Silver - Johnny Cash

More of this Feature • Johnny Cash 70th Birthday Special - Part 2 • Johnny Cash 70th Birthday Special - Part 1 • Silver • Songs of Our Soil • At Madison Square Gardens • Sings the Ballads of the True West • Dressed in Black Tribute Album • Reviews by Jennifer • Reviews by Jolene • Reviews by Kathy • CD Review Index    Related Resources • American Milestones • American Milestones 2000 • 16 Biggest Hits - Part 2 CD Review • Ragged Old Flag CD Review • American III: Solitary Man CD Review • Essential Johnny Cash CD Review • Fabulous Johnny Cash CD Review • Carrying On with Johnny Cash and June Carter CD Review • Hymns of Johnny Cash CD Review • Orange Blossom Special CD Review • Ride This Train CD Review    Community • Country Chatroom • Country Forums    Elsewhere On The Web • Johnny Cash (Official) • Legacy Recordings

Reviewed by Kathy Coleman

Back in 1979, Johnny Cash released this album, and it has disappeared into the history of country music after barely making a blip on the radar, except for the everlasting power of "Ghost Riders In the Sky," which topped the country charts at #2.

Now in a special new release on CD, it has resurfaced and proves to be an absolutely brilliant gem, a lost treasure, brought to light and expanded with the addition of two lost tracks: "I Still Miss Someone" and "I Got Stripes," both Cash standards; except here they're duets with the incomparable George Jones.

I can't remember a time in my life when I didn't know the name of Johnny Cash and could recognize his face and voice instantly. But until I spun this disc, I didn't realize I was a bone fide Johnny Cash FAN. This album is so good it's no mystery at all why Johnny Cash is a legend. If this is one of his "lesser" albums, one that was easily lost amidst the hundreds of "greater" releases, well, we all know how great those "greater" releases are.

Silver came at a time when country music was in flux; Cash himself was celebrating his first 25 years in the music business, and the Outlaw movement was waning. "Urban Cowboy" had yet to hit the scene. Yet Silver highlights Cash at his easygoing best; the storyteller, the songwriter, and the singer. His magnificent bass voice is resounding from the past through his own songs and those of then-brand-new songwriters such as Rodney Crowell and Billy Joe Shaver, each tune as brilliant and glorious today as it was twenty years ago.

The opening song, a chilling tune about the end of a coal-mining town, is as timeless as the Appalachian Mountains. Cash delivers the tune with a voice that echoes through an empty mine, rumbles like the coal train, and chills to the bone. It also features a young Ricky Skaggs on fiddle, as well as Jack Clement on guitar and Earl Ball on piano (the musicians on this disc are as superb as the lead singer).

There are really no weak tracks on this disc, there's no filler. For an album that produced only one major hit, it's amazing how truly wonderful this music is. Perhaps it is simply my reaction after hearing so much weak material that is currently on the charts; or perhaps Cash continues to age like fine champagne, but this lesser, mediocre album simply gives me chills of delight. From the thumping beat of Crowell's "Bull Rider" to the prison-bound regret of "Cocaine Blues" and the simple folksy quality of "I'm Gonna Sit On The Porch and Pick On My Old Guitar," Cash delivers, plain and simple.

There are now three tracks with the great George Jones. On the original release was only "I'll Say It's True," but now there's the two additional tracks, as well. After listening to the mellow bass of Johnny Cash for so long, George's wonderful tenor sounds oddly out of place here. But it magnificent to hear them together here, putting a fresh face on a couple of old Cash standards.

It's also a treat to read the liner notes, as they reproduced the original, a letter from Cash to his mother, thanking her for recognizing his voice was something special and believing he would make a living with it, and hoping she was proud of his accomplishments in music. Updated notes include an article from journalist Jonny Whiteside.

It's an album all Cash fans need, whether you're an old hand with The Man in Black or are just learning about him. There is nothing in the world like that voice. Enjoy it.

Song List:

1. The L & N Don't Stop Here Anymore
2. Lonesome to the Bone
3. Bull Rider
4. I'll Say It's True (With George Jones)
5. (Ghost) Riders In The Sky
6. Cocaine Blues
7. Muddy Waters
8. West Canterbury Subdivision Blues
9. Lately I Been Leanin' Toward The Blues
10. I'm Gonna Sit On The Porch And Pick On My Old Guitar
11. I Still Miss Someone (With George Jones)
12. I Got Stripes (With George Jones)