On January 13, 1968, country star Johnny Cash walked into Folsom State Prison, unaware he was about to perform one of his career’s most important live shows. The visit had been years in the making, first spurred by the success of his early single “Folsom Prison Blues” over a decade earlier.
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Cash had performed at several other facilities nationwide before visiting that now-infamous California prison. Word had spread so far and wide that he started getting mailed requests from prisoners, hoping to encourage him to visit and play a few songs.
The environment wasn’t threatening to Cash. Although many fans thought the burly singer/songwriter had spent time in prison himself, he only had brief run-ins with the law, landing him in tiny jail cells for only a few hours at a time.
Still, his understanding of the people inside those walls helped him build a bond with the crowds of inmates who watched on eagerly. Cash had come to an agreement with both his label and the prison, allowing him to record the performances for a live album.
He was joined by an impressive entourage, which included his soon-to-be-bride June Carter, Carl Perkins, and the Statler Brothers. Before Cash took the stage for the first of two sets at Folsom, Perkins treated the crowd to a rendition of his hit “Blue Suede Shoes,” followed by a brief performance from the Statler Brothers, which included their then-recent No. 1 hit, “Flowers on the Wall.”
Although Cash switched up his song lists for each of his two performances, he started both with a rendition of “Folsom Prison Blues,” which earned a rousing response from the crowd. He provided a balanced mix of mournful tear-jerkers, uptempo tunes, and a few duets with June Carter.
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The creation of what would become the live album At Folsom Prison was very much a passion project for Cash, but it turned into something much more. Upon its release on May 6, 1968, the record became a massive success, becoming the No. 1 country album in the U.S.
Although promotion efforts were minimal for the release, At Folsom Prison became the unlikely catalyst for a significant new era in Cash’s career. The project’s success led to På Österåker, a recorded performance from a Swedish prison, and his 1974 record A Concert Behind Prison Walls, captured during a visit to Tennessee State Prison.
Still, none of those live recordings are as renowned and influential as At Folsom Prison, which captured a pivotal chapter in Cash’s miraculous life.
Photo by Silver Screen Collection/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
That edgy feel and reaching out towards the,”downtrodden” is what’s Johnny Cash’s music as we know it.
That foundation created helped in forming all main stay genres as we know them.