Few artists in the country music genre have the inarguable stature of the late Johnny Cash. His life was not an easy one. He dealt with occasional brushes with the law and troubling personal issues like substance abuse. Nevertheless, Cash was "an international ambassador for country music" who is credited for "broadening both the scope of country music and its audience," per the Country Music Hall of Fame web site. So many of his trademark songs are sturdy, beloved, perennial classics. They have endured over the years and always will. Here are a few tracks that permanently elevated Johnny Cash to the rarefied peak of country music.
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"I Walk The Line"
The title of this 1973 song was adapted to Walk The Line, which was an acclaimed 2005 film about Cash starring Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon. The song has its own special niche in the lore of Johnny Cash. Written by him in 1956, it was a chart-topping country smash that also scored on the pop chart as well. In fact, "I Walk The Line" was a fixture on the charts for a whopping 43 weeks. The tune typified the distinctive "boom-chicka-boom" sound that Cash favored. The theme of steadfast loyalty and devotion to a special loved one appealed to audiences and suited him well.
"Folsom Prison Blues"
Another standout song from Cash that will always be identified with the Man in Black. Per Financial Times, "The track came to be regarded as one of the great American country music songs and one that perhaps defined Cash's career. It combines two archetypes of country music — the train song and the prison song...." It also contains one of the most hauntingly cold-blooded lines in country music: "I shot a man in Reno, just to watch him die." Cash would do two memorable concerts at Folsom Prison in 1968 which provided the content for the LP At Folsom Prison.
"A Boy Named Sue"
Penned by Shel Silverstein, this song was ideal for Cash. Per Wide Open Country, "On Sept. 16, 1969, Johnny Cash's "A Boy Named Sue" hit No. 1 on the country charts. By all accounts, the song is one of Cash's most iconic recordings. To this day, 'A Boy Named Sue' permeates pop culture." The witty lyrics and Cash's effective "talk-singing" combined to make this a longtime signature song for him. And by the way, it snagged a Grammy too!
"Jackson"
This was a duet with Cash and his wife, June Carter Cash. Believe it or not, it was inspired by the film, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf that starred Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton as a furiously arguing married couple. Co-writer Billy Edd Wheeler said this per Wide Open Country via Come Hear, North Carolina.
"This [fighting] was mean. For some reason, when I was trying to write a song, I remembered that, and it really inspired me. Now that's a stretch, isn't it! Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf ends up being 'Jackson'!...Of course, that was my most successful song and still is." It became one of Cash's most famous songs as well.
