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Johnny Cash

Johnny Cash Quotes

Singer-songwriter

Johnny Cash, known as the 'King of Country', is a legendary American country music figure. His distinctive voice and emotional delivery style have won the affection of fans worldwide. Cash's career spanned over half a century, and he has created and performed numerous classic country music hits, such as 'Ring of Fire' and 'I Walk the Line'.

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All Song Knows Ifs Men Way People Black Lines Records Said

Famous Johnny Cash Quotes

“Backstage at the Grand Ole Opry, I got on my knees and told her that I was going to marry her some day. We were both married to someone else at the time. ‘Ring Of Fire’—June and Merle Kilgore wrote that song for me-that’s the way our love affair was. We fell madly in love and we worked together all the time, toured together all the time, and when the tour was over we both had to go home to other people. It hurt.”

People Way Love Home Age Together Song Hurt Fire Married Affair Rings Knees It Hurts Our Love June Love Affair Madly In Love

Author:Johnny Cash

“So I simply don't buy the concept of "Generation X" as the "lost generation." I see too many good kids out there, kids who are ready and willing to do the right thing, just as Jack was. Their distractions are greater, though. There's no more simple life with simple choices for the young.”

Kids Young Choices Lost Simple Greater Generations Willing Ready Concepts Right Thing Distraction Simple Life Generation X Lost Generation

Author:Johnny Cash

“They're powerful, those songs. At times they've been my only way back, the only door out of the dark, bad places the black dog calls home.”

Way Home Song Black Dark Powerful Doors Dog

Author:Johnny Cash

“The beer and the wurst were wonderful, but I was dying to be back in the South, where the livin' was easy, where the fish were jumpin', where the cotton grew high.”

Easy Wonderful Dying Grew South Fishes Beer Cotton

Author:Johnny Cash

“This business I'm in is different. It's special. The people around me feel like brothers and sisters. We hardly know each other, but we're that close; somehow there's been an immediate bonding between total strangers. We share each other's triumphs, and when one of us gets hurt, we all bleed - it's corny, I know, but it's true. I've never experienced anything like this before. It's great. It turns up the heat in life.”

People Knows Feels Different Turns Hurt Share Special Brother Stranger Triumph Heat Brothers And Sisters Corny Bonding

Author:Johnny Cash

“I took the easy way, and to an extent I regret that. Still, though, the way we did it was honest. We played it and sang it the way we felt it, and there's a lot to be said for that.”

Way Said Stills Felt Easy Honest Regret I Regret Easy Way

Author:Johnny Cash

“However, neither he nor anyone else could have become the star Elvis was. Ain't nobody like Elvis. Never was.”

Author:Johnny Cash

“The beast in me Is caged by frail and fragile bars.”

Bars Beast Fragile Frail Caged

Author:Johnny Cash

“I love songs about horses, railroads, land, Judgment Day, family, hard times, whiskey, courtship, marriage, adultery, separation, murder, war, prison, rambling, damnation, home, salvation, death, pride, humor, piety, rebellion, patriotism, larceny, determination, tragedy, rowdiness, heartbreak and love. And Mother. And God.”

“it's good to know who hates you and it is good to be hated by the right people”

People Knows Hate Hated Hate You

Author:Johnny Cash

“Six foot six he stood on the ground He weighed two hundred and thirty-five pounds But I saw that giant of a man brought down To his knees by love”

Men Two Five Saws Feet Six Hundred Knees Thirty Giants Pounds

Author:Johnny Cash

“You build on failure. You use it as a stepping stone. Close the door on the past. You don't try to forget the mistakes, but you don't dwell on it. You don't let it have any of your energy, or any of your time, or any of your space.”

“Sometimes I am two people. Johnny is the nice one. Cash causes all the trouble. They fight.”

People Two Sometimes Fighting Causes Nice Trouble Cash Nice Day Cash Flow

Author:Johnny Cash

“Success is having to worry about every damn thing in the world, except money.”

World Money Worry Damn Damn Things Cash Money

Author:Johnny Cash

“You've got to know your limitations. I don't know what your limitations are. I found out what mine were when I was twelve. I found out that there weren't too many limitations, if I did it my way.”

