12 Great Johnny Cash Songs
Published on November 10, 2007 - 66 Comments
Cash was known for his deep, distinctive voice, the boom-chick-a-boom or “freight train” sound of his Tennessee Three backing band, his demeanor, and his dark clothing, which earned him the nickname “The Man in Black.” He traditionally started his concerts with the simple introduction “Hello, I’m Johnny Cash.” Here is a list of the 12 greatest Johnny Cash Songs.
12. 25 Minutes to Go
Although Cash never did “hard time”, his songs often reflected the common, lower class, less fortunate man. This tune of the final minutes of a condemned man, is tinged with humor, but is ultimately very dark as the song never actually ends, but just trails off. Not a very popular song, but only one he could pull off. Best moment 2:08 (Johnny’s voice cracks)
11. Give My Love To Rose
This classic highlights another of Cash’s favorite subjects – death and redemption. A dying ex-con asks a man to pass on his dying words. The simple chords are so basic but so powerful. Best moment 1:10 (Tell my boy that daddy’s so proud of him) – so sad
10. The Streets of Laredo
Completely haunting tale of another dying cowboy. Chilling and vivid. Best moment 2:08 (I’m a young cowboy and I know I’ve done wrong)
9. God’s Gonna Cut You Down
This spooky, rambling chain-gang hymn illustrates Johnny’s voice with a minimal backbeat. Note the twang of the mouth harp. Best moment 1:15 (”I thought I heard the shuffle of a-a-angels feet”)
8. A Boy Named Sue
Originally written by poet Shel Silverstien, the story of an abandoned boy and his run in with his father after years of abuse has so many great rhymes and vivid images. No chorus necessary on this crowd favorite. Best moment 1:18 (”My name is Sue! How do you do? Now you’re gonna die!”).
7. Cocaine Blues
This tragic story of a drug-addled murderer and his arrogance is a cautionary tale of drug abuse and inevitability of getting caught for your crimes. Best moment 2:24 (”I can’t forget that day I shot that bad bitch down”).
6. Don’t Take Your Guns to Town
A mother’s plea to her son in a dangerous time . No need to wait until the end of the song to figure out what is going to happen to our protagonist Bill. Best moment 00:24 (The pause before his mother’s first warning).
5. Orange Blossom Special
Here Cash sings about another old American tradition of days past – waiting for a loved one on a train. The guitars chug along to the tempo of a locomotive and Cash delivers with a killer harmonica. Best Moment 1:57 (I Don’t care if I do die do die do die do).
4. It Ain’t Me Babe
Beautiful duet with his wife June Carter which flips the traditional “I am the one you need” song, to a warning that he is not the man of her dreams. Interesting that he has his wife of so many years chose this song to do live so many times. Check out Johnny actually dancing in this clip! Best moment 00:50 (Naw, naw, naw! It ain’t me babe.)
3. I Walk the Line
Many people’s favorite. A song about true love and the promises made to one’s true love. No Cash list is complete without it. Best moment 1:20 (I’m a fooool for you).
2. Hurt
As odd as it sounds, this Nine Inch Nails cover would probably never have seen any airtime had it not been for this ultra-powerful video which shows Cash through the years, and finally as an old, tired, man. If this video doesn’t give you chills, no video will. Best moment (2:50 the spooky piano comes in).
1. Folsom Prison Blues
This ode to all those who will never see the outside world and “smoke big cigars” has one of Cash’s darkest lines around 00:38. So raw and cold. Followed by a great guitar solo.
Honorable mentions
I Got Stripes
Get Rhythm
Long Black Veil
Five Feet High and Rising
Sunday Morning Comedown
teacherman
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1. Hobolad - November 10th, 2007 at 5:13 am
Good to see “I Got Stripes” in the mentions- that’s my fave!
Good list!
EDIT: Nice, new comment options!
2. Yaji - November 10th, 2007 at 6:18 am
What about San Quentin? That’s gotto be in the top 5 AT LEAST! And you don’t even have it in the top 12? What gives?
3. Jason - November 10th, 2007 at 7:18 am
Yeah, great list! “Train Of Love” is another good one (heard Dylan do a really good version of it on a Cash tribute show). In the American Recordings era, one of my favs is “The Devil’s Right Hand”.
My favorite Johnny Cash album title? “Look At Them Beans”
4. Dan - November 10th, 2007 at 7:38 am
Jeesh, he was such a badass.
5. James Frazer - November 10th, 2007 at 10:34 am
Hmm, my fav Cash song is When the Man Comes Around, shame it didn’t make the list.
