American IV: The Man Comes Around

Cash is king

Honestly, I forgot to listen to this today, but I've listened to it before. I know your view on Hurt and, apart from the title track, I don't think there is much else on the album that deserves particular analysis - Bridge Over Troubled Water is no good; neither is Personal Jesus or In My Life; Danny Boy and We'll Meet Again hardly bear thinking about. Not because Cash isn't a capable vocalist - if you like deep voices, as I do - but because the American Recordings project, started in 1994, so a decade in by this fourth instalment, is obviously contrived. I don't think Cash is necessarily to blame here. He was a fading star, relapsing into addiction, who put his faith in Rick Rubin. Even if Rubin promised Johnny artistic control, as he did, there is no sense that Cash had enough faith in himself to actually make those determinations. He didn't want to do Hurt and Reznor didn't have much hope for the cover when it was proposed to him. But Rubin insisted. And there Hurt is, beloved by millions in the Cash incarnation. Not loved by you, obviously, but many others. They respond to the kairotic significance of the release and more importantly, I think, to the video. Indeed, it was the video that convinced Reznor and Cash that the project was a success. The video, even more than the song, asks us to believe that the contrivance of the art object is an authentic expression of bravery and honesty in the face of Thanatos. While I am personally not convinced of that, I'd be lying if I pretended it didn't affect me. I'm reminded of us listening to The Grand Tour by George Jones earlier in this project and my conceding that, in country music, It is sincerity of performance in a role, rather than authenticity of self expression, that denotes the success of the work. It was the sort of stolid masculinity that my grandfather went in for. And, surely, Cash's slightly bloated face, his termulous hands, in the video remind me of my grandfather in his last months and weeks. I think Rubin does a neat sleight of hand here in presenting a 'sincere' performance by Cash to a late 90s alternative rock audience who believed they were getting authenticity. The real authentic expression on the album is Cash's self-penned title track, an honestly apocalyptic reckoning with the end of life that might as well be the end times. It's a clumsy piece of songwriting and the recording sounds like a demo. But, of course, for those who read authenticity in Hurt, The Man Comes Around is hyperbole and irony and kitsch. Aislinn often plays the two versions of Hurt in her classes to illustrate subtext - how the same text can convey very different emotional information, depending on context. It is amazing how many grown men reject the idea that Johnny Cash was a Christian, just because they want him to be an outlaw and a badass. They are more interested in the role than the real man. Rick Rubin got that. And certainly did a better job here than he did on similar projects with Donovan and Billy Corgan. But it is still a job for him - a means of making money. The scent of Go Set The Watchman hangs all over it. I will say, though, that - as with Blackstar and You Want It Darker, which we've already listened to - I am much less interested in albums about the artists approaching death than I am with work that deals with grief. Terminal illness memoirs are tedious. The person close to death doesn't know any better than you or I what will happen after we die. But the person who has experienced and survived grief can pass on useful understandings, can provide perspective, can tell us it will be okay. They've come out the other side. The dying artist is still on the same side of death as we are, no wiser, no better. I'd take A Crow Looked At Me over any of these records - except I can't actually listen to it. Death isn't the challenge. Life is. 2 In an early scene in 1992 film Into the West we see two young brothers out busking in the streets of Dublin. The youngest, Ossie, sings Danny Boy and Tito accompanies him on harmonica. Tito: ‘We’re not getting any money today Ossie’ Ossie: ‘Why’ Tito: ‘Because your breathing’s not bad. You have to do the bad breathing. Why is it not bad?’ Ossie: ‘I don’t know. It’s just ok.’ Tito: ‘Well you’ll have to pretend.’ Ossie: [sings a halting version of Danny Boy with asthmatic gasps between every word] Is that ok?’ Tito: ‘Make it worse! They’re starving! [points at their friends] [Ossie sings a worse version of Danny Boy and bypassers begin to empty their pockets of change] Tito: [to patron] God bless you sir.’ At 70 years old, multi-millionaire Johnny Cash obviously didn’t have too much in common with poor, fictional Irish Traveller children. But Johnny instinctively understood, just as Tito and Ossie do in this scene, that no one wants to hear Danny Boy sung well by a singer in their prime. If you choose to perform it at all you are presumably working an angle to provoke the pity of onlookers and that means that however you sing it, you are obliged to butcher it like a hog. Be an infant with asthma or have the wings of death conspicuously beating about you - both excellent choices for a performance of Danny Boy. Of course, Johnny Cash really was dying - yet this hardly seems to make American IV a more honest proposition than Ossie and Tito’s busking. You observed of Bowie’s Blackstar that it only sounded conclusive to us because we had enforced that reading upon it - Bowie was only ‘concluding’ in the same sense he had many times before. The same point cannot be made of American IV. The world-weariness and the saying goodbye is laid on thick here in the song choices and in the styleless, ‘intimate’ mic-ing up of a dying man. There is no sense of artistic necessity as there was with Bowie - here there is only, I am sorry to say, opportunism. Johnny Cash was never a good singer, but on American IV the general worthlessness of his vocal efforts finally had a context that allowed listeners to fully digest it. It’s the sound of a man facing death, you know - he’s world-weary - it’s a voice of a lifetime of experience and regret - it’s the gravelly voice of a lifetime’s worth of wisdom etc. Such is the nonsense that we are plainly intended to declare to ourselves (and others) in order that we should lend credibility to the farcically terrible mangling of these songs. Well I couldn’t do that (although perhaps it would have pleased Cash to know that I have never uttered the Saviour’s name with such frequency while listening to any album as I did with American IV) but it is understandable that manys another should. One day back in Zero, an elderly man came in to the shop and after Kevin had cured his hydraulics issue the man inquired of Kevin whether we happened to also sell ‘blue films’. Now this wasn’t a completely insane request - the gentleman was obviously old enough to remember a time when all sorts of shops, from small trade shops, butchers and what not dabbled in the provision of porn on VHS - and Kevin, always being keen to help out the man at the counter, asked what exactly he had in mind. ‘Something with a good story,’ was his specification. You can understand and sympathise with that response. Although good stories can also be found in Dickens, their function in pornography has the crucial dimension of allowing us to feel that we are not simply apes watching other apes screw; as higher creatures we benefit, psychologically and physiologically from a understanding of the nuanced context in which the screwing occurs. American IV is essentially a piece of pornography. It is more gratuitous in its exploitation of Cash’s frailty and proximity to death than the video for Christina Aguilera’s ‘Dirrty’ (a big hit a few weeks prior to the release of American IV) was in its presentation of Christina’s body to the onlooker. None of us want to feel like we are leering, like the rabble at the Colosseum, at the ever fascinating spectacle of another’s trembling demise, and so enters ‘The Story’ into American IV to attempt to dignify proceedings. It is spelt out for us, with all the subtlety of a plumber showing up to lay some pipe, in the video for Cash’s version of ‘Hurt’ - what Bono called ‘perhaps the best video ever made’. Here ̶D̶e̶w̶e̶y̶ ̶C̶o̶x̶ Johnny Cash has a good old think about his entire life. As he sings ‘Everyone I know goes away in the end’ the camera cuts, touchingly, to a photo of June Carter Cash, who was at the time, of course, not actually dead (“Make it worse!”). From this context are we invited to digest a whole album of musically blank cover versions - pianos thumped, guitars thumped, vocals just barely karaoked by the Man in Black, as valuable, thoughtful resettings with Johnny Cash’s personal history in view. It is hard to know what is the worst piece of butchery here. Personal Jesus gets special credit for entirely missing the point, or at least stripping any irony out of the original yet it doesn’t come close to the startling awfulness of Bridge Over Troubled Water, In My Life, Desperado or the Streets of Laredo - tricky enough songs for a decent singer, made additionally incomprehensible here for being, famously, beautifully sung in their original versions. Somehow I felt that the worst moment for vocals was actually not Cash but Nick Cave. Nick turns up, perfectly on brand to be fair, to this morbid orgy to deliver a verse in I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry of such shameless, self-regarding, indulgent gurning that Cash sounds reasonable for a moment. That Cave might have stolen the crowning moment of the album’s core spirit - opportunism - from the trembling, bejewelled hands of Johnny Cash is hard to believe. Still, as Johnny reminds us in the opener here, at the best of times, never mind when you’re dying, it is hard to kick against the pricks. I really could go on about this shitshow all day - so I must really stop myself, just as Johnny Cash either didn’t or wasn’t permitted to. This is a needless atrocity. No context, no story, no blessing from Don Henley or Trent Reznor, not even Bono’s approval, can make me hear American IV otherwise. That this album was made was sad, that it was released was gross, that it is celebrated to this day as a work of Art is an absolute disgrace. 0/5