Ifs Knows Way Found Mines My Way Limitation Twelve

Author:Johnny Cash

“How well I have learned that there is no fence to sit on between heaven and hell. There is a deep, wide gulf, a chasm, and in that chasm is no place for any man.”

Men Wells Heaven Hell Wide I Have Learned Fence Heaven And Hell Chasms

Book:MAN IN BLACK

Source: MAN IN BLACK

“For you I know I'd even try to turn the tide.”

Knows Trying Turns Tides Tidy

Author:Johnny Cash

“People call me wild. Not really though, I'm not.I guess I've never been normal, not what you call Establishment. I'm country.”

People Country Normal Call Me Establishment

Author:Johnny Cash

“I wear black because I'm comfortable in it. But then in the summertime when it's hot I'm comfortable in light blue.”

Light Black Comfortable Hot Blue Summertime Light Blue

Author:Johnny Cash

“My father was a man of love. He always loved me to death. He worked hard in the fields, but my father never hit me. Never. I don't ever remember a really cross, unkind word from my father.”

Men Hard Remember Father Fields Dad Crosses Unkind Unkind Words

Author:Johnny Cash

“The things that have always been important: to be a good man, to try to live my life the way God would have me, to turn it over to Him that His will might be worked in my life, to do my work without looking back, to give it all I've got, and to take pride in my work as an honest performer.”

Men Way Giving Trying Important Might Turns Honest Pride Good Man Performers Looking Back Living My Life

Author:Johnny Cash

“When I record somebody else's song, I have to make it my own or it doesn't feel right. I'll say to myself, I wrote this and he doesn't know it!”

Knows Feels Song My Own Records Feels Right

Author:Johnny Cash

“I'm very shy really. I spend a lot of time in my room alone reading or writing or watching television.”

Writing Reading Rooms Television Shy Watching Television Reading Or Writing

Author:Johnny Cash

“Of emotions, of love, of breakup, of love and hate and death and dying, mama, apple pie, and the whole thing. It covers a lot of territory, country music does.”

Doe Country Whole Hate Emotion Dying Moving On Apples Breakup Territory Death And Dying Pie Break Up Mama Love And Hate Broken Hearted Apple Pie Heart Wrenching

Author:Johnny Cash

“God gives us life and takes us away as He sees fit.”

Author:Johnny Cash

“I read novels but I also read the Bible. And study it, you know? And the more I learn, the more excited I get.”

Knows Novel Study Excited

Author:Johnny Cash

“It's like a novelist writing far out things. If it makes a point and makes sense, then people like to read that. But if it's off in left field and goes over the edge, you lose it. The same with musical talent, I think.”

People Ifs Thinking Writing Left Loses Talent Fields Musical Edges Make Sense Novelists Over The Edge Left Field Musical Talent

Author:Johnny Cash

“God's the final judge for Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash too. That's solely in the hands of God.”

Hands Judging Finals Cash Hands Of God

Author:Johnny Cash

“You've got a song you're singing from your gut, you want that audience to feel it in their gut. And you've got to make them think that you're one of them sitting out there with them too. They've got to be able to relate to what you're doing.”

Thinking Want Feels Able Song Audience Singing Sitting Relate Guts

Author:Johnny Cash

“I start a lot more songs than I finish, because I realize when I get into them, they're no good. I don't throw them away, I just put them away, store them, get them out of sight.”

Song Realizing Sight Stores Rock N Roll

Author:Johnny Cash

“I love to go to the studio and stay there 10 or 12 hours a day. I love it. What is it? I don't know. It's life.”

Knows Hours Studios

Author:Johnny Cash

“When my wife died, I booked myself into the studio just to work, to occupy myself.”

Wife Died Studios My Wife

Author:Johnny Cash

“I was wearing black clothes almost from the beginning. I feel comfortable in black. I felt like black looked good onstage, that it was attractive, so I started wearing it all the time.”

Feels Felt Black Comfortable Clothes Attractive Wearing Black Black Clothes

Author:Johnny Cash

“I knew I wanted to sing when I was a very small boy. When I was probably 4 years old. My mother played a guitar and I would sit with her and she would sing and I learned to sing along with her.”

