Customer Reviews

At Madison Square Garden

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Having released live albums in 1968 ("At Folsom Prison") and 1969 ("At San Quentin"), this previously unreleased 1969 live show from New York's Madison Square Garden still manages to illuminate another side of Cash's performance. Given the pressure of the prison shows, not to mention their tailor-made set lists, this recording finds Cash less on-edge, providing a more accurate rendering of his then-current stage show. Everyone but a very pregnant June Carter Cash is on-board, including the Tennessee Three (Marshall Grant, W.S. Holland and Bob Wooten), Carl Perkins, Tommy Cash, The Statler Brothers and The Carter Family (including Mother Maybelle, and daughters Helen and Anita).

The set list covers many of Cash's most beloved songs (including a quartet of prison tunes, and a barn-burning take of "Wreck of the Old 97"), plus a generous helping of historical and folk classics, including Jane Bowers "Remember the Alamo" (recorded throughout the '50s and '60s by The Kingston Trio, Donovan, Willie Nelson and others). He provides contemporary commentary about the Vietnam War ("when you watch the helicopters bringing in the wounded, that might make you a dove with claws") and sings Ed McCurdy's "Last Night I Had the Strangest Dream" (a standard of the '60s folk revival, sung by The Weavers, Chad Mitchell, and Simon & Garfunkel, among others).

The ease and confidence with which Cash presents himself on stage is astounding, and more in evidence than in the live prison recordings. Spoken introductions to songs like "Five Feet High and Rising" pull everything together into a seamless presentation. Similarly, Cash's generous revue staging allows his compatriots -- each headliners in their own right -- to shine brightly. Carl Perkin's blazes through "Blue Suede Shoes," The Statler Brothers sing a lively version of their crossover hit "Flowers on the Wall," and the Carter Family performs a beautiful pair of songs from A.P. Carter's catalog ("Wildwood Flower" "Worried Man Blues"). Cash's sister-in-law, Helen Carter, provides a wonderfully warm introduction to the Carter Family segment.

The closing medley provides each member of the troupe a chance to give their twist on a Cash landmark. Johnny and his brother Tommy sing "Do What You Do, Do Well," The Carter Family sings "I Walk the Line," The Statler Brothers take on "Ring of Fire," and Carl Perkins finds the rockabilly heart of "Folsom Prison Blues." Cash closes out the show with a snippet of "The Rebel - Johnny Yuma," and yet another reprise of "Folsom Prison Blues." The crowd's thunderous applause draws an encore of "Suppertime."

This is a beautiful (and generous: 77 minute!) stereo recording of a stage master at the peak of his powers, singing and speaking to an enthusiastic sell-out crowd. It is at once incredibly intimate and incredibly grand. The only improvement would have been to release it 33 years ago!

This superb, live 1969 recording has such indomitable spirit and steady musicianship, I wonder why Sony took 33 years to release it. The program is a slice of history and the record of a musical occasion we may never see the likes of again. There are 26 songs here (30 if you count all the tunes in the final medley) and I couldn't find a bad one in the bunch. "Big River" is a stunning opener, and this particular rendition is one of the best I've heard. Cash's anecdotes of prison life, his visits to the Holy Land and memories of the combat zone during the height of the Vietnam War dovetail with powerful versions of "Last Night I Had the Strangest Dream," "The Ballad of Ira Hayes," and "Were You There When They Crucified my Lord." The upbeat songs are stunning too, from Carl Perkin's rendition of "Blue Suede Shoes," to a raucous performance of "A Boy Named Sue." The guest performances are all worthwhile, from The Statler Brother's nostalgic "Flowers on the Wall" to Maybelle Carter's take on "Wildwood Flower." While her vocals lag a half-beat behind the musicians, it adds even more poignance to the song. This is country, gospel and bluegrass of the first order performed by musical legends. The recording is clean and balanced for its era with a decent stereo soundstage to boot. The only negative is that once you hear it, you may hunger for the past, and that may hurt a little. But I'd rather hurt knowing that December 5, 1969 happened, and that someone had the good sense to archive this extraordinary event. One of my all-time top-100.

Cool! An entire album of prevously unreleased live Johnny Cash goodies from his commercial heyday in 1969, repeating the success of his earlier concert albums, but here performing for the city slickers in the Big Apple. Johnny is joined by the reconstituted Carter Family, brother Tommy Cash, the Statler Brothers (who he was a patron of...) and fellow Sun Records veteran Carl Perkins (as we hear on a track intro at the very end of the album, June Carter Cash wasn't able to attend as she was six months pregnant at the time...) It's an efficient, professional presentation, yet one that gives some nice glimpses into Cash's inner life, mostly through the spoken introductions that accompany many of the songs. The most telling is the intro to "Last Night I Had The Strangest Dream," in which Cash addresses the thorny issue of the Vietnam War. Stumbling nervously, hoping not to offend anyone one way or the other, Cash recalls how he and his show went to entertain the troops overseas, declaring, "I may not be a hawk... But maybe I'm a dove with claws..." He also introduces a few songs with asides about his down-home background; back then, these monologes may have been a bit hokey, but they've added resonance as Cash has gotten older and his legend increased. Also of interest is an angry, emotional reading of his Native American rights protest song, "As Long As Grass Shall Grow," which is one of the most powerful performances of Cash's career. There are also plenty of religious tunes, which he also puts his heart into. There are some rushed moments, but on the whole, this is an album well worth checking out, and certainly a delight for longtime Cash fans who have never heard this material before.

