Live From Austin Tx
Johnny Cash was not only a great artist but a great performer, as this 1987Austin City Limitstaping (also available on DVD) attests. Though he was years past his hitmaking peak and had yet to enjoy his late-career comeback, his legendary stature was undiminished and his baritone sounds surprisingly supple and warm. With his veteran band providing superb support, he intersperses the requisite hits--"Ring of Fire," "Folsom Prison Blues, "I Walk the Line," and a rousing "Big River"--with a more folkish selection that includes a lyrical recasting of the traditional "Barbara Allen" and a stripped-down medley of "The Wall" and "Long Black Veil." He also dips into the work of fellow songwriters Kris Kristofferson ("Sunday Morning Comin' Down"), Tom T. Hall ("I'll Go Somewhere and Sing My Songs Again"), Guy Clark ("Let Him Roll"), and John Prine ("Sam Stone") and makes those songs his own. Wife June Carter Cash joins him in a testament to their love with a duet on "Where Did We Go Right?"--Don McLeese