Top Ten Songs by Johnny Cash

The Legendary Man in Black

Johnny Cash is a legendary performer that spanned five decades of popular music. In the 1950's he toured with Elvis and Jerry Lee, playing a straightforward, meat and potatoes brand of rockabilly with the Tennessee Two. His life has been chronicled in his autobiography and in the movie Walk the Line. 

The movie ended just as Cash's career began a brand new stage. The Live at Folsom Prison album became a best-selling album and is regarded as one of music's most essential recordings. He went on to have great success through the 1970's, including hosting his own television show where he showcased artists that you didn't get to see on network television. 

By this time, Johnny Cash had already carved his niche as a legend in country music, in fact he was one of the first inductees into the Country Music Hall of Fame, and was later inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He enjoyed a late career renaissance with his American recordings with producer Rick Rubin that found Cash playing to the traditional country fans and to the new breed of alternative rock kids. 

His and his beloved wife June Carter's deaths were treated with respect and appreciation for everything they did for music, and for who they were as people. Posthumous albums have followed, and there will still be more to come. For anyone not familiar with Johnny Cash, there are several wonderful compilations, as well as classic albums that are perfect introductions to this iconic figure in American music. 

The following is a mere smattering of Cash's music. It's impossible to encapsulate five decades in ten songs. 

"Cry, Cry, Cry" – Many of Cash's first singles have remained his most enduring songs. This statement by a spurned over has all the elements that made Johnny Cash and the Tennessee Two so great. This was attitude from the gutter. 

"Folsom Prison Blues" – With one lyric, Cash caught the country's imagination. He spent his life refuting claims he spent time in prison. Maybe punk rock can trace its roots back to Cash singing "I shot a man in Reno just to watch him die".