Rod McKuen's Love's Been Good to Me and the seemingly incongruous If You Could Read My Mind by Gordon Lightfoot.

"It's an amazingly sad album," Rubin says. "At times, it's hard to get through, but it's really beautiful. It's remarkable to hear an artist of his stature being so vulnerable and open and sounding strong so late in his life. I don't think there's ever been an album like this."

But there might be another one. After ignoring the entire trove initially after Cash died, Rubin recently finished assembling American V and now is compiling tracks for American VI, which could be released within a year.

"I avoided it for a long time, because I didn't want to feel sad and I was concerned from a technical standpoint, because a lot of it was recorded when he wasn't in the best shape," he says. "I was shocked at the volume and quality of the material. Certain songs raised their hands and volunteered for this album. VI is mostly revealed but not completely."

Rubin kept an engineer and guitarist on standby around the clock so Cash could record when his health permitted. Songs were captured in the moment rather than sculpted, Rubin says, and instrumentation was built under the vocal tracks later. When his wife, June Carter, died in May 2003, a sense of urgency seemed to grip Cash.

Rubin recalls, "Once June passed, he had the will to live long enough to record, but that was pretty much all. A day after June passed, he said, 'I need to have something to do every day. Otherwise, there's no reason for me to be here.' "

The result "may be the strongest album we've made together," Rubin says. "It's not leftover scraps. It's the real deal. And it's incredible for his legacy. We live in a youth-oriented culture that throws away the old, yet young people have loved John's later records. And that was a big deal. It touched him. He wasn't doing this for himself."

CREDIT: USA Today

LOS ANGELES, CA -- MONDAY, May 1, 2006 -- In the months leading up to his passing on September 12, 2003, JOHNNY CASH had been recording new material with producer Rick Rubin. On July 4, 2006, "American V: A Hundred Highways," the all-new Johnny Cash album taken from those sessions, will be released on the American Recordings label through Lost Highway. It will include the last song Cash ever wrote.

The songs that comprise "American V: A Hundred Highways" are as eclectic an assortment as any on the previous albums in the American series: "Help Me," a poignant plea to God, the hauntingly beautiful ballad "If You Could Read My Mind," "God's Gonna Cut You Down," a traditional spiritual, the touching "Love's Been Good To Me," the heartrending "On The Evening Train," and "Further On (Up the Road)" are among the tracks on the new album. Songwriters for the tracks run the gamut from Hank Williams to Rod McKuen to Bruce Springsteen.

In addition, two original Cash compositions are featured, "Like the 309" and "I Came to Believe." "Like the 309" is the last song Cash wrote and, like his first recorded single, 1955's "Hey Porter," is a song that incorporates one of his favorite settings, trains: "Everybody take a look/See I'm doin' fine/Then load my box/On the 309." "I Came to Believe" is a song he wrote and originally recorded earlier in his career, and addresses the pain of addiction and connecting to a higher power.

"I think that 'American V' may be my favorite of all of the albums in the American series," said Rubin. "It's different from the others, it has a much different character. I think that this is as strong an album as Johnny ever made."

The months following the May, 2004 passing of his wife June Carter Cash, were among the most physically and emotionally painful times in Cash's life, but keeping focused on the recording of "American V: A Hundred Highways" proved to be his salvation. Rubin remembers, "Johnny said that recording was his main reason for being alive, and I think it was the only thing that kept him going, the only thing he had to look forward to."

Cash and Rubin began recording the songs that would find their way onto "American V: A Hundred Highways" in 2002, specifically on the day after they finished "American IV: The Man Comes Around" which was released that November. Johnny feared that "American IV" might be his last release, so Rubin suggested that he immediately begin writing and recording new material. Over the next eight months, songs were cut at Rubin's Los Angeles studio and in Nashville at Johnny's main home and at his fabled cabin located across the road. Due to Cash's frail health, Rubin arranged for an engineer and guitar players to always be on call for the days that Cash felt strong enough to work.

"He always wanted to work," said Rubin. "Every morning when he'd wake up, he would call the engineer and tell him if he was physically up to working that day. Our main concern was to get a great vocal performance. Johnny would record a song, send it to me and I would build a new track up under it. In the past, at the end of this process, he'd come to L.A. And we'd go through everything together, he would re-record any vocal bits that needed re-recording. But this time, we didn't have that opportunity."

Last year, Rubin began going through these final recordings. He admitted, "I kind of dreaded doing it, after Johnny passed, going back and listening to it...it was difficult.

"With all of the albums Johnny and I made together, our goal was for each one to be the best it could possibly be, and that remained the case with 'American V,'" Rick explained. Eventually, Cash's long-time engineer David "Fergie" Ferguson, Heartbreakers Mike Campbell (guitars) and Benmont Tench (keyboards), and Smokey Hormel (guitars), all of whom had worked on previous albums in the American series, along with Matt Sweeney (guitars) and Johnny Polonsky (guitars) went into the studio.