This album has a some really great performances. His voice is beautiful and rich across the whole album. Some of the songs are perfect for Cash, revelatory even. The first three tracks are all fantastic, two originals and one cover. "Sam Hall" is a classic Johnny Cash performance. Not sure if he had ever recorded it before but it's just perfect for him. Some of the songs are a bit awkward though. "Streets of Loredo" is one of my favorite songs of all time. Cash's version feels a bit too rushed to capture the mournful feeling of the song. All three of the duets on the album are worse (not much worse but definitely not better) than they would have been as solo performances. And sometime the duet partner is only introduced in the last minute or so of the song. Why bother? I guess it's nice for them that they got to play with him but it's distracting at best. When I first listened to this album, I was expecting it to be totally stripped down, just Johnny Cash and his guitar. As bizarre as it sounds some of the songs are overproduced, with keyboards and piano constantly moaning or tinkling in the background. His voice is always kept front and center. Since the backing instruments are so low in the mix, why not just leave them out? On the other hand, some of the accompaniments really suit the song, like the honkey-tonk piano on "Sam Hall," the full band on "Tear Stained Letter," and the clarinet on "We'll Meet Again." I probably deserve to be called out for looking a gift horse in the mouth. It's a very good album, and an absolute masterpiece could be made from the best cuts from across the series. I think I'll go make a playlist of my favorite hits instead of crying about the misses. Essential listen: my playlist will be! Desert island disc: yes, since I probably won't survive long as a castaway on a desert island, I think this would be nice to keep me company in my final days

In the words of Bill Wyman (not the Rolling Stone, the other one): Johnny Cash was "the greatest country rocker of them all, if you’re using the term to mean country stars who came to rock and roll. A gracious albeit haunted presence to the end." And this album was the end, and haunted it is. It is a profound meditation on his career, his mistakes, loved ones lost, his impending death, his victories and mostly his losses. It is one of that small group of albums that face imminent mortality with honesty and grace; Warren Zevon's The Wind, Bowie's Black Star, and Leonard Cohen's You Want It Darker, and this album. The album was not universally lauded on release (see Pitchfork's review, which bemoans many of the cover selections, finding it a bit pointless, noting that Cash's gravitas lends weight and meaning to anything, not matter how randomly chosen), but the whole thing gains significance in light of the video for 'Hurt' and then Cash's passing less than a year after release. That version of 'Hurt' recontextualizes the song from Trent Reznor's original, and the video is a profound capstone on Cash's career, not as a triumphant victory lap, but an acknowledgement of his regrets. It is powerful, and I think that is why this album is the best remembered of his late recordings. And, as the last studio record released in Cash's lifetime, it has a halo effect. Not that all of the album is as bleak as 'Hurt'; there are some surprisingly upbeats call-backs to the types of the songs that made his career. Interestingly, 'I Hung My Head' is a much more convincing gunfighter ballad in Cash's hands than Sting's original version. Not all the song choices resonate for me (Personal Jesus? Really? But the originals are strong), but I find the album overall a varied and interesting meditation on his own career. His voice is not what it was in the past, but it is surprisingly strong (compare with the dry death-rattle of Leonard Cohen's last record). And now a word on Rick Rubin; his brand as the Philosopher King of Music Production gives me the shits. He has produced some records that I really love, and his approach is most successful when the artists are really up to his "keep it simple, just let it show its strengths" approach. This album fits into that framework; relatively simple, not over-polished, great musicians playing simply and leaving space for Cash's presence to stake centre stage. But I never want to hear Rubin speak again; he is not nearly as smart or profound as he thinks he is. He is also an incorrigible star-fucker, constantly brown-nosing legendary musicians in the hopes that they will reciprocate with some admiration. For example, in the trailer of 'Jay-Z in 8', Rubin fawns over Hova, selecting a bunch of his songs to play and praise, and you can see Rubin practically jizz in his pants when Jay-Z says "man, you got great taste in music". It's nauseating. </rant> In summary, a strong album and fitting career capstone, that builds on Cash's meditations on his life and imminent mortality. Tastefully framed and supported by retrained production. You can hear the wear and tear in his voice, but the charisma and authority are still there, which makes this a profound and honest album.

