In early 1993, the legendary Johnny Cash found himself between contracts in his then nearly 40-year career and recorded an album’s worth of songwriting demos at LSI Studios in Nashville of songs he’d written over many years.
Not long after the fruitful session, Johnny met producer Rick Rubin, and the recordings were shelved as the two embarked on a musical partnership and the American Recordings albums, that revitalized Johnny Cash’s career and introduced him to a new generation of fans.
Now, some thirty years later John Carter Cash, the son of Johnny and June Carter Cash, rediscovered the songs and stripped them back to just Johnny’s powerful, pristine vocals and acoustic guitar. Along with co-producer David “Fergie” Ferguson, the two invited a handpicked group of musicians that played with Johnny, including guitarist Marty Stuart and the late bassist Dave Roe, along with drummer Pete Abbott and several others, to the Cash Cabin, a hallowed space in Hendersonville, Tennessee to breathe new life into the tracks..
Releasing June 28th via Mercury Nashville/UMe, the aptly titled Songwriter, features songs written solely by Johnny Cash. Returning the focus to Johnny’s own songwriting, the 11-track collection showcases the breadth of his writing, one that has always represented the great expanse of the human condition: there are songs of love, family, sorrow, beauty, spiritual salvation, survival, redemption, and of course, some of the lighthearted humour Johnny was known for, all sung in his unmistakable, trademark, resonant voice.
Songwriter is being previewed with the release of the first single, “Well Alright,” an upbeat tune about finding love in the laundry mat. With its humorous lyrics, galloping beat and taut acoustic upright bass “Well Alright” harkens back to Cash’s ‘50s hits such as “Get Rhythm,” “Five Feet High and Rising,” “Cry! Cry! Cry!” and “Big River.”
Songwriter will be available to stream and download, as well as on CD and a variety of vinyl options, including standard black and several limited edition color variants which are available for pre-order now.