6. Monkey - November 10th, 2007 at 12:13 pm
Long Black Veil? Sunday Morning Coming Down? At least they were honorable mentions. I also like “Understand Your Man.” Ever notice it’s the same tune as Bob Dylan’s “Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright”?
7. xdarkhorsex - November 10th, 2007 at 12:27 pm
holy crap I love this list. When i was a wee little lad I used to lay in front of my grandma’s record player and listen to his album “ride this train”, one that is seldom heard anymore. i can’t even find it on CD. He’s my all time favorite singer and he’s been a huge influence on modern music as well. Alot of current artists will reference him as a major influence.
8. Ravyn - November 10th, 2007 at 1:15 pm
is it just me or is this list completely screwed up. And I am not talking about the list itself. It is a wonderful list content and I agree. But the page…it starts off normal and then as it goes the words get bigger and bigger until it can only fit a word per line. Looks like a font size of 500.
Anywhoo…
9. Cyn - November 10th, 2007 at 1:30 pm
that sorta thing has happened to me before and it was my computer acting up. coupla things. shut down and reboot. or just try refreshing the page. also check different sites …it could be your computer and/or browser. in rare cases its the actual page loading itself that gets garbled for a second..which is usually the ISP.
good luck.
10. Ravyn - November 10th, 2007 at 2:43 pm
It is just this page. I refreshed, then rebooted and still. Everywhere else I go Listverse or not, is normal. Bah
11. JT - November 10th, 2007 at 2:48 pm
This page is seriosuly messed up. The text keeps getting bigger as it goes down until it becomes unbearable. The recent comments section on the right side of the page also looks weird.
12. mandysparky - November 10th, 2007 at 3:43 pm
well done im glad you put “hurt” in! its my personal favorit
13. Fe - November 10th, 2007 at 3:53 pm
“Look at them Beans” always makes me laugh.
It’s a neat song because it’s a tearjerker, but it can get a laugh as well. “Ragged Old Flag” is another good one, he does it mostly spoken, which with his voice is especially powerful. “One piece at a time” also makes me laugh, just the imagery of the thing.
14. Cyn - November 10th, 2007 at 4:04 pm
page looks fine to me guys. i did leave a note for J. sorry you’re having problems.
15. Juggz - November 10th, 2007 at 4:32 pm
When i was at work on IE 6 the page got bigger and bigger now that i am at home on Firefox(thank heavens) it all looks fine
16. rp - November 10th, 2007 at 5:18 pm
Same thing happened to me earlier when I had to use IE. Don’t bother fixing it. Consider it a punishment to people who choose to use an inferior browser.
17. aplspud - November 10th, 2007 at 5:48 pm
Great list. Love watching the old clips, it reminds me what a great job Joaquin Phoenix did. “Boy Named Sue” always cracks me up, and the video for “Hurt” always makes me cry. I remember when it came out there was a big war amongst the listeners of KROQ in LA (mostly alternative rock) when it was added to the playlist. People either loved it or hated it. Who did that video for “God’s Gonna Cut You Down” and does anyone have a list of all the celebs in the video? I’m terrible at recognizing people out of context (its sad when my students see me on campus and say hi and it takes me a minute to remember their names). Also, what show is the “Walk the Line” clip from? Amazing how well his voice still sounds after so many years in that clip.
18. Dana - November 10th, 2007 at 6:10 pm
For some reason, on this page the font gets bigger and bigger until by the end, I can see only one word per line.
Oh well.
Anyhoo, I was very surprised by “Hurt”. It gave me chills.
19. Joe - November 10th, 2007 at 6:41 pm
Ring of Fire
Ghostriders in the sky
20. Hannah - November 10th, 2007 at 11:42 pm
I was just going to mention Ring of Fire, too! It needs to be a least a notable omission!
21. jfrater - November 11th, 2007 at 2:10 am
Apologies for the fault with the list - it is now corrected. I left off a /
22. ChuChu353 - November 11th, 2007 at 3:41 am
Wonderful list, Cash was The Man when I was growing up (I remember my parents having an album of cowboy standards called MEAN AS HELL with a pic of JC in 19th century gunslinger duds. Pic scared the hell out of me when I was a kid.)
However…(minor quibble)
#5 is “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” not “Orange Blossom Special” Thought I’d let you know.
23. ChuChu353 - November 11th, 2007 at 3:50 am
BTW… just checked amazon.com MEAN AS HELL is the album on which “25 Minutes to Go” first appeared.