"We felt Johnny's presence during the whole process through to the end," said Rubin. "It felt like he was directing the proceedings, and I know that the musicians all felt that as well. Almost all of the songs were cut solely to Johnny's original vocal tracks, the musicians all keyed off his voice and were playing to him, supporting the emotion of his performance. More than once, Fergie and I would look at each other and say 'Johnny would love this,' because it was so good and so different from anything we'd done before, we knew he would be excited by what was happening."

It was decided to wait to release "American V: A Hundred Highways" until the recent Cash hubbub had run its course. What separates this album from the re-packages, compilations, movie soundtracks and everything else that has surfaced since Johnny's passing is, according to Rubin, "These songs are Johnny's final statement. They are the truest reflection of the music that was central to his life at the time. This is the music that Johnny wanted us to hear."

CREDIT: Lost Highway

Well, I'm certainly looking forward to this. I've been dying to hear how Cash's version of "Futher On (Up The Road)" would sound since I heard he'd recorded it. I remember seeing a hand written list of songs that Cash wanted to record. I also remember "Four Strong Winds" being on it and "Kingdom Come", the song Chris Martin wrote for him but Cash never recorded. I think that was on it too. I've found nothing on a track list atm.

[Liam]

I'll be interested to see Cash's version of "If You Could Read My Mind".

[Guest Heresy]

Cashs covers often seem to be better than the originals. I prefer his versions of Hurt and Personal Jesus than the NiN and Depeche Mode versions respectively.

[apsham]

If You Could Read My Mind by Gordon Lightfoot.

OH MY GOD.

[Liam]

Cashs covers often seem to be better than the originals. I prefer his versions of Hurt and Personal Jesus than the NiN and Depeche Mode versions respectively.

Personally, I'd go with a no on both of them. His Hurt is good, but I prefer the original, and his Personal Jesus was a little meh to me.

[DFF]

I prefer Marilyn Manson's version of Personal Jesus...

..but that's just the Gen NExt mark in me speaking...

[Liam]

As we get talking covers, MM's Sweet Dreams > Personal Jesus > Tainted Love

[DFF]

Personal Jesus > Tained Love > ...... a long way.... > Sweet Dreams

[Liam]

I didn't really get peoples opinions on Personal Jesus, but I know that generally people see Sweet Dreams as his best, and Tainted Love as his worst, so surprised you dislike Sweet Dreams so much.

And to kinda drag this a little further back on topic, I wasn't too fussed about Cash's "Rusty Cage".

[Skummy]

Cash's best covers on the American Recordings were Thirteen and The Mercy Seat, with an honourable mention for I See A Darkness, in my opinion. Hurt was good, but probably a little worse, or maybe just on par, with the original, and Personal Jesus was just alright, Rusty Cage seemed a bit of a novelty.

[kliq]

Trent Reznor has said himself that "Hurt" isn't his song anymore, because Johnny Cash's version of it was so good.

[DFF]

I didn't really get peoples opinions on Personal Jesus, but I know that generally people see Sweet Dreams as his best, and Tainted Love as his worst, so surprised you dislike Sweet Dreams so much.

And to kinda drag this a little further back on topic, I wasn't too fussed about Cash's "Rusty Cage".

That's cos I'm not a 'general' person... (Y) (delete smiley(s) as appopriate)

[Liam]

Even though Cash's was good, and the video possibly one of my favourites, "Hurt" by NIN can be viewed on its own, or at the end of "The Downward Spiral". On its own, it's good, but it just is elevated by listening to it as the closer of the album (what with how the concept of the album works).

[apsham]

I think we're all overlooking the fact that Johnny Cash has covered the greatest song of love, ever.

Edited May 3, 2006 by Apple Shampoo

[Liam]

Apart from I, who mentioned it before thee

[apsham]

Only because of your blasted time zones, dangnabit.

[Skummy]

I am looking forward to hearing his version of "If You Could Read My Mind", I must say. It's a fantastic song, and I can't imagine Cash singing it straight, but with slight alterations to the music, a world-weary Johnny Cash could do wonders with those lyrics.

[MalaCloudy Black]

My only qualm is that the guy does so many covers that it's hard to figure out what's his and what isn't. So I may be shooting myself in the foot when I say "One Piece At a Time" > your favourite Cash cover song.

[Skummy]

I think One Piece At A Time might be a Cash original, but I'm not sure. I didn't list his country covers, although some of them are spectacular, simply because other than "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry", I'm not familiar with the originals. "I Hung My Head" is another fantastic cover I forgot about, though.

My only qualm is that the guy does so many covers that it's hard to figure out what's his and what isn't. So I may be shooting myself in the foot when I say "One Piece At a Time" > your favourite Cash cover song.

He only really did that many covers when he started working with Rick Rubin, because Rubin wanted to try and market him to the younger audience, and thought that would be the best way, IIRC.

Edited May 3, 2006 by Skumfrog

[MalaCloudy Black]

In that case then

The Ballad of Ira Hayes, The Legend of John Henry's Hammer & Don't Take Your Guns To Town > *