Johnny Cash - American II: Unchained

Audiophile 180-gram vinyl reissue of Volume II of Johnny Cash's American Recordings albums

Features covers of Beck, Don Gibson, Soundgarden and Jimmie Rodgers!

"In the early 90s, Johnny Cash signed to Rick Rubin's American label and began releasing the American Recordings series of albums. Produced by Rubin, the American Recordings were stark, stripped-down, mostly acoustic meditations on the more apocalyptic side of his persona. Cash covered Beck, Nick Cave, Bonnie 'Prince' Billy, Soundgarden, Danzig, and, of course, Nine Inch Nails' 'Hurt.' And he cemented his reputation as one of the reigning badasses in American music history — not that that rep really needed much help." — Pitchfork, January 2010

Longtime fan, label owner and producer Rick Rubin stepped in when Johnny Cash, in the early '90s, was without a label for the first time in four decades. Rubin asked Johnny to return to his roots and together, they recreated the legend of the Man In Black. Now presented in an awesome audiophile 180-gram LP format.

The first four songs on Unchained come from the songbooks of Beck, Don Gibson, Soundgarden, and Jimmie Rodgers. What might look like absurdly unsupportable eclecticism in other artists, of course, is pretty much standard stuff for Cash. Unchained is hardly standard, though; it's more like the best album he's made since his 1984 departure from Columbia Records. Not only is this a stack of songs perfectly and idiosyncratically suited to the man, they're given door-rattling backing treatment by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, who prove as fitting for Cash's music as his own Tennessee Two was back in the day.

Two years on from his triumphant comeback album, American Recordings, 1996's Unchained took the blueprint of its predecessor and added Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers to the mix along with Marty Stuart, Lindsey Buckingham, Flea and many others. The results were just as fantastic, adding a different dimension and fullness to the overall sound, but maintaining the mood and atmosphere that made American Recordings such a treasure. Songs written by Petty, Chris Cornell and Beck rub shoulders with a handful of Johnny Cash originals.

 

1. Side 1

2. Rowboat

3. Sea Of Heartbreak

4. Rusty Cage

5. The One Rose

6. Country Boy

7. Memories Are Made Of This

8. Spiritual

9. Side 2

10. Kneeling Drunkard's Plea

11. Southern Accents

12. Mean Eyed Cat

13. Meet Me In Heaven

14. I Never Picked Cotton

15. Unchained

16. I've Been Everywhere

Customer Reviews (5.00 Stars) 1 person(s) rated this product.

Essential posted on 03/10/2014 5 Stars Reviewer: Dan Swan We purchased all six CASH releases pressed at QRP and could not be more impressed with the quality. The music on all six albums is essential for any music collection, and perhaps the most important music released in the past century. Johnny Cash left the most important work of his career for the end. His voice is warm and worn, and glows on vinyl with persistent gravity. A man aware his life is about to end, and revealing his soul with passion and conviction. The focus here is on the lyric, and the song choices reveal his humanity while inviting us to see ourselves within each song. These American Recordings are treasures for every generation to come; and if you have only heard this music on CD, you owe it to yourself to feel these amazing performances with the warmth and depth that only vinyl can provide. Highly recommended to anyone who loves honest heartfelt music.

Write a review and let people know what you think of this product OR just rate it.