American 3: Solitary Man (Reis)

Johnny Cash | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 13, 2007)
• Original Release Date: 2007
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B000WS4OZM
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,352 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

CASH JOHNNY AMERICAN III: SOLITARY MAN

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very, very suggestive performances, July 15, 2008

By 

Nikica Gilic - See all my reviews

This review is from: American 3: Solitary Man (Reis) (Audio CD)

Not being an expert on country music or on Johnny Cash, I must say this album is moving and very very suggestive; with simple but clever arrangements, beautiful songs and amazing vocal...
Obviously more than merely touched by age and various ailments, mr. Johnny Cash performes with great passion and suggests wisdom no young singer can convey (or even come close to conveying)...

I like it very much!

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If this was the only thing he ever did, he would still be the greatest, March 17, 2008

By 

Ransom Carroll "A Concerned Citizen" (Moving around in North America) - See all my reviews

This review is from: American 3: Solitary Man (Reis) (Audio CD)

Who would imagine that an ageing Johnny Cash could reach out and cover dark and strange songs like these? OK, it's uneven, with one or two cuts actually sub-par, but "I see a darkness" is perfect, "One"--who could believe anyone could turn this into such a great song? And then, there is the utterly savage version of "Mercy Seat." Far better than any Nick Cave version, Johnny does it straight and without the histrionics. It is totally gripping--I was never an anti-death penalty person, or even particularly anti-death, but this song just blows you away. It's not the killing part that is so powerful, it's the mere fact of death itself, and the consciousness of walking to that chair like a mouse gingerly pushing down the bar on a trap while knowing what is about to happen....

And yet the song is unsentimental. The most important part, and the real hook, is the protagonist going from his "tough guy" persona in which he sticks by his story, damn your eyes, to, only at the last minute, admitting that he did lie, and that he is guilty. I find this the most powerful part of the song (and the barroom piano really brings it out in the coda). I think if it hadn't been for this song, I would have never had the courage to admit, even to myself, that I too had tried to ride on a lie all the way through the judicial system. All that time I was playing the innocent victim, I wasn't. I don't know if I deserved what I got, any more than the protagonist deserved to have his brain melted, but the first thing is to start with honesty.

That and his version of Wayfaring Stranger--a little bit strained--really spoke to me. But even the ones that didn't have a personal meaning were generally excellent ("Lucky Old Sun," "Won't Back Down"). A stunning depth and delivery. Even if you don't like his other stuff, you've got to listen to this. He can make Neil Diamond (a great song writer but not a tornado of energy as a singer) seem tremendous. [38]

17 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Slowed Down, but excellent, January 26, 2008

By 

R. Matarese "some chic" (in the wooded state) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: American 3: Solitary Man (Reis) (Audio CD)

This is for the most part, a slower more mellow side of Johnny Cash. It is enjoyable even with all of it's sadness and gloomy topics. Whatever songs Johnny Cash covers magically seem to be his own, and everyone of them I've heard I like better than the original. On this album he covers, "I won't Back Down," a song by Tom Petty. "One" was originally a U2 song that Cash really brings to life even though at this point, he wasn't full of too much life. This, as well as "Solitary Man", "Nobody", "I See a Darkness", "The Mercy Seat", "Country Trash", "I'm Leaving Now", and "Wayfaring Stranger", are my favorite tracks on the album, and basically that is almost all of the songs. Some of my least favorites are so because of how slow they are. "Mary of the Wild Moor," is extremely depressing and makes me really envision a backwoods family.

As far as how inspiring this album is, I think there are songs on here I can really relate to such as, "Nobody" (a song about people not caring, so why should you in return) >>> it really is a kind of humorous take on the subject, and makes you feel a little better when you listen to it. "I see a Darkness," is a hopeless type of song, that at the same time seems to carry some hints of hope to it. (It's also fun to play from your laptop during blackouts). All in all a very good album, many of these songs get stuck in my head.