It's just a good album

Loved this whole series of albums by Johnny Cash. This was probably my favorite of the bunch. Every song he sang, he took ownership of. Sure, the songs all kind of sound the same, but what a sound it is!

The man in black rocks

Sounds like the voice of God.

Unexpectedly (to me) epic? And awesome! Makes the cover songs feel personal to him, somehow.

(7/7) phenomenal

Tätä on tullut aiemmin kuunneltua ja tykkään oikeastaan kaikista American-levyistä. Johnny ääni on aivan mahtavaa kuunneltavaa.

Some of the best covers I've ever heard. Cash brings new meaning to them. Great stuff.

Hurt alone is worth 5 stars

There's been enough time between this album and now to say: it is kind of dated. The production feels pretty 2000s on Hurt (a good but still overrated song). The Bridge Over Troubled Water cover is mediocre. Actually, it's mostly mediocre, with some great highs, but it kinda holds its cadence. As a collection of covers, it's a really great selection with a nice detente between variety and focus. Who would put Ewan MacColl next to Depeche Mode (even if the latter don't work)? Incredibly fucked that the CD version cuts Wichita Lineman and Big Iron but keeps Danny Boy (atrocious).

I may be biased, but I would go as far as to call this quintissentially American. An album so full of feel and soul.

Album très sympa, guitare voix qui passe très bien mais assez répétitif quand même. Un bon album à mettre en fond en automne dans une grande maison de designer.

Such a mood. You can feel the raw emotion of a man close to death. Starts strong but had a few weaker songs near the end.

Icon. Cash’s voice is instantly recognizable. Real. The man has greatest hits albums older than the Beatles. I sure hope the generator gives me as many Johnny Cash records as it does Leonard Cohen

I knew this was the album with Hurt and I was excited for that. I didn't realize it had a bunch of other amazing covers. Other than Hurt, which obviously is one of the best covers of all time, I also really liked Personal Jesus and Danny Boy. We'll Meet Again was also a worthy, touching finale. I felt emotios.

The gruff voice and late-stage gravitas of an American icon

3.5

A five-star covers record that actually earns the reverence. Rare air. Spins: 2 Playlist Additions - The Man Comes Around - Hurt - I Hung My Head - Personal Jesus - In My Life

Décent, lots of covers

Definitely aware of this album, knew hurt and a few other tracks, but haven't heard it before. The common thread is clear between this and the other albums from heavyweights close to the end of their life (you want it darker and blackstar). This one has a lot of covers but the choice of songs and Cash's voice still gives it gravitas. It's a tough listen, the emotion is a bit real and heavy to enjoy it easily. But it's definitely really good.

