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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 Walks Thinking Guitar Trying Want Boys Country Feels Firsts Jesus

Famous Johnny Cash Quotes

“The first time I knew what I wanted to do with my life was when I was about four years old. I was listening to an old Victrola, playing a railroad song...I thought that was the most wonderful, amazing thing...That you could take this piece of wax and music would come out of that box. From that day on, I wanted to sing on the radio.”

Years Firsts Wanted Song Pieces Four Wonderful Listening First Time Radio Boxes Four Years Amazing Things Railroads

Author:Johnny Cash

“Gospel music is so ingrained into my bones. I can't do a concert without singing a gospel song. It's what I was raised on.”

I Can Song Music Is Singing Raised Bones Concerts Gospel Music Gospel Songs

Author:Johnny Cash

“Gospel music was the thing that inspired me as a child growing up on a cotton farm, where work was drudgery and it was so hard that when I was in the field I sang all the time. Usually gospel songs because they lifted me up above that black dirt.”

Children Hard Song Black Growing Up Growing Fields Inspired Farms Dirt Cotton Drudgery Children Growing Up Gospel Music Growing Children Gospel Songs

Author:Johnny Cash

“I sang those old gospel songs for my mother, and she said, is that you? And I said, yes, ma'am. And she came over and put her arms around me and said, God's got his hands on you.”

Said Hands Mother Song Arms Gospel Songs

Author:Johnny Cash

“If I'm anything, I'm not a singer but I'm a song stylist.”

Ifs Song Singers Stylist

Author:Johnny Cash

“I used to sing Bill Monroe songs. And I'd sing Dennis Day songs like songs that he sang on the Jack Benny show.”

Shows Used Song Bills

Author:Johnny Cash

“Every week, Dennis Day sang an old Irish folk song. And next day in the fields, I'd be singing that song if I was working in the fields.”

Ifs Song Next Week Fields Singing Folks Next Day Folk Songs

Author:Johnny Cash

“I always loved those songs. And with my high tenor, I thought I was pretty good - you know? - almost as good as Dennis Day.”

Knows Song Tenors

Author:Johnny Cash

“A song stylist is, like, to take an old folk song like "Delia's Gone" and do a modern white man's version of it.”

Men Song White Gone Modern Folks Versions White Man Stylist Folk Songs

Author:Johnny Cash

“I would take songs that I'd loved as a child and redo them in my mind for the new voice I had, the low voice.”

Mind Children Song Voice Lows Redos

Author:Johnny Cash

“Sam Phillips responded most to a song of mine called, "Hey Porter," which was on the first record.”

Firsts Song Records Mines Hey

Author:Johnny Cash

“Sam Phillips asked me to go write a love song, or maybe a bitter weeper. So I wrote a song called, "Cry Cry Cry," went back in and recorded that for the other side of the record.”

Writing Song Sides Records Cry Bitter

Author:Johnny Cash

“In the Air Force, I had an old Wilcox Gay recorder, and I used to hear guitar runs on that recorder going (vocalizing) like the chords on "I Walk The Line." And I always wanted to write a love song using that theme, that tune.”

Writing Running Wanted Used Song Force Lines Walks Air Gay Guitar Theme Tunes Chords Air Force Recorders

Author:Johnny Cash

“I started to write the song. And I was in Gladewater, Texas, one night with Carl Perkins and I said, I've got a good idea for a song. And I sang him the first verse that I had written, and I said it's called "Because You're Mine." And he said, "I Walk The Line" is a better title, so I changed it to "I Walk The Line."”

Writing Firsts Said Ideas Night Song Lines Walks Written Changed Mines Titles Texas Good Ideas Verses One Night

Author:Johnny Cash

“Sam [Phillips] wanted I Walk The Line up - you know, up-tempo. And I put paper in the strings of my guitar to get that (vocalizing) sound, and with the bass and the lead guitar, there it was. Bare and stark, that song was when it was released. And I heard it on the radio and I really didn't like it, and I called Sam Phillips and asked him please not to send out any more records of that song.”

Knows Wanted Song Sound Lines Walks Records Heard Please Paper Guitar Radio Strings Bass Tempo Starks

Author:Johnny Cash

“I had a song called "Folsom Prison Blues" that was a hit just before "I Walk The Line." And the people in Texas heard about it at the state prison and got to writing me letters asking me to come down there. So I responded and then the warden called me and asked if I would come down and do a show for the prisoners in Texas.”

