Songs with ongoing meaning ...
Jul 15, 2020 07:50:36 #
LWW
Loc: Banana Republic of America
Well, you wonder why I always dress in black,
Why you never see bright colors on my back,
And why does my appearance seem to have a somber tone.
Well, there's a reason for the things that I have on.
I wear the black for the poor and the beaten down,
Livin' in the hopeless, hungry side of town,
I wear it for the prisoner who has long paid for his crime,
But is there because he's a victim of the times.
I wear the black for those who never read,
Or listened to the words that Jesus said,
About the road to happiness through love and charity,
Why, you'd think He's talking straight to you and me.
Well, we're doin' mighty fine, I do suppose,
In our streak of lightnin' cars and fancy clothes,
But just so we're reminded of the ones who are held back,
Up front there ought 'a be a Man In Black.
I wear it for the sick and lonely old,
For the reckless ones whose bad trip left them cold,
I wear the black in mournin' for the lives that could have been,
Each week we lose a hundred fine young men.And, I wear it for the thousands who have died,
Believen' that the Lord was on their side,
I wear it for another hundred thousand who have died,
Believen' that we all were on their side.
Well, there's things that never will be right I know,
And things need changin' everywhere you go,
But 'til we start to make a move to make a few things right,
You'll never see me wear a suit of white.
Ah, I'd love to wear a rainbow every day,
And tell the world that everything's OK,
But I'll try to carry off a little darkness on my back,
'Till things are brighter, I'm the Man In Black.
- J R 'JOHNNY' CASH 1971 -
Why you never see bright colors on my back,
And why does my appearance seem to have a somber tone.
Well, there's a reason for the things that I have on.
I wear the black for the poor and the beaten down,
Livin' in the hopeless, hungry side of town,
I wear it for the prisoner who has long paid for his crime,
But is there because he's a victim of the times.
I wear the black for those who never read,
Or listened to the words that Jesus said,
About the road to happiness through love and charity,
Why, you'd think He's talking straight to you and me.
Well, we're doin' mighty fine, I do suppose,
In our streak of lightnin' cars and fancy clothes,
But just so we're reminded of the ones who are held back,
Up front there ought 'a be a Man In Black.
I wear it for the sick and lonely old,
For the reckless ones whose bad trip left them cold,
I wear the black in mournin' for the lives that could have been,
Each week we lose a hundred fine young men.And, I wear it for the thousands who have died,
Believen' that the Lord was on their side,
I wear it for another hundred thousand who have died,
Believen' that we all were on their side.
Well, there's things that never will be right I know,
And things need changin' everywhere you go,
But 'til we start to make a move to make a few things right,
You'll never see me wear a suit of white.
Ah, I'd love to wear a rainbow every day,
And tell the world that everything's OK,
But I'll try to carry off a little darkness on my back,
'Till things are brighter, I'm the Man In Black.
- J R 'JOHNNY' CASH 1971 -
Jul 15, 2020 18:36:34 #
Jul 16, 2020 06:07:08 #
Cash and Bob Dylan were great friends and mutual admirers, and you get more than a small sense of Dylan’s influence in this song (look back at Chimes of Freedom). But Dylan never took on the personal involvement that Cash displays here, and could never have delivered the song as forcefully. Thanks for reminding us of this powerful song.
Jul 16, 2020 07:20:46 #
Jul 16, 2020 08:10:54 #
Jul 16, 2020 09:01:51 #
Jul 16, 2020 10:37:08 #
MrBumps2U wrote:
Cash and Bob Dylan were great friends and mutual admirers, and you get more than a small sense of Dylan’s influence in this song (look back at Chimes of Freedom). But Dylan never took on the personal involvement that Cash displays here, and could never have delivered the song as forcefully. Thanks for reminding us of this powerful song.
Both men really CARED!! Thankfully!!............RJM
Jul 16, 2020 10:42:12 #
I was fortunate to be living in Nashville in 1968-69 when Johnny had his television program. It was filmed in the old Ryman Auditorium and you could just slip in and be part of the audience at no charge. It was pretty neat to see the stage all blacked out and Johnny with a single spot light on him, his back to the audience. He would swing around then facing us and announce "Hello, I'm Johnny Cash". He is without doubt in the top 5 all time of country music and would most likely rank very high in all modern popular music. I can only think of Waylon, Willie, and Hank, Woody Guthrie in the same league as Cash. As the OP said, his music crossed boundaries of country, folk, and popular/rock music and I remember two acts he had on his shows I was present at that demonstrates that: Ed Ames, and The Monkeys! Thanks for posting that song -- brought back some good memories.
Jul 16, 2020 10:48:40 #
LWW
Loc: Banana Republic of America
Bridges wrote:
I was fortunate to be living in Nashville in 1968-... (show quote)
I don’t disagree, but I’ve always felt Cash shouldn’t have been labeled country.
IMHO he was the greatest folk singer of all time.
Jul 16, 2020 11:31:44 #
LWW wrote:
I don’t disagree, but I’ve always felt Cash shouldn’t have been labeled country.
IMHO he was the greatest folk singer of all time.
IMHO he was the greatest folk singer of all time.
He certainly married into on of the great folk families. I wonder how much the Carter family affected his music.
Jul 16, 2020 11:48:49 #
LWW
Loc: Banana Republic of America
SteveR wrote:
He certainly married into on of the great folk families. I wonder how much the Carter family affected his music.
According to his books, quite a bit ... before he even met June.
Jul 16, 2020 14:23:24 #
LWW wrote:
According to his books, quite a bit ... before he even met June.
She turned his life around.
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