24. jfrater - November 11th, 2007 at 3:59 am
ChuChu353: Thanks - I have corrected the video clip
25. ChuChu353 - November 11th, 2007 at 4:06 am
You’re quite welcome
26. ChuChu353 - November 11th, 2007 at 4:11 am
One more thing then I’ll leave everyone alone…
In the early ’70’s there was a radio station in the Dallas/Ft Worth area that played an all-night country music show hosted by a dj named Bill Mack. I remember his theme being an instrumental recording of Orange Blossom Special. If there is anyone who remembers this show and knows who did that recording, I’d love to know
27. ChuChu353 - November 11th, 2007 at 4:12 am
I’d love to know who did it, that is.
28. jfrater - November 11th, 2007 at 4:29 am
ChuChu353: Unfortunately I have no idea at all - but hopefully someone reading the list will have an answer for you - it is surprising how much knowledge many of our commenters have. Oh - and there is no need to leave us alone - we like new voices on the site
29. teacherman - November 11th, 2007 at 5:21 am
Glad people seemed to enjoy my first list contribution. As with any music list, it’s completely subjective (Has there ever been a music list that was unanimously agreed upon??). I titled it 12 geat Cash songs so as not to assume that these are the 12 best, most definitive Cash songs. I encourage anyone who enjoyed this list to read his autobiography, “Cash”. Incredible.
30. Dana - November 11th, 2007 at 7:08 am
Teacherman, for a subject that was completely agreed on by everyone, you should have read the Beatles Top 15!
31. jfrater - November 11th, 2007 at 7:25 am
I think the Beatles Top 15 will be hard to beat for comments
Even the top 10 evil women pales in significance.
32. Erwin - November 11th, 2007 at 10:05 am
I like the list, my personal additions would be: The Wall (IMO his best song about prison), the already mentioned clasics Ring Of Fire and Ghostrider and the beautiful rendition of Tim Hardin´s “If I were a carpenter”(one of my alltime favorite songs ever) with June.
Also great songs wich I would recommend which weren´t THAT well known are his version of (again Tim Hardin´s) “The Lady came from Baltimore” and “Ballad of Ira Hayes”. Perhaps I would have included “The Man in Black” aswell, but then it would have been a top 20 songs;)
33. Mathilda - November 11th, 2007 at 1:57 pm
This is a great list; I love Johnny Cash. I like Dark as a Dungeon too, and I actually really like his cover of Bridge Over Troubled Water from American Man IV.
34. Lynn - November 11th, 2007 at 3:10 pm
“Delia’s Gone” needed to be here.
35. Amanda - November 11th, 2007 at 3:46 pm
What about “I’ve been Everywhere”? That’s my favourite Johnny Cash song. It plays at the start of the new Flight of the Phoenix movie.
36. Sarah - November 11th, 2007 at 4:10 pm
hey you fixed the big writing! nice.
I like that “i walk the line” one
37. teacherman - November 11th, 2007 at 6:38 pm
I forgot, “I’ve Been Everywhere”! My friend and I tried to memorize the places. We gave up after @ 10 names.
38. Arkz_Archduke_of_Geeks - November 12th, 2007 at 12:26 am
when the man comes around, ring of fire… are two of my person favorites
39. Alamo - November 12th, 2007 at 11:22 am
Hey Porter.
If your from the south, you’ll understand.
40. trebek - November 12th, 2007 at 11:50 am
One Piece At a Time!
41. Dave - November 12th, 2007 at 7:10 pm
One of my favorite songs of all time is a live duet of “Ghostriders in the sky” by Johnny Cash and Willie Nelson
42. bootlicker - November 25th, 2007 at 10:19 am
Always loved “Jackson” with Johnny and June Carter Cash.
But “Hurt” will always bring tears to my eyes.
43. Bad News - November 28th, 2007 at 8:33 pm
This site has near ’bout taken over all of my free time…
Great Cash list. I gotta add “Down There by the Train” from the later stuff (anybody, has TW recorded a version?), a second to “Hey, Porter” and “Jackson”, “Daddy Sand Bass”, and my all time, “I Never Picked Cotton”
44. Bad News - November 28th, 2007 at 8:36 pm
Check that, “Daddy *Sang* Bass”. “Daddy Sand Bass” is an ICP/Depeche Mode collaboration, I think…
45. jbjr - December 1st, 2007 at 2:03 am
Ira Hayes, whiskey drinkin indian
and Hey Porter, Hey Porter can you tell me the time
46. mike - December 30th, 2007 at 3:31 am
what about johnny cASH LIVE AT FOLSOM PRISON.THATS THE BEST MUSIC HE DID IN A LONG TIME.OF COURSE HE DID OTHER GREAT STUFF TOO.
