Johnny Cash with His Hot and Blue Guitar!
| Johnny Cash with His Hot and Blue Guitar! | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | October 11, 1957[1] | |||
| Recorded | September 1954 – August 4, 1957 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 27:40 | |||
| Label | Sun | |||
| Producer | Sam Phillips | |||
| Johnny Cash chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Johnny Cash with His Hot and Blue Guitar! | ||||
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| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [3] |
Johnny Cash with His Hot and Blue Guitar! is the debut album by American recording artist Johnny Cash, released on October 11, 1957.[4] The album contained four of his hit singles: "I Walk the Line," "Cry! Cry! Cry!," "So Doggone Lonesome," and "Folsom Prison Blues." It was re-issued on July 23, 2002, as an expanded edition, under the label Varese Vintage, containing five bonus tracks, three being alternate versions of tracks already present on the original LP. In 2012, Columbia Records reissued the album with 16 additional non-album Sun tracks as part of its 63-disc Johnny Cash: The Complete Columbia Album Collection box set. In 2017, 60 years after the original release, the album was remastered under the title Johnny Cash with His Hot and Blue Guitar! (Definitive Expanded Remastered Edition).
This was one of the first albums ever issued on Sam Phillips' Sun Records label.
Background[edit]
Cash auditioned for a place on the music label Sun Records in 1955, but he failed to impress its founder Sam Phillips after presenting himself as a gospel singer. Cash was told to come back with a more commercial sound, as Phillips believed gospel wouldn't sell. Cash returned with the songs "Hey Porter!" and "Cry! Cry! Cry!" and subsequently released them as his debut single on Sun Records in July 1955. On the recording, he was backed by Luther Perkins on guitar and Marshall Grant on bass, dubbed "The Tennessee Two" by Phillips. ("Hey Porter" was not included on the original Sun album, but it was included in later reissues by other labels.)
"Cry! Cry! Cry!" became a commercial success, entering the country charts at #14.
His second single, "Folsom Prison Blues", was released in December 1955 and reached the country Top Five in early 1956.
His final single on With His Hot and Blue Guitar!, "I Walk the Line", continued his success, reaching number one on the country charts and staying there for six weeks, eventually crossing over into the pop Top 20.[5]
Track listing[edit]
All tracks are written by Johnny Cash, except where noted.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "The Rock Island Line" | Unknown | 2:11 |
| 2. | "I Heard That Lonesome Whistle" | Jimmie Davis, Hank Williams | 2:25 |
| 3. | "Country Boy" | 1:49 | |
| 4. | "If the Good Lord's Willing" | Jerry Reed | 1:44 |
| 5. | "Cry! Cry! Cry!" | 2:29 | |
| 6. | "Remember Me" | Stuart Hamblen | 2:01 |
| 7. | "So Doggone Lonesome" | 2:39 | |
| 8. | "I Was There When It Happened" | Jimmie Davis, Fern Jones | 2:17 |
| 9. | "I Walk the Line" | 2:46 | |
| 10. | "The Wreck of the Old '97" | Traditional (probably Charles Noell); arranged Cash | 1:48 |
| 11. | "Folsom Prison Blues" | 2:51 | |
| 12. | "Doin' My Time" | Jimmie Skinner | 2:40 |
| Total length: | 27:40 | ||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13. | "Hey Porter" | 2:14 | |
| 14. | "Get Rhythm" | 2:15 | |
| 15. | "I Was There When It Happened" (Alternate Version) | Davis, Jones | 2:18 |
| 16. | "Folsom Prison Blues" (Alternate Version) | 2:34 | |
| 17. | "I Walk the Line" (Alternate Version) | 2:40 | |
| Total length: | 39:41 | ||
Note that on the Varese CD reissue, "Country Boy", is not the original "full band" version from the LP but rather an acoustic version with just Cash and his guitar, which is the demo version; however, the "full band" version is available on iTunes. "Country Boy" was re-recorded for his 1996 album Unchained during his American Recordings period.
See Johnny Cash: The Complete Columbia Album Collection for the track listing of the extended edition included in the 2012 box set.
Arizona-based record store chain Zia Record Exchange reissued the album on an exclusive clear orange vinyl as a limited run of 500 copies in October 2020.[1]
Personnel[edit]
- Johnny Cash - Main Performer, Vocals and acoustic guitar
- THE TENNESSEE TWO
- Luther Perkins - Electric Guitar
- Marshall Grant - Bass
- TECHNICAL CREW
- Sam Phillips - Producer
- Cary E. Mansfield - Reissue Producer
- Bill Dahl - Liner Notes, Reissue Producer
- Dan Hersch - Digital Remastering
- Bill Pitzonka - Art Direction
Charts[edit]
Singles - Billboard (United States)
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1955 | "Cry Cry Cry" | Country Singles | 14 |
| 1956 | "Folsom Prison Blues" | Pop Singles | 17 |
| 1956 | "Folsom Prison Blues" | Country Singles | 3 |
| 1955 | "So Doggone Lonesome" | Country Singles | 4 |
| 1956 | "I Walk the Line" | Country Singles | 1 |
| 1956 | "I Walk the Line" | Pop Singles | 17 |
