Johnny Cash, 1932-2003, had a collection of songs reach the surface in the album Songwriter. This album, comprised of unreleased recordings from 1993, is a peaceful and interesting collection of stories showing the songwriter he was.
The first song on Songwriter sounds like the beginning of a movie soundtrack. With the help of Russ Pahl on steel and Matt Combs on strings and bells, this song is taken into orbit, as Cash sings about calling out to undiscovered life, “We’re third from the sun / Hello out there / We’re in the Milky Way.”
“Drive On” has a deep stomp clap sound, Cash’s voice meets his signature low registers as he sings about moving on with his life, having children and a woman who loves him, and that is all that matters.
“I Love You Tonite” has a steady production that emphasizes piano, as the tempo is slow and Cash’s voice is stripped down. The lyrics “Oh, baby ain’t we a sight? / Can you believe we made it through the eighties? / … It’s funny how we never settle down,” demonstrates how gentle and wholesome the love he is singing about is.
The eighth song on the album “Poor Valley Girl” is twangy and simple. The tambourine and banjo create a singsong campfire essence, like Cash would just come up with this song while telling his friends a story. Cash has a way of storytelling that lays everything out plainly leaving listeners wanting to hear more.
The final song “Life A Solider,” is about Cash’s battle with addiction and how difficult that journey was for him. He is singing about how he was getting better day by day and just how much of his life has been altered or forgotten about. Cash is inspirational in singing about his regrets with a sense of pride, a knowing that it was all in the past.
This album is a great way to honor Johnny Cash.
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