Johnny Cash was very open about his struggle with addiction throughout his life. More than singing songs about it, Cash gave interviews and penned autobiographies in reference to it. But, before he admitted it to the world, his struggles were very apparent to his peers. There’s at least one artist that we know of who penned an entire song about Cash’s addictions: Kris Kristofferson. Learn more about why the late, great songwriter wrote a song about the Man in Black below.
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The Kris Kristofferson Song That Was Written As an Ode to Johnny Cash
Cash recorded several Kristofferson-penned songs, but none were as fit for him as “To Beat the Devil.” This narrative track was shaped around Cash’s struggle with addiction, per Kristofferson’s intro for the song in his recorded version.
“A couple of years back, I come across a great and wasted friend of mine in the hallway of a recording studio,” Kristofferson says in the song. “And while he was reciting some poetry to me that he’d written
I saw that he was about a step away from dying.”
He goes on to explain why he was moved to write this song before dedicating it to his friend, who finally found him a good woman. “I’d like to dedicate this to John and June, who helped show me how to beat the devil,” he continued in the intro.
The Story
Cash isn’t mentioned directly in this song, but it borrows heavily from his story. Kristofferson takes on the part of a struggling musician who stumbles into a bar on Nashville’s Music Row. While inside, the musician is ushered over to the bar by a stranger.
I said “I’m dry,” and he bought me a beer / He nodded at my guitar and said, “It’s a tough life, ain’t it,” he sings in the second verse.
The stranger is revealed to be the devil, who mysteriously offers him some good advice about making it as an artist. Kristofferson breaks his spoken word section up with a sing-along chorus, wherein the devil gives our main character his two cents.
There were other lonely singers in a world turned deaf and blind / Who were crucified for what they tried to show / And their voices have been scattered by the swirlin’ winds of time / ‘Cause the truth remains that no one wants to know, the lyrics read.
The third verse reveals the kicker: Kristofferson’s wasted musician takes the advice to heart, steals the song from the chorus, and makes it big. He’s no longer haunted by failure, thanks to his rock bottom meeting with the devil. Storytelling doesn’t get much more classic country than that.
Aptly, Cash recorded a version of this song, putting an authentic spin on this tale of hard knocks. It’s not always easy to be seen for precisely what you are. Kristofferson nailed Cash with this song. However, given that Cash played along, he must have seen it as more of a wake-up call than a put-down.
(Photo by Michael Putland/Getty Images)
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