People Ifs Writing States Shows Song Lines Walks Heard Letters Asking Down And Prison Prisoner Texas Wardens

Author:Johnny Cash

“We went down [Folsom Prison] and there's a rodeo at all these shows that the prisoners have there. And in between the rodeo things, they asked me to set up and do two or three songs. So that was what I did. I did "Folsom Prison Blues," which they thought was their song - you know? - and "I Walk The Line," "Hey Porter," "Cry, Cry, Cry." And then the word got around on the grapevine that Johnny Cash is all right and that you ought to see him.”

Knows Two Shows Song Three Lines Walks Cry Ought Prison Hey Prisoner Cash Rodeo Grapevine

Author:Johnny Cash

“The requests started coming in from other prisoners all over the United States. And then the word got around. So I always wanted to record that, you know, to record a show because of the reaction I got. It was far and above anything I had ever had in my life, the complete explosion of noise and reaction that they gave me with every song. So then I came back the next year and played the prison again, the New Year's Day show, came back again a third year and did the show.”

Knows Years States Shows Wanted Song Next United United States Records Thirds Prison Reactions Noise Prisoner New Year Explosions Next Year Request Back Again

Author:Johnny Cash

“When I finally stopped [singing], he had been saying, like, the last day or so, he'd been saying, now, I think we should put this one in the album. So without him saying I want to record you and release an album, he kept - he started saying, let's put this one in the album. So the album, this big question, you know, began to take form, take shape. And Rick [Rubin] and I would weed out the songs.”

Thinking Knows Want Should Bigs Lasts Form Song Records Shapes Singing Albums Release Weed Last Day Big Questions

Author:Johnny Cash

“We [with Rick Rubin] would focus on the ones that we did like, that felt right and sounded right. And if I didn't like the performance on that song, I would keep trying it and do take after take until it felt comfortable with me and felt that it was coming out of me and my guitar and my voice as one, that it was right for my soul.”

Ifs Trying Soul Song Felt Voice Focus Comfortable Performances Guitar My Soul Coming Out Keep Trying

Author:Johnny Cash

“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

“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

“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.”

“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

“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

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

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

Author:Johnny Cash

“When I get an idea for a song it would gel in my mind for weeks or months, and then one day just like that, Ill write it.”

Writing Mind Ideas Song Creativity Week Months One Day Ill

Author:Johnny Cash

“It makes me so mad that some people underestimate the wisdom and energy of young people. All because they don't look the way older folks think they should look. I'm working on a song about it. Maybe some of those closed minded people will realize long hair and tattoos don't mean they should be ignored. Close minded people are part of what's wrong with this world.”

People Thinking World Way Should Looks Mean Long Young Song Energy Realizing This World Hair Mad Folks Tattoo Ignored Underestimate Long Hair Closed Minded Close Minded

Author:Johnny Cash

“After about three lessons [my] voice teacher said, "Don't take voice lessons. Do it your way. You're a song stylist. Always do it your way."”

Way Said Song Three Voice Teacher Lessons Stylist

Author:Johnny Cash

“By the time I actually recorded Bitter Tears I carried a heavy load of sadness and outrage; I felt every word of those songs... I expected there to be trouble with that album, and there was.... when it was released, many radio stations wouldn't play it.... The very idea of unconventional or even original ideas ending up on "country" radio in the late 1990s is absurd.”

Ideas Country Play Song Felt Trouble Sadness Media Tears Late Originals Radio Albums Heavy Expected Absurd Bitter Stations Load Outrage Original Ideas Unconventional Radio Stations Heavy Loads

Author:Johnny Cash

“I could wrap myself in the warm cocoon of a song and go anywhere.”

Song Warm Wraps Cocoons

Author:Johnny Cash

“My way of communicating with God as a boy (and often even now) was through the lyrics of a song. . . . So I didn't have the problem some people do who say, "I don't know how to pray." I used the songs to communicate with God. . . . To me, songs were the telephone to heaven, and I tied up the line quite a bit.”

People Knows Way Problem Used Song Heaven Bits Lines Prayer Boys Know How Praying Communicate My Way Tied Telephones Tied Up

Author:Johnny Cash

About the Author

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

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Popular Topics

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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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