Customer Reviews

Murder (Dig)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

If Johnny Cash is a country singer, as most people insist he is, he is certainly an odd one, as this CD -- which owes everything to the ballad tradition and nothing to honkytonk music -- attests. In fact, Cash has always been a folk singer in a Nashville context. Listening to a collection like this, you wonder how this guy could have survived, much less prospered, in an industry that has marketed some of the most soul-deadening dreck to which the human ear has ever been subjected, and that seems grimly determined to do even worse. Cash, on the other hand, just keeps sounding better. I first heard "Folsom Prison Blues" in the late 1950s, and hearing it again now, I am more convinced than ever that it is one of those rare perfect songs. I don't think I'll ever cease my sense of wonderment at that brilliant couplet about the rich folks drinking coffee and smoking big cigars -- what an utterly original, precise image -- and then: "Those people keep a-movin'/And that's what tortures me." Cash has never been sentimental about his outlaws, either; the characters in these songs are truly bad guys, most of them outright psychopaths -- in other words, no Robin Hoods, no sensitive, misunderstood rebels and social outcasts. He rewrote, but did not invent, "Delia's Gone" (a century-old Georgia murder ballad); yet it's hard to imagine a more cold-blooded version, one that burrows deep into the angry soul of a man who, in a fit of jealous rage, commits an act of hideous violence and forfeits his humanity. "Cocaine Blues," fusing two traditional songs (one sharing the title, the other usually called "Little Sadie"), is sung in the voice of a man who, if he ever had a conscience, lost it long ago in an orgy of substance abuse. Brilliant, terrifying stuff. Still, esthetically speaking, the news isn't all good. There's nothing wrong with his "Long Black Veil," except that the song has been done to death and deserves a rest. Though well meaning, "Jacob Green" is more sermon than song, the one genuinely boring cut here. And why aren't Bruce Springsteen's "Johnny 99" and Eric von Schmidt's "Joshua Gone Barbados" -- both from Cash's inexplicably underappreciated album (now CD) Johnny 99, released originally in 1983 -- not here? But nearly everything else on this CD is testament to the enduring work of a great American artist, a man whose dark vision soared above Nashville's hollow pieties and inane cliches. It's only now, perhaps, that we are finally starting to grasp just how good Johnny Cash, now in the twilight of a great career, was.

"Here is my personal selection of my recordings of songs of robbers, liars and murderers. These songs are just for listening and singing. Don't go out and do it." So end the liner notes of Johnny Cash's MURDER--an album filled with songs that will haunt you just as much as they entertain you.

How haunting, how entertaining, are they? Let's take a look. "Delia's Gone" is about as dark as a country song can get. The Sun Records version of "Folsom Prison Blues" (recorded prior to the mold-breaking live album) shows a feistiness missing from a lot of fifties country (but would be much more prevalent once Johnny Cash became a legend). "Cocaine Blues" is as raucousy as ever. His rendition of "When It's Springtime In Alaska (It's Forty Below)", featuring June Carter, is even better than Johnny Horton's hit version. He even gives Bruce Springteen's "Highway Patrolman" a vitality the Boss's acoustic version lacked.

The songwriting on this album, as always, is above-par. Cash himself wrote several of these songs, proving that he has always been one of country's premier songwriters. But he also relies on material from other well-established songwriters, namely: Bruce Springsteen, Marijohn Wilkins, and the incomparable Harlan Howard. But it doesn't really matter who wrote the song--because if Johnny Cash sang it, then Johnny Cash OWNED it.

MURDER is one of the best records out there for two major reasons: one, it explores the darker side of country music that is mostly overlooked today; and two, it's THE MAN IN BLACK!!!!! 'Nuff said.

You can't go wrong with a bunch of Johnny Cash songs about getting drunk and killing people. The Man in Black personally selected the cuts on this comp, and there are a few surprises among the expected homicidal classics-witness the cajun-inspired romp "Orleans Parish Prison" and Cash's nuanced cover(beautifully producd by Billy Sherill) of Bruce Springsteen's "Highway Patrolman." Other semi-obscurities include the chain gang shuffle/honky tonk boogie "Goin' to Memphis" and a delightfully twisted comic version of the traditional death house lament "Joe Beam." Though "Murder"'s concept may seem restricting, this compiltion contains enough variety and great music to please casual music fans and Johnny Cash freaks alike.

This is my favorite CD in Johnny Cash's Love, God, Murder trilogy. The linking theme between all the songs here is murder, of course, but that doesn't mean that it gets repetitive. The songs tackle the subject from many different perspectives. Sometimes he sings from the point of view of the killer, and sometimes he sings from the point of view of the victim. Some songs take a serious look at the subject, and some songs take a humorous look at the subject. It's a nice mix of well known and obscure songs that should appeal to most Johnny Cash fans.

I just bought Murder, and I've been listening to it all day. I don't really like country music, but after hearing the double CD Man in Black, I became interested in Johnny Cash's music. I really like the new themed cd's and when I found out about this one, I had to get it. All the songs have a story to tell, and they're all great. I can't wait to hear the Love album, but I'm sure it will be just as great as this one. Five stars all the way.

MURDER is a compilation of hand picked songs by THE MAN himself. Every song on this album deals with the dark side of the human persona. Since I picked up this disc, I have been listening to it for a week non-stop. A few of the songs I have heard before, but that didnt keep me from buying it. FOLSOM PRISON BLUES, COCAINE BLUES, DELIA'S GONE, MISTER GARFIELD, DONT TAKE YOUR GUNS TO TOWN, are just a few of the great tunes that are on this album. JOE BEAN is in my opinion the darkest on the album. Its about a man being hanged for a murder he didnt commit, he was robbing a train at the time. As he is being hanged, the gov. is one the phone singing happy birthday to him as he is about to die. Life cant always be pleasent, and this songs show us that. I highly suggest buying this and adding to your collection.

all 16 songs on this album are all about murder.its pretty cool.folsom prison blues and austin prison obviously.deliahs gone is about a unfaithful girl who gets tied to a chair and shot repeatedly.cocaine blues is about a guy who takes coke and then gets crazy and kills his unfaithful ol lady.you think theyd learn to stop being so whorish.this is a classic song about being an outlaw.joe bean is about a guy who killed many people than gets executed for one shooting he didnt do.hisalibi wouldntwork becuse he was robbving a train.he gets hung with the govener on the phone singing happy birthday to him.dont take your guns to town is well predictable but a wonder nonetheless.its hard to belive his 3 big albums were this one and 2 more entitled love and god.

I have not listen to Johnny Cash since I was a child. After listening to Mike Ness "Cheating at Solitaire" I decided to listen to one of Ness's Idols The Man in Black. I bought this Cd because I knew the songs Long Black Vail,and Folsom Prison Blues. Ater playing the CD 3 times I was still wanted to here it again. I highly Recomend this Cd to all music fans.