God (Dig) [Original recording remastered]

Johnny Cash | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (May 23, 2000)
• Original Release Date: May 23, 2000
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B00004TB8B
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #293,482 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Deeply spiritual, and deeply real, June 21, 2000

By 

"dorianrex" - See all my reviews

This review is from: God (Dig) (Audio CD)

I am not a person who digs "gospel" music, but what Johnny Cash does on this album is like something right out of the Bible; a man who has known darkness and sin telling you "My God Is Real" and "It Was Jesus", "The Man In White", who saved him by His "Redemption." He makes the oft-overdone "Swing Low Sweet Chariot" an earnest pleeding to Heaven, and "Cowboy's Prayer", "Why Me Lord", and "The Old Account" are sung with a fervor that sounds autobiographical.

In an age where "Christian" Rock is increasingly making waves, people need to give far more heed to albums like this! THIS is what religion should be: Real, Honest, and Life-Changing. Amen, Johnny... Amen!

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I know that God in Heaven looked down, February 25, 2005

By 

Johnny Heering "trivia buff" (Bethel, CT United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: God (Dig) (Audio CD)

This is a collection of religious songs by Johnny Cash, personally selected by Cash himself. The earliest song is from 1957 (one of the few religious songs he was allowed to record for Sun Records) and the most recent song is from 1996 (his second American Recordings album). This is good music that should appeal to Johnny Cash's fans, especially his Christian fans. You can tell his religious convictions are heartfelt when you hear him sing these songs. Recommended to Johnny Cash fans.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Cash spreads the good news, June 3, 2005

By 

Greg Brady "columbusboy" (Capital City) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: God (Dig) (Audio CD)

This disc collects together music handpicked by Johnny Cash to express the religious faith he grew up with that sustained him through a hard life as a cottonpicker in Arkansas, the death of his older brother at a young age in a sawmill accident, and by Cash's own account through a long battle with booze and pills. The God Cash sings about is not some casual acquaintance or marketing tool to capture a certain segment of his listening audience: it is Someone Cash knows and loves and he Wants you to love Him too. The songs here range from a 1957 track ("Belshazzar" cut while Johnny was still with Sun Records) through 1996 ("Kneeling Drunkard's Plea" on American Records).

HIGHLIGHTS:
"Redemption" is probably the single most powerful tune here: expressing the totality of the sacrifice Jesus made for us. "Man in White" is a clever retelling of Saul's conversion on the road to Damascus. ("I was blinded so that I might see...") "Belshazzar" was one of the few gospel tracks Sam Phillips allowed Johnny to cut while at Sun and it's a good one. The trademark "boom chicka boom" guitar underscores the tale of a king "Weighed in the balance and found wanting" by a disembodied hand.

LOWS:
"The Great Speckled Bird" is a country music/gospel standard but Johnny's version doesn't really sound heartfelt. Johnny himself in the liner notes says "At times, I'm a voice crying in the wilderness, but at times I'm right on the money and I know what I'm singing about." I'm guessing that was a "wilderness" moment.

BOTTOM LINE:
Fans of Cash who aren't opposed to genuine emotional Christian expression will find a lot to love here. Fans of Christian music who usually listen only to touchy-feely "I'm OK..you're OK" lyrics should get a load of "Redemption" for another take on what the gospel really means. Gospel means good news..and Cash loved to spread it via song. This anthology demonstrates that love. The best gospel song Cash ever did, though ("The Man Comes Around"), doesn't appear here because this compilation was assembled before its release. For that reason, after getting this one you'll need to get AMERICAN IV: THE MAN COMES AROUND as well for a spine-tingling account of the Apocalypse to come.