The best of the American albums and a tremendous achievement toward the end of his life. The Man Comes Around is intense and impressive, and his covers of Hurt, Personal Jesus, and I Hung My Head are stunning. His version of the classic The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face is maybe my favourite, too. Big fan of the Man in Black - sometimes serious, sometimes playful, always good value. The Highwaymen, wow. I love the production, so sparse and unforgiving.

This was pretty great, reminiscent of the Cohen album (you want it darker) in terms of knowing they are approaching the end. Gives it a certain gravitas. Hurt is obviously brilliant, arguably one of the greatest covers? When the man comes around and give my love to rose I thought were really good too. Wish there were more original tracks. I do like most of the covers but not all of them. I don't think personal Jesus or in my life are very good but maybe it's not because I don't like the originals... I've moaned about covers on albums before so I am going to go on the 4 side of 4.5. this is very good though

How many times have you heard someone say ”fucking hell, they really raped Cash’s song” when Nine Inch Nails’ Hurt is playing? Two (2) times for me — so far.

I mean it's mostly just a bunch of covers

If it wasn’t Johnny Cash y’all would think this was garbage

The Man Comes Around 3.6 Hurt 4.2 Give My Love Rose 3.3 Bridge Over Troubled Water 3.8 I Hung My Head 3.5 First Time Ever I Saw Your Face 3.2 Personal Jesus 3.6 In My Life 3.7 Sam Hall 3.4 Danny Boy 3.2 Desperado 3.4 I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry 3.1 Streets of Laredo 3.3 Wichita Lineman 3.3 Big Iron 3.4 Tear Stained Letter 3.5 We'll Meet Again 3.4 Score: 3.464705882

The tile song is my favorite Johnny Cash song. So many of the covers are masterpieces. Unfortunately, nothing can make Desperado a good song.

great to know that in his final years Johnny was listening to Reznor and Depeche mode

It's a great selection of songs, however most of them i can think of a better version by someone else

Hurt brought this up to a three star.

Many huge hits with a few glaring misses. This is album would be better by cutting 3 or 4 songs.

this isn't even the best american recordings album, that would be american iii, some of the pops on this are such a bad match for cash, they should have cut personal jesus, people just like this one because it has hurt, which is beautiful, but also it's so funny that people love to talk about how trent reznor said the song belonged to cash like he was giving it over in reverence when like no what he said was he felt like the song had become someone else's and he was then alienated from the song, anyway this album is perfect (if not as perfect as american iii), the ballads are great, when the man comes around is an all timer (but speaking of covers have you heard the jarvis cocker version?)

I only don't give it a five as some of these covers don't hit for me.

can't disrespect music but this one is not my vibe at all sadly, I can't really go on and listen to every track entirely. I gave it a chance but it's not what I like at all

The first five songs of this album are incredibly powerful and moving. I Hung My Head is a top 25 song favorite song of all time for me (how did Sting write something that good?). Johnny was absolutely COOKING while making this album. My only knock on it is that it's probably 2 songs too long.

yeah alright why not Would I listen again: eh Deserves to be on this list: Hurt, yeah 3.4

Love Johnny Cash, I think his voice is still arresting and effective here, the backing musicians are great, the recording is very good. But the song selection is, to me, quite sentimental. Great songs, but they're awkwardly obvious "People's Choice"-level answers to the question "what songs should Johnny Cash sing on a Man In Black Confronts His Own Mortality?" I liked "The Man Comes Around" and "Give My Love to Rose," but the rest of the album is not at that level. I don't love "Hurt," it's not bad, but it's not great. Overrated. I didn't need those versions of "Bridge Over Troubled Water" or "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" or "In My Life" or "Danny Boy." I think there's better albums in the American Recordings series, but there's unrepresented classics elsewhere in Cash's discography. People oughtta know "Bitter Tears" and its story, for example.