This is an amazing concert. I was reduced to a blubbering pile of tears the first time I heard "Were you there when they crucified my lord" from this disc. And I'm an atheist! An amazing concert, BUY IT NOW!!

Impressive and personal - the music is terrific and Johnny is at his finest. The band sounds great providing full sound backup with that special Johnny Cash touch. Offering a wide variety of talent and selection, I found this CD to be one of the best recording compilations of Johnny's live concert tours besides his live prison concerts at San Quentin and Folsum. June is missing on this one - home tending to the family (due soon!) but the Carter family and Carl Perkins and the Stadler Brothers provide for some great harmony, strong presence and delightful listening. Buy this CD and enjoy many great performances by the Cash gang ... you'll be playing it over and over and over again! It's a genuine wholesome experience you won't want to miss!

This previously unreleased concert was recorded on December 5, 1969. Johnny Cash was hugely popular at the time, due to the success of the Folsom Prison and San Quentin albums, and the "A Boy Name Sue" single. Cash performed before an enthusiastic audience at Madison Square Garden. It's a great concert, but not as exciting as his prison concerts. Cash seems to have a bit of a cold here (he coughs several times). Cash fans should enjoy this CD.

Johnny Cash's performance at Madison Square Garden is electrifying. Although I wasn't born when the concert took place, I feel like I'm there when I listen to the CD. His music is incredible and the dialogue between songs is a mixture of devilish playfulness, historian and statesman. This is an awesome CD and it doesn't get much better than this!

I was captivated by the story that is told by this recording. Cash is in total control here of both the music and the audience. It's great to be able to hear him at the height of his career and the songs, and the spoken breaks between them reveal a lot about what was going on with Johnny, with country music, and with the country as a whole. Johnny's remarks on the Vietnam War and the inclusion of the Statler Brothers and the Carter family (including the introduction of Maybelle Carter, "who taught us everything we know about pickin' and singin'") are perfect reminders that Johnny Cash has always represented the past, present and future of country music. While the audience isn't quite as rowdy as in the prison concerts, the energy and excitement is definitely there on every track.

Whether a Johnny Cash fan or not,you will simply love this
CD. As a lover of Cash's music,I can testify to the beauty
of the music contained herein. Much like the Johnny Cash
show on TV,this live performance is great and fast-paced.
To me,there is nothing like a live performance of anything.
It is truly beautiful. I recommend this CD trememdously.
Once you start listening to it,you will never want it to
put it down.

I love Jonny Cash, but was unfamiliar with this album when I saw it on the racks. After the success of his prison recordings, it seems to make sense that many of his performances would be recorded, a small investment for another potential hit album.

The copyright says 2002, and I was curious as to why this hadn't been released earlier. If it was another raucous, rocking Folsom style performance, surely it would have made sense to release it decades ago.

I rated it three stars - but I want to make it clear, those are 3 Johnny Cash stars - it's still good, but just different from other live releases. It doesn't showcase the things I personally enjoy most about Johnny Cash, and while I'm sure there are plenty of archived performances that would blow my socks off, this isn't one of them.

Negatives:
His voice doesn't seem to be in great shape. At one point, he apoligizes, "I'm sorry, my voice..." and it trails off, whether he thought twice about bringing attention to the fact, or it was edited later, I don't know. He sings mostly in his lower register, with quite a bit of his unique quavering. Songs where it's most evident he just can't muster the melody or energy that I've heard on other recordings are :
I Still Miss Someone
Wreck of the Old 97
A Boy Named Sue

Bob Wootons guitar doesn't have the punch of the San Quentin recording. In my opinion it's less unique sounding, and more typical. I don't have the album handy to see who was playing lead on that track, but it's a phenomenal guitar line, with energy that isn't equalled anywhere on the Madison Square Garden album.

The overall feel of the concert is more sedate, so "Blue Suede Shoes", and "Flowers on the Wall" seem out of place to the point of being misplaced.

Positives/Miscelaneous:
He plays a good number of ballads. So if that's your preference, than this is a good pick. I still think that even the softer songs would benefit from Cash breaking out a few higher notes, but he plays plenty of melancholy songs at this show, and the Carter family songs go well with this atmosphere.

It's packaged pretty well, with enough photos of Mr. Cash as well his band and the guest performers. Photo Credits include "archive", "Getty", one by George Kalinsky, and some by Don Hunstein, none really remarkable.

All in all, a decent disc for those who prefer his ballads, but there are many other albums to choose from, over 100 albums from 1957-2002.