Johnny Cash and Kris Kristofferson were hard to tame. Both artists were passionate, convicted, admirably idealistic, and would seemingly not bend or break for anyone or anything. That’s simply who they were and why their music was so great. Hence, when Cash debuted Kristofferson’s “Sunday Morning Comedown” in 1970 at the Ryman Auditorium, Cash subverted some executive’s wishes for his good friend.
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“Sunday Morning Comedown” has always been a song belonging to both Kristofferson and Cash. Kristofferson originally wrote the song, but Johnny Cash made it famous after Kristofferson insisted that he sang it. As a matter of fact, he was so insistent that he landed a helicopter on his front lawn. That song was their love child, and they weren’t going to allow anyone to mess with it. Even if that anybody was the legacy media company, ABC.
No One Should Ever Say “No” to Johnny Cash and Kris Kristofferson
Like a couple of teenagers, if you tell these two “no,” there is a good chance they will do the opposite. That being so, when Johnny Cash debuted Kris Kristofferson’s track on the ABC-hosted program, The Johnny Cash Show, in 1970, Cash did the exact opposite of what the network execs asked him to do.
According to Rolling Stone, before the taping of the show, the executives asked Cash to alter the line On the Sunday morning sidewalk / Wishing, Lord, that I was stoned to Wishing, Lord, that I was home. Seemingly, this was requested in order for the show to play better with PG and family-oriented audiences. After all, it was 1970, and censorship surrounding sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll was still very much prevalent. Kristofferson, enraged by this attempted altercation, demanded that it not go through. Though, he didn’t need to worry because Cash was looking out for him.
As you might expect, Johnny Cash did not listen to this request. When it came time to perform and tape the song, Kristofferson watched Cash sing the original lyrics from backstage at the Ryman. After Cash’s admirably rebellious act, The Johnny Cash Show lived on for another year, as it was canceled come March of 1971. Though, of the 58 episodes, the one where Johnny Cash stuck it to the man for the sake of Kris Kristofferson is certainly one of the most iconic. Lastly, debuting the song certainly helped Kris Kristofferson launch into the mainstream.
Kristofferson and Johnny Cash perform a duet on “The Johnny Cash Show” per Getty Images
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