Mooi akoestisch album. Geen uitzonderlijk goed album maar wel gewoon goed 3,5

Good

Cashy

Has a lot of covers. I was surprised to see Nine Inch Nails and Depeche Mode covers on here! It has one of his most famous songs, a cover (Which I did not know was a cover until a couple of months ago) of the Nine Inch Nails song Hurt. Most of the songs on the album are about death which gets a little bit repetitive as you listen to the album. Either way, it's a really good album!

His version of Hurt makes me cry.

American IV: The Man Comes Around was the last record recorded and released while Johnny Cash was still alive. Coaxed out of depressed self-isolation after the death of his wife by producer Rick Rubin, the record serves as a goodbye to June Carter Cash and a coda on the life and career of an American music legend. As with all cover albums, you've got your ups and downs. Some songs work with the stripped down approach (Hurt, I Hung My Head, and Cash's own songs) and some are too slowed down or don't fit the style (Bridge Over Troubled Water and We'll Meet Again). The overall work is bigger than all that though, and considering the state Cash was in it's a miracle we got it at all. I think it's a beautiful record despite its hiccups...a proper send-off for one of the greatest of the greats.

This is the type of album this list should have been created for. Johnny blows this out of the box and changes you forever once your heard it

The man in black…so good even ghosts love him

Friday, 2 October, 2026 Legendary album. His recording of “Hurt” might be one of the best records of all time.

I have had two live Johnny Cash albums, and of course I know who he is and a couple of songs. The live albums had their plusses and minuses. I have to say I really liked this. Solid 4.

The man in Black. what an artist. Some songs are killers - Hurt gets me every time and I liked the original, but now it's Johnny's song. Some other good songs on their too, a couple I don't care much for but still an amazing album, sad to think of it as his swansong though

stripped to the bare essentials, haunting voice. Great record.

I love Johnny cashs story but its really not my type of sound at all. I wish it was. I admire the storytelling ability though

8/20 country , vibe friend in me , < BEATLES

Nah Johnny this ain’t it

Pas écouté en entier

It's all very American lately isn't it?

Easily a five star, all time great. The emotional heft and depth just sends you. Tears and sadness, anger and hatred, and sublime joy. The list is destroying me right now with all these amazing albums.

ok

An absolute powerhouse.

What a treasure. By the time of this album, Cash's voice is kinda shot. But it doesn't lack for character and wow - what depth. Some of the songs brought tears to my eyes, especially Give My Love to Rose and his version of Bridge Over Troubled Waters. A nice nightcap for a legendary career.

uh no

Late period with Johnny sounding vulnerable and old, but still very capable of capturing emotion with his voice. Astoundingly well chosen covers it’s not just about Hurt.

phewwwww he knew it was his last album before passing, In My Life, Danny Boy, Desperado, and ending with We’ll Meet Again was different.

The first artist I ever remember loving — not liking — loving, was Johnny cash. Yes, as a three year old boy, I knew that Johnny cash was the man. A great equalizer in my opinion — I believe that most people would agree that Johnny cash is the man. And while I hope this is not the only offering of his, I’d say this was a good pick if he doesn’t appear again. Contained in this album is a confessional of a deeply flawed, yet legendary man on his deathbed. Johnnys dying words. I could go song by song, but you just have to listen. Stripped bare, just him and his guitar, with a couple well placed harmonies. It’s raw, deep, and full of emotion. Every line comes from deep within him, and it feels that he’s expressing all of his pain, regret, joy, and hope for the beyond that he feels. It seems that he sees himself as the main character in each song. Just so good. I know most are covers, but it doesn’t matter. It’s Johnny cash. And in eerily appropriate and fitting fashion, as he says in the final song, we’ll meet again. Don’t know where, don’t know when. But the circle won’t be broken, and he finally joined the family circle at the throne.

This album surprised me. I’m usually skeptical of covers, but Cash really picked ones that fit him and his voice, stripped them down, and altered the arrangements to make them his own. I would definitely listen to this album again.