47. Illitsia - December 31st, 2007 at 11:47 am
I think the list should have these songs in any order. Cocaine, Folsom Prison Blues, The General Lee, Ballad of Ira Hayes, Hurt, It Ain’t Me Babe, Jackson, Ring of Fire, One Piece At A Time, I Walk The Line, Sunday Morning Coming Down, and Tennessee Flat Top Box.
48. Dramay - December 31st, 2007 at 11:52 am
And what aboutthese songs; Ballad of the Last Gunfighter, Highwayman, Homo Truck Driving Man, Ghost Riders in the Sky, and The Legend of John Henry’s Hammer.
49. MsMabjab - March 17th, 2008 at 8:53 am
A WHILE BACK I SAW A BAND NAMED CASH’D OUT…THEY CAME PRETTY DAMN CLOSE TO HIM!
50. fydeaux - March 27th, 2008 at 2:58 pm
I think a lot of people missed this because it was not a Johnny Cash record, but for an INCREDIBLE performance, go to YouTube and look for a video of THE DEVIL CAME BACK TO GEORGIA. It was a Mark O’Connor record that featured Cash, Charlie Daniels, Marty Stuart, and Travis Tritt. Truly remarkable!
51. warningdontreadthis - April 13th, 2008 at 9:24 am
jfrater: Do you know who directed the hurt video?
I normally hate country music, but Jhonny is to good for anyone to hate, hurt makes me cry its so amazing.
52. Amanda Kay - May 2nd, 2008 at 1:08 pm
Great list. I love Nine Inch Nails’ version of Hurt, but like Trent admitted, the song now belongs to Johnny Cash.
53. IDAHOCOUNTRYMAN - July 11th, 2008 at 12:52 pm
I love Johnny Cash’s song “I’ve been Everywhere” and “Daddy sang Bass” Well to tell you the truth I like just about all of his music! Johnny Cash is awsome!!!
54. IDAHOCOUNTRYMAN - July 11th, 2008 at 1:00 pm
You know though the best country artist ever in my opinion is Chris LeDoux. I just fell like I am in a good place when I hear his music.
55. Louise T. - July 12th, 2008 at 4:39 am
Hi!
Love this list.
One of my favorites is a cover version of “If you could read my mind”. It’s rather new, but you can really hear the pain in his voice. It goves me the chills and tears in my eyes.
Also love The man in black, and Hurt. Thinks that Phoenix and Witherspoon did a great job in the movie.
56. rushfan - August 13th, 2008 at 6:19 am
I love Johnny Cash. I can listen to Darling Companion over and over.
57. DoYogaFeelGreat - August 15th, 2008 at 7:41 am
I’m not sure of the title — but I love the one where he works in the Cadillac factory, and steals parts basically one at a time until he has a 46, 47, 48, 49 caddy. Also Tennessee Flat Top Box ALWAYS makes me sing along (sorry, Johnny).
58. rushfan - August 15th, 2008 at 7:44 am
I love your nickname!!
59. LiteBriteHooker - August 15th, 2008 at 7:48 am
Johnny Cash was a great musician!
“Don’t Take Your Guns to Town” always made me laugh, only because of the way he says “Bill” (”Leave your gunsat home Bill”)
And he did a great rendition of Hurt, originally by Nine Inch Nails, another great artist
60. IllitsiaDramay - August 18th, 2008 at 9:35 pm
Another song by him that I like is his version of the Danzig song “Thirteen”. The Last Cowboy Song and Seven Spanish Angels were good ones by The Highwaymen.
61. poopymcpoopsalot - September 23rd, 2008 at 5:37 pm
It’s crazy how he looked and sounded exactly the same his entire life.
62. Niallags - September 23rd, 2008 at 5:48 pm
I can see that this is a thought-through list. At first I disagreed with the line-up, but that is only due to my obsession with Johnny’s lesser known songs. This is a great list and a great tribute to a true icon of music. Well done!
Oh, I do think that “The Old Gunfighter” should have been in the mix but still - fine list.
63. Diogenes - September 23rd, 2008 at 6:16 pm
subtle differences can be profound, poopymcpoopsalot.
64. juleigh - October 5th, 2008 at 9:26 pm
What about “All Over Again”? or “Tennessee Flat Top Box”? “Ring of Fire”?
I absolutely love “Sunday Morning Coming Down.” It’s a little sad and depressing, but a beautiful song nonetheless.
65. Ash - November 11th, 2008 at 6:00 am
A Boy Named Sue is LEGEND
xD