Years Wanted Mother Boys Guitar

Author:Johnny Cash

“That was the big thing when I was growing up, singing on the radio. The extent of my dream was to sing on the radio station in Memphis. Even when I got out of the Air Force in 1954, I came right back to Memphis and started knocking on doors at the radio station.”

Dream Bigs Force Growing Up Growing Doors Air Singing Radio Stations Big Things Knocking Air Force Radio Stations Memphis Knocking On Doors

Author:Johnny Cash

“I keep a close watch on this heart of mine I keep my eyes wide open all the time I keep the ends out for the tie that binds Because you're mine, I walk the line.”

Heart Ends Eye Lines Walks Watches Mines Wide Ties Eyes Wide Open Ties That Bind

Author:Johnny Cash

“There's no way around grief and loss: you can dodge all you want, but sooner or later you just have to go into it, through it, and, hopefully, come out the other side. The world you find there will never be the same as the world you left.”

World Way Want Death Left Sides Loss Grief Hopefully Grief And Loss Sooner Or Later Dodge

Author:Johnny Cash

“I found out that there weren't too many limitations, if I did it my way.”

Ifs Way Inspirational Found My Way Limitation

Author:Johnny Cash

“Sam Phillips always encouraged me to do it my way, to use whatever other influences I wanted, but never to copy...if there hadn't been a Sam Phillips, I might still be working in a cotton field.”

Ifs Way Stills Use Might Wanted Music Influence Fields Jazz Musical My Way Copies Cotton Cotton Fields

Author:Johnny Cash

“I'm thankful for a pair of shoes that feel really good on my feet; I like my shoes. I'm thankful for the birds; I feel like they're singing just for me when I get up in the morning... Saying, 'Good morning, John. You made it, John.' I'm thankful for the sea breeze that feels so good right now, and the scent of jasmine when the sun starts going down. I'm thankful.”

Feels Made Morning Sun Sea Feet Right Now Singing Bird Shoes Get Up Made It Pairs Scent Breeze Pair Of Shoes Jasmine Sea Breeze

Author:Johnny Cash

“When you sing, you pray twice.”

Author:Johnny Cash

“The hardest thing for me in Vietnam wasn't seeing the wounded and dead. It was watching the big transport jets come in, bringing loads of fresh new boys for the war.”

War Bigs Boys Seeing Hardest Vietnam Anti War Antiwar Load Wounded Hardest Thing Jet Transport

Author:Johnny Cash

“Burn my Flag and I will shoot you........but I'll shoot you with a lot of love, like a good American”

Author:Johnny Cash

“Happiness is being at peace, being with loved ones, being comfortable...but most of all, it's having those loved ones.”

Love Happiness Marriage Comfortable Loved Ones Being At Peace

Author:Johnny Cash

“Because you're mine, I walk the line.”

Country Song Lines Walks Mines Popular Song Eyes Wide Open Country Love Song

Author:Johnny Cash

“All your life, you will be faced with a choice. You can choose love or hate…I choose love.”

Hate Choices Love Or Hate

Author:Johnny Cash

“Those that have lived longer than us always have something to teach us, that we can take with us for the rest of our lives.”

Teach Our Lives

Author:Johnny Cash

“Life is - the way God has given it to me was just a platter - a golden platter of life laid out there for me. It's been beautiful.”

Way Beautiful Life Is Given Golden

Author:Johnny Cash

“When I think about country music, I think about America.”

Thinking Country America

Author:Johnny Cash

“Convicts are the best audience I ever played for.”

Audience Convicts

Author:Johnny Cash

About the Author

Born: February 26, 1932
Died: September 12, 2003
Known for: Singer-songwriter
Quotes: 220

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Song Knows Ifs Men Way People Black Lines Records Said

Popular Topics

People Ifs Thinking Knows Men World Way Want Love Life Inspirational Needs Giving Feels Should Writing Trying Years Mind Firsts

Books & Sources

Johnny Cash, the SongsRelated source material

MAN IN BLACKRelated source material

CASH: Die Autobiografie von Johnny CashRelated source material

CashRelated source material

Johnny Cash Anthology (Songbook)Related source material

Songs of Johnny CashRelated source material

The Very Best of Johnny Cash (Songbook)Related source material

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