9.2/10. The album clearly is reminiscent of Cash's life, and has the somberness that he knows his time is soon (which it would be, 10 months following the release). The emotion is strong, as is the faith he put into this album, choosing songs from all different times, but applying his classic style to them to create a beautiful piece of work about death, love, life, and everything inbetween. I don't know if I'll have the strength to listen to it again, it's a very heavy album, especially knowing the outcome on why he chose each song.

I can't believe I've listened to Cash's "Hurt" after getting "The Downward Spiral" a week ago. That's two versions of "Hurt" I've listened to. Anyway, "American IV: The Man Comes Around" is one of country music's greatest albums. It has lots of great covers of classic songs. What makes "American IV: The Man Comes Around" very special is that it's Cash's 67th and final record. Most artists would have sizzled out by their 30th album. 5 stars for "American IV: The Man Comes Around".

I love Johnny Cash, but was kind of surprised to see American IV on this list. While his version of Hurt is amazing and a great example of an artist taking ownership of an existing song, I much prever American III, 2, and 1.

Such a distinctive voice, with extra soul at the end of a complicated and full life.

Interesting takes on these songs. Not all of them work, but a good listen nonetheless.

only so high an album full of covers can go :\ unfortunate

**An ok album

The songs are that overwhelmingly miserable that I left unsatisfied. Also, hands off Simon and Garfunkel, "Bridge Over Troubled Water" is an incredible song without your intervention of raw sadness.

This album is devastating in a unique way. There’s something incredibly human about these songs, they encapsulate a special sadness which is pretty common in music, but it’s done so beautifully here that it makes other music look bland. His voice, deep, gravelly, somber, it sounds like a man who has spent up his life, and is reflecting on whether he spent it right. Which, considering this was the final album of his life, is likely what he was. This album is mostly covers, but they’re incredibly good covers. No other artist could perform these songs like this. Johnny Cash has a certain quality that, despite how many people have tried, none (that I’ve heard) have perfectly replicated. Combine that with the song choices… if it were exclusively covers, it’d probably be the best cover album I’ve ever heard. “In My Life” is one of my favorite Beatles songs, and it’s always held some intense emotional significance to me. I once had an incredibly intense cry not long after my dad died, and hearing that song is what brought it on. Hearing it performed like this nearly got me to cry, despite the fact that I’m having a great day. It’s truly that intense. It’s special. And he’s special. He really brought some greatness to the world. Life is so complicated. People say life is short, but that’s not really true. It’s incredibly long. It’s the longest thing you’ll ever experience. Yet, despite that longevity, people still feel like it’s not long enough. I’m still so young, and even I feel like I can feel my life slipping through my fingers sometimes. Life is long, but I’m glad it is, because there are so many things I want to live through. There are infinitely more things out there that I won’t get to experience, even things within my lifetime, once I’ve aged and lost the ability. That fact is hard to reconcile with, and I certainly haven’t. Obviously, the idea that I’ll one day have a final parting from my friends and family I care about so much is depressing. But even smaller things can hurt just as much sometimes. It sounds silly, but I’ve had a genuine crisis before thinking about the fact they will still make movies and TV shows and video games and, of course, music, long after I die. It will only be the end of the world for me. I’m not ready to reconcile that fact. I’m still young enough that I don’t really need to yet. But the thought can hurt sometimes. WOW I got off topic there. Anyway. That’s what this album made me think about. It’s either deep or fake-deep, I’m not really sure, but the fact that this album made me write all that can probably make you guess where my rating lands. 5/5 stars.

fan of covers, but not much of country americana..

give my love to rose made me miss my old home again, I love it!! its so full of YEARNING, love and longing I'm so lonesome I could cry and tear stained letter were marvelous too.

Such a strong emotive album by Johnny cash towards the end of his life. 5 out of 5 every time.

