On the 4th Day of Mavericks ...
... my reader gave to me.
Johnny Cash
- as nominated by ‘Challenge 69’ reader Bernie C
Ah, the ‘Man in Black’, a great suggestion from Bernie.
Whether it was; signing for Sun Records (as a rockabilly/folk artist) in 1954, rocking out with (and influencing) Elvis, becoming a true Country legend in the ‘60s, being briefly jailed seven times for various ‘misdemeanours’, playing his infamous series of prison concerts, hosting his own iconic TV show, campaigning on behalf of Native Americans, or staging an extraordinary comeback renaissance (alongside Rick Rubin) in his later years, Johnny Cash only ever did any of these things on his own terms and according to his own rules.
That would seem to be the very definition of a maverick!
To showcase the sheer breadth of what Cash achieved musically, compare and contrast these two clips; playing ‘Folsom Prison Blues’ to a prisoner audience at San Quentin,
Johnny Cash - 'Folsom Prison Blues'
or recording one of the most striking videos ever, in covering Nine Inch Nails’ ‘Hurt’
As ever, though, it’s over to Stuart for a final judgement on this latest nomination:
“Inducted (like Elvis) into the ‘Halls of Fame’ for rock’n’roll, country, and gospel, demonstrated a rare genre spanning genius, even before his final, masterful, ‘American Recordings’ reincarnation …
… Need I say more. Welcome onboard Johnny.”
Which just leaves me with the almost impossible task of choosing one song, from an extraordinarily varied catalogue, to represent the ‘Man in Black’ on our ‘12 Days of Mavericks’ playlist.
In the end I’ve decided to go, “down, down, down,” with surely the ultimate Johnny Cash singalong ‘Ring of Fire’.
Remember to look out for our fifth ‘new maverick’ nomination at the same time tomorrow.