The Man Called CASH: The Life, Love and Faith of an American Legend (Hardcover)

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Published in time for the first anniversary of Johnny Cash's death, this eminently readable biography of the Man in Black feels more honest about its subject than most authorized biographies, perhaps because Cash himself was more honest about his flaws and modest about his successes than many other public figures. Musical biographer Turner (Conversations with Clapton, etc.) leans heavily on interviews with Cash fans such as Larry Gatlin and Kris Kristofferson (who pens the foreword) and on quotations from songs Cash wrote, sang or both. The result is an affecting mosaic of oral history, poetry and memoir—concerning Cash himself, but also the era in which his music took root and thrived. Turner addresses Cash's drug and alcohol abuse, his failed marriage and his love for June Carter Cash with sympathy and fairness; he doesn't flinch from talking about how Cash's affair with June hurt his first wife, or about his struggle and relapses during his recovery from addiction. But something about this book seems one degree removed. Turner's interviews with Cash's family and friends are excellent, and tidbits such as Cash's reasons for wearing the famous black are priceless, but at times it feels like Turner is just guessing, as we all must, how this American legend really felt and what his life was like.
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Review

A glimpse of Cash from . . . those closest to him, some of whom have never gone on the record . . . before. -- The Tennessean

In what may be the most admirable of its many achievements, it’s as good as Cash deserves. -- Rolling Stone

Though presented as an authorized biography . . . this portrait is hardly sanitized. There are bright shards of detail. -- People Magazine

Turner has . . . put Cash’s soul on paper. Read this book if you care anything at all about American popular music. -- Bookreporter.com

Turner is refreshingly reluctant to sensationalize . . . evenhanded and honest. Turner’s life of the artist pays due honor to Cash. -- Reuters

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Thomas Nelson; First edition. edition (September 23, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0849918200
• ISBN-13: 978-0849918209
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.1 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #792,310 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Misses on the Personal Side, January 16, 2005

By	Elizabeth (Georgia) - See all my reviews

This book starts out so strong that I found myself dreading the end. It was a rich, strong look into the personal side of Cash beginning with his roots in Dyess, Arkansas, tracking him thoroughly through the Army and then his early life in Memphis. June Carter is introduced and the complexity of their relationship begins. Then, halfway through -- after I was completely drawn in -- the book begins to rehash all the normal stuff we know about Cash -- his struggle with drugs, the ups and downs of his career and his spiritual life. There was nothing new or revealing on the personal side.
It is a great injustice to what had promised to be a terrific look to the personal Cash. Suddenly, without warning, the book becomes mechanical and we no longer are invited into the personal side of Cash. For instance, while his first divorce is briefly discussed, there is no mention of his wedding to June! We don't even know when or where it happened. It is never mentioned that June became pregnant. Later, it just pops up that there was a son, John Carter, born. For those who have studied Cash's life, it was evident that the birth of his only son was a monumental point in his life. The reader wants to know more about it -- his reaction when he discovered he'd be a father again; his joy on the day of the birth, etc.
From mid-point to the end, this book reads as if the manuscript was hurried and on a deadline to finish. It is so sad. Especially when it started out so good. I would prefer to give it 2.5 stars because that is more of what it deserves.
Kudos, though, to the author who does a clear, succinct job of explaining Southern Baptist philosophies such as the Age of Accountability.
I think the problem here lies more with the publisher and editor than the author. More than likely, they put him on a tight deadline to meet the first anniversary of Cash's death and accepted a less than terrific manuscript. The author proves early in the book that he does have what it takes to deliver wonderful results.
There are factual errors that should have been caught by editing. For instance, Murder in Coweta County -- a Cash movie -- was not a novel. It was based on a true, sensational case in rural Georgia in the 1940s. Also, the movie was released in 1988, not 1998.
Further proof that the editing wasn't up to par is that at one point, three lines are repeated twice and words are missing from other sentences.
Too bad. This had the potential to be the best we've ever seen on Cash. Maybe, though, all of this will be rectified by the book is released in paperback.

