Johnny Cash was an American country singer who began getting recognition for his craft in the late 1950s. It was not until the 1960s when Cash began to move toward his peak fame and battle through his most controversial years. Cash is an iconic artist in many senses. He is well known for his edge, deep singing voice and faith. Here is a deeper look into the life of Johnny Cash:
Back Story:
John R. Cash was born and raised on a farm in Arkansas. He tragically lost his older brother as a child. Depicted in Walk the Line the 2005 film. Cash had a harsh childhood working on his family farm and maintaining a relationship with his father following his brother’s death. He often coped with songwriting and singing on his own, although it was just a dream as he was a child (Mosely, 2020).
In 1950, Cash enlisted in the United States Air Force where he eventually met his first wife, Vivian, while stationed in San Antonio, TX. In her memoir, I Walked the Line, Vivian shares copies of love letters written to her by Johnny during their long-distance relationship. The two met in San Antonio and spent three weeks together before Johnny had to leave for his next station as a member of the United States Air Force. The young love and passion the two had for one another were apparent in the numerous letters. Their relationship was simple and built upon the principle of a Christ-like faith.
The 60s:
Just in the 1960s, Johnny Cash had 27 releases of different songs and albums, and numerous concerts and performances (discogs.com, accessed 2021).
While I have harped on his marriage history and the struggles he faced with addiction, his popularity and ability to share his craft with the world were remarkable.
In the 1960s, Cash:
Was divorced
Remarried
Struggled with addiction while maintaining his career
Did something brand new and performed live music to prisoners
Johnny Cash continued on an uphill slope, rising in fame and popularity. Vivian noted the changes that started happening in Johnny’s life (as well as her own) by the end of the 1950s and the start of the 1960s. Vivian shares that Cash had started to
engage in and prioritize materialistic things and ideas that he once called ‘filthy and dirty’ (Cash & Sharpsteen, 2005).
During these years, the fame of Cash was growing as a star, which altered the pace of his lifestyle and relationship with his family (Foy, 2018).
As the early 1960s continued, Johnny began touring and performing with the Carter family.
This is where he and June grew close, although his drug and alcohol addiction was present through this time as well (Countryrebel.com author, accessed 2021).
Johnny and Vivian divorced in 1966 (countryrebel.com author, accessed 2021) and he went on to marry June in ‘68 (Nicholson, 2021).
I Walked the Line: My Life with Johnny was a touching way for Vivian to share her side of the story and her relationship with Johnny over the period of their lives. While I also love the 2005 film, Walk the Line, there are key differences of perspective between Johnny’s relationship with each woman.
From Vivian’s eye, (Cash & Sharpsteen, 2005) June had bad intentions from the start and contributed to his drug addiction. While the film romanticizes the way that June and Johnny met, framing the idea that June helped him grow out of these issues and addiction.
I think that there are truths to both sides of the story and that there was a lot of love in Johnny’s marriage with June as well as they stayed married for the remainder of June’s life, having one son of their own.
One of Johnny’s most well-known gigs took place in 1968, as he broke barriers by performing live in California’s Folsom Prison (Mcgasko, 2020). I love the way that this is depicted in the 2005 film. Cash performed in the prison out of sympathy, as he had been arrested a handful of times throughout the span of the ‘60s. These charges were given because of acts including drugs or alcohol (Mcgasko, 2020).
Johnny Cash’s life would not have been the same without the challenges he faced and the hard work he put in during the 60s. In the ‘70s, he was able to recover from addiction and grow in his Christianity once again (Mcgasko, 2020).
References
A&E Television Networks. (2019, September 19). Johnny Cash performs at Folsom Prison. History.com. Retrieved December 6, 2021, from https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/johnny-cash-performs-at-folsom-prison-california.
Cash, V., & Sharpsteen, A. (2008). I walked the line: My life with johnny. Pocket.
Foy, C., & About Chris FoyChris Foy is a content manager and webmaster for FHE Health with years of experience in the addiction treatment industry...read more. (2021, July 19). Johnny Cash's real struggle with addiction over the years. FHE Health – Addiction & Mental Health Care. Retrieved December 6, 2021, from https://fherehab.com/news/johnny-cashs-struggle-with-addiction/.
McGasko, J. (2020, December 10). Johnny Cash: 10 things you might not know about the country icon. Biography.com. Retrieved December 6, 2021, from https://www.biography.com/news/johnny-cash-10-interesting-facts.
Michael, E. (n.d.). 'drugs and June carter' - johnny cash's first wife explains what ruined their marriage. Country Rebel. Retrieved December 6, 2021, from https://countryrebel.com/blogs/videos/79364931-drugs-and-june-carter-johnny-cashs-first-wife-reveals-what-ruined-their-marriage/.
Mosley, K., & Kayla Mosley (75 Articles Published) Kayla Mosley is an avid reader. (2020, March 16). 10 true facts from walk the line. ScreenRant. Retrieved December 6, 2021, from https://screenrant.com/walk-the-line-johnny-cash-june-carter-trivia/.
Nicholson, J. (2021, March 1). Celebrate johnny cash and June Carter's wedding anniversary with a look back at some of their best duets. CMT News. Retrieved December 6, 2021, from http://www.cmt.com/news/1830943/johnny-cash-june-carter-wedding-anniversary-best-duets-together/.
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