NEW YORK (AP) 鈥 In 1993, Johnny Cash was between record contracts 鈥 and just about to embark on an iconic collaboration with producer Rick Rubin that would span the last 10 years of his life, starting with 1994's 鈥淎merican Recordings."
During that crucial time in his career, Cash immersed himself in crafting and recording original demos that showcased his songwriting prowess. Those songs, once set aside, will be released Friday as a complete album. Cash's son, John Carter Cash, stripped the recordings back to just his father's voice and acoustic guitar 鈥 and enlisted co-producer David 鈥淔ergie鈥 Ferguson and some musicians his father previously worked with to round out the recordings.
Aptly titled 鈥淪ongwriter,鈥 the album features 11 tracks all penned by Cash. Just two tracks will be familiar to fans of the Rubin records: 鈥淒rive On鈥 and 鈥淟ike a Soldier鈥 were previously released on 鈥淎merican Recordings.鈥 While the Rubin renditions favored deeply-felt minimalism 鈥 just an acoustic guitar and Cash's idiosyncratic vocal tone 鈥 the 鈥淪ongwriter鈥 versions possess a more layered sound with additional instrumentation. Not better, just different.
Emphasizing Cash鈥檚 role as a songwriter, this collection exists in contrast to his typical albums or recorded live performances, which often blend his own compositions with other writer鈥檚 songs. This album allows listeners to appreciate Cash as a performer, composer and lyricist, highlighting a unique intersection of his artistic journey.
The previously released first single, the rockabilly infused 鈥淲ell Alright,鈥 exudes Cash鈥檚 unmistakable style to such a degree that it could have easily found a place alongside classics like 鈥淏ig River." (In an alternative timeline, the track might appear in 鈥檚 repertoire back in the day 鈥 they've certainly covered many Cash songs.)
In whole, "Songwriter鈥 provides insight into a short creative phase of Cash鈥檚 career that would become interrupted by a brilliant creative collaboration with Rubin. While not his most audacious work, 鈥淪ongwriter鈥 still serves as a poignant journey into a defining moment of Cash鈥檚 musical legacy. And who doesn't love to hear previously unheard material from the Man in Black?
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