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Cash's soul on paper, September 24, 2004

By	Bookreporter.com (New York, New York) - See all my reviews

With few exceptions, what passes for country music these days is a rehashing of Eighties rock, Journey with fiddles and steel guitars, performed by a standardized collection of Barbies and Kens with interchangeable heads. You know something is wrong when the stuff that actually sounds like country music is labeled "alternative country." The soul is missing from country music, having been replaced by a marketing strategy. Cowboy hat? Check. Pick-up truck? Check. Yep, it's country.

No it isn't.

And this brings us to Johnny Cash. He was the real deal, one of the last of his breed. If the man's body of work isn't enough to convince you, you'll find ample proof in Steve Turner's THE MAN CALLED CASH, the authorized biography of country music's legendary Man in Black.

Turner draws on the personal recollections of an army of Cash's friends and family to present a detailed portrait of a complex, flawed, flesh-and-bone human being. Don't let that "authorized biography" designation get in the way. This is a warts-and-all look at Cash's remarkable life and equally remarkable music.

In many instances Turner's sources provide conflicting versions of anecdotes from various stages in Cash's career. In the delta between the various recollections of events, something both sobering and wonderful emerges --- a realization that, regardless of status or celebrity, we are all ultimately defined less by what we actually do than by how we are remembered. Memories are informed by context. In Johnny Cash's case, as presented in this book, that context is defined by Cash's ability to connect on a profound level with people, in both his personal relationships and in the creation and performance of his music.

But THE MAN CALLED CASH is no more an attempt to whitewash Cash's life and career than it is a superficial tell-all. Rather, it is an honest look at an honest man, an artist who drew equally on his demons, his faith, his joy, and his pain to produce music that spoke of and to working men and women on a visceral level. Throughout his career Johnny Cash put his soul into his music, without affectation (one would be hard pressed to find a photo of Cash in a cowboy hat). In channeling the memories of so many whose lives intersected with Johnny Cash's, Steve Turner has managed to put Cash's soul on paper. Read this book if you care anything at all about American popular music, and be reminded of what country music is really about.

--- Reviewed by Bob Rhubart

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "He was as unique as a snowflake. - Kristofferson.", July 17, 2005

By	J. Guild (Toronto,Canada) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

I think Kristofferson summed up Cash about as well as anyone I have heard.This book is an outstanding look at the life of Cash.I have read and wrote reviews on several,but I really feel this is the best.Some might feel that Turner spends too much time talking about Cash's Faith and his God;but to really understand Cash you must understand this part of him.Without his beliefs,there would be no Cash,and he would be the first to tell you.Not only that,anyone who really knew Cash would tell you that his Faith was his greatest gift ;bar none.Reading this book you will also learn that Faith was also June's greatest gift.
Turner seems to put his finger on what made Cash the Legend he became.I finished High School about the same time as Cash and was always a big fan of his.Sure, there were some times when things were not pretty.A couple of months ago ,I was at a table with the owner of a large music store here in Toronto.This man is about eighty and knows just about all there is to know about the music scene here in Toronto.I said,"you must have met Cash a few times?" "Sure,many times.I remember one morning when I was opening the store,he was sleeping in the entrance."Like I said there were times like that,but they were greatly overshadowed by the great scenes Cash provided throughout his career;right up to the end.From the time I First saw him live in Montreal,in 1969, with the Statlers; to the day we all saw him at June's funeral, I never tired of him or June.
This book leaves you thinking that we never ever saw anyone even remotely like him and that is why he was so much admired by so many,both in the music business as well as those who enjoyed and loved him so well.I watched his last appearence on the Larry King Show,and it was amazing how compfortable he was with the questions Larry asked.No doubt about it, Larry was completely overwhelmed by Cash's faith.
We are all the poorer because he is no longer with us;but at least we still have his music to enjoy for many years to come.
"If America as a nation could speak...it would sound something like Johnny Cash.His voice was America's voice,just as America's voice was his."
Turner has managed to bare the soul of Cash to all of us.So if you want to get to know what "The Man Called Cash " was all about,I strongly recommend you read this book.