One of the most important voices in folk grew his figure with an unusual show.
By 1969, Johnny Cash He was already an established musician. With 30 discs on his backthe “new folk” star had already gone through his stage of artistic irreverence, his strong temperament and his struggle with drugs.
After amphetamines and a turn to religion, Cash faced a challenging proposition: sing for a prison. However, this had already been done, a year before, in Folsom Jail. But this time I would have to play on the San Quentin prison, the maximum security prison in San Francisco.
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All musicians had the chance to perform before an audience, whether known or not. But inmatesnow that is an unorthodox task for the art world.
Johnny Cash at San Quentin, concert for inmates
The show was historic for many reasons. On the one hand, Cash He showed all his talent as frontmanwith an attitude worthy of someone who faces a hearing full of criminal cases. However, what stands out is the height and arrogance with which he strutted on that stage that at first seemed hostile, but ended up being fertile ground for an unforgettable show.
After opening with Wanted Manan unreleased song by his friend Bob Dylanand Wrecked of the Old 97Cash was frank with his audience, saying: “I’ll tell you what, the show is being recorded and televised for England. And they told me ‘you have to do this song’ and ‘you have to do this other song,’ ‘you have to do than to stand this way and act this way.’ They don’t understand it, I am here to do what you want me to do“.
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Although his vocal quality was not at its best – he was accused of having been out of tune on some songs -, Cash gave proof that his acting quality was still intact. And the prisoners were able to feel some freedom in that confinement, being moved by the baritone voice of the singer who on some occasions used a music stand so as not to forget the lyrics, as was the case of A Boy Named Sue.
The original album contains 10 songs and went triple platinumalthough it was only half of the concert. In it 2000 A version with 18 songs was published, which was still not complete. There were problems with the recorder, so it was never possible to obtain all the material. However, This live album earned him prestige and the nickname of legend. to a musician who no longer had much to prove.
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Source: Ambito
I am an author and journalist who has worked in the entertainment industry for over a decade. I currently work as a news editor at a major news website, and my focus is on covering the latest trends in entertainment. I also write occasional pieces for other outlets, and have authored two books about the entertainment industry.
