Rockabilly Blues [Koch] (CD - 1980)

Personnel: Johnny Cash (vocals, guitar); June Carter Cash (vocals); Bobby Thompson (guitar, banjo); Jack Clement (guitar, dobro); Billie Joe Shaver (guitar, background vocals); David Kirby, Jack Routh, Marty Stuart, Dave Edmunds, Clifford Parker, Pete Wade, Bob Wootton, Martin Belmont, Jerry Hensley (guitar); Terry McMilland (harmonica); Irv Kane (trombone); John Willis, Phillip Donelly, Charles Looney, Roughie LaMontagne, Daniel Sarenada (brass); Earl Ball (piano); Joe Allen, Joe Osbourne, Nick Lowe, Floyd Chance (bass); Pete Thomas, Kenny Malone, Jerry Carrigan, W.S. Holland, Pete Thomas, Larrie London (drums).

Engineers: Gene Eichelberger, Curt Allen, Dave Edmunds.

Producers: Earl Poole Ball, Jack Clement, Nick Lowe.

Reissue producer: Dave Nives.

Recorded at Quadrafonic Studio, JMI Recording Studio, Nashville, Tennessee and U.K. Pro Studio, London, England. Includes liner notes by Grant Alden.

Personnel: Johnny Cash (vocals, guitar); June Carter Cash (vocals); Dave Kirby (guitar, acoustic guitar); Billy Joe Shaver (guitar, gut-string guitar); Jack Clement (guitar, dobro); Dave Edmunds, Jack Routh, Jerry Hensley, Martin Belmont, Marty Stuart (guitar); Bobby Thompson (acoustic guitar, banjo); Cilfford Parker, Pete Wade, Bob Wootton (electric guitar); Irving Kane (trombone); Daniel Sarenana, John Willis, Philip Donnelly (brass); Earl Poole Ball (piano); Floyd Chance (upright bass); Joseph Allen, Nick Lowe, Joe Osborne (electric bass); W.S. Holland, Pete Thomas , Larrie Londin, Kenny Malone, Jerry Carrigan (drums).

Liner Note Author: Grant Alden.

Recording information: JMI Recording Studio, Nashville, TN; Quadrafonic Studio, Nashville, TN; U.K. Pro Studio, London, England.

Photographer: Leonard Kamsler.

Not as earth-shaking as his work with The Tennessee Two, and not really true rockabilly, it's still a convincing album of country-rock songs with more depth than nearly anything else coming from Nashville at the time. ~ Michael McCall

This criminally underrated 1980 album came during what's mistakenly regarded as a fallow period in Cash's recording career. The idea was to make a record that would bring Cash back to his rockabilly roots. That's not exactly what happened--there's hardly any real rockabilly on this album--but the results are impressive nonetheless. The hard-hitting, stripped-down sound does recall the lean, mean Cash of days long past, and the material rivals anything from his '70s or late-'70s catalog.

Things open with a kick on "Cold, Lonesome Morning," an unflinchingly realistic account of a failing romance, full of the hard-bitten fatalism that made songs like "Folsom Prison" so successful. A winning take on Nick Lowe's gem "Without Love" features the Attractions' Pete Thomas on drums, and fits perfectly into the sonic scheme. Quirky, memorable tunes by Kris Kristofferson and Billy Joe Shaver crop up as well, performed with characteristic precision and aplomb.

While stepdaughter Carlene Carter was hanging out with then-husband Nick Lowe and his British roots rock mates Dave Edmunds, Martin Belmont, and Pete Thomas, Johnny Cash decided to see what they thought about the font they claimed for inspiration: rockabilly and roots country. Lowe got to produce one track on Rockabilly Blues, as did old pal and rockabilly co-conspirator Cowboy Jack Clement. Earl Pool Ball did the other eight, but Cash held the reins tight. Rockabilly Blues, along with Johnny 99 -- also reissued by Koch -- is one of the great lost Cash records. Not only does it feature two of his finer songs from the period, the title track and the bitter love song "Cold Lonesome Morning," it features Cash singing a pair of gems by Billy Joe Shaver, "The Cowboy Who Started the Fight" and "It Ain't Nothing New Babe," as well as one by Cash acolyte Kris Kristofferson, "The Last Time" (which, incidentally, is one of the last times a new Kristofferson tune was recorded by anyone). Cash's "Rockabilly Blues (Texas 1955)" is not essentially a rockabilly tune, though Edmunds' guitar playing certainly embodies its feel -- but then, Cash was never a rockabilly singer, either. "One Way Rider," with its horns and staccato pacing, is the perfect song for Lowe to produce. June Carter is wailing on the duet, and the slide guitar parts ring like jagged bells through the heart of the mix. The only problem with this set is how quickly it blazes by. Why Columbia wasn't interested in Cash in 1980 is as confusing now as it was then. All the kids they groomed to come up after him, including newbies Montgomery Gentry, would have killed to make a record this fine. ~ Thom Jurek minimize