It sends chills down my spine every time I listen this version of Hurt, what an incredible achievement to conjure up this collection of songs that make up an unforgetable album. Great start and finish, not every song works with mr. Cash's vocal style, but his personality holds the journey together.

really like all the american recordings and this one the most. title track is just delirious brilliance, and this version of “we’ll meet again” is stunningly great. “Personal jesus” may outshine the original, and the duet of “I’m so lonesome” with nick cave crooning is crazy good. not everything here is great, especially “hurt,” which is a fantastic cover. it is not the definitive version of the song. listen to the original. johnny has gravitas that tent didn’t then, but nin’s version is so much better

Hearing Johnny Cash feels like hearing a hellbound preacher giving his last demented sermons. I love it.

This record is amazing. It’s not just Hurt that is an incredible cover - the record is filled with amazing versions of great songs that only Cash could have done with such quality

Very soft and easy listen. Felt relaxed

What I like about this album is that, for all the mental storytelling of Johnny Cash at the end of his career and life that people like to tell about this album, it is still successful on its own. I think Johnny's voice and instrumentation bring new meaning to these songs. Some of them are from songwriters from entirely different contexts (e.g. Ewan MacColl, Frederic Weatherly), and some are songs from musicians I generally am not a huge fan of (Sting, Don Henley), but each becomes something wholly unique, and uniquely applicable to the Southern Gothic old man vibe of the album. It is still a covers album, so I bristle at calling it a 5, but I cannot deny that I love each of these compositions and performances

Nothing lasts forever. It's just a cover album but Johnny transforms each song into something that's his, a dying man reflecting on the life he lead.

Now, I'm not the biggest fan of country music as a whole but I decided to take this one as it was and immerse as I would any other album. I gotta say, this is a really nice record. There's a mellow warmth to the way Johnny Cash covers certain songs and his writing ability on the three tracks he did write for the project are really solid. Knowing that this is the last work he ever released also gives the project this odd kind of emotional weight to it as well. A lively country record indeed. Not bad, Johnny Cash. Not bad.

Normally I am no fan of covers albums but this one might be the exception.

You gotta give it to Johnny Cash, he sang what he wanted to sing the way he wanted to sing it, and no one else sounded like him. But this really is an eclectic mix of cover songs. I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry and Streets of Laredo are perfect fits for him, and his gritty, bare-bones Desperado lands well. First Time Ever I Saw Your Face and In My Life sound odd. What exactly inspired him to take on Sting's I Hung My Head? But this cover of Personal Jesus is a stroke of genius.

A short and haunting tale from a legendary artist who knows his time is coming. The soft instrumental definitely help the voice stand out, not as a cry for help, but rather as an acceptance of defeat, a voice of gratitude at the end of a career. Im so lonseome I could cry and The Man comes around are my highlights, they really show that this album is an introspection on deep feelings, an ode to mortality, redemption and love. It feels like a closure to a legendary carrer, a closure to life, makes more sense considering Johnny Cash died months after the album´s release. Not my favourite genre, but can definitely apreciate the piece´s value.

Obviously some of the covers come off better than others, but the ones that hit are phenomenal.

Very worn sounding voice but so much feeling in it. The simple backing really suits it.

I was a huge fan of these albums when I was younger, and there’s still great stuff here, but it would be a far better album with about half the tracks. Some of the songs are a slog - sorry Johnny! Favourite track: Desperado

My favorite memory associated with this album is when the movie Logan used Hurt in the trailers and it was such a perfect choice. Anyway, Johnny Cash rocks.

Not a big fan of country but this was great. His voice and guitar riffs are so captivating.

A very important album which is beautified by the purified reprises of pop and folk standards.

Nice cover band

hoooo johnny. think we could have been a tad more economical here but the emotion is just so strong regardless

Klasse!

This is a very boring album, it's too slow for me and each song sounds the same. I only add one song to my liked but it wasn't that good.