One Hit Wonder: Rosanne Cash
Sometimes, three really is the lucky charm.
Despite being the daughter of a musical legend, Rosanne Cash’s first album wasn’t even released in the United States. Three of the tracks from her second album became hits on country radio, but none of them cracked the Top Ten. Then the firstborn daughter of Johnny and Vivian Cash released the title single from her third album, Seven Year Ache, and a major career began.
“There’s plenty of dives to be someone you’re not,” Rosanne sang, “you say you’re looking for something you might’ve forgot. Don’t bother calling to say you’re leaving alone, ‘cause there’s a fool on every corner when you’re trying to get home.”
With a voice like hers, Rosanne could’ve ruled the rock charts with women like Patty Smyth, Chrissie Hynde, Stevie Nicks, Martha Davis, and Rindy Ross, but she chose the pop country genre instead, infusing her singles with touches of rock and folk to create a sound that would give her an incredible 11 number one hits on the country chart. She was one of the biggest country stars of the ‘80s.
“Seven Year Ache” was her first number one single, but it was also the first and only track to make it onto Billboard’s Hot 100, spending five months on the chart and peaking at #22. The arrangement sounds a little dated now, but the song (and the singer) are still just as powerful today as ever. If you enjoy listening to it, I would seriously recommend that you purchase Super Hits, which collects all ten of Rosanne’s solo number one hits for just $6.99.
Rosanne Cash will be releasing her newest album, The List, on October 6, 2009, featuring “Sea of Heartbreak”, a duet with Bruce Springsteen.
Comments
I’ve recently rediscovered Rosanne Cash, so I was happy to see her featured here. She definitely deserves a bigger career than she has had.
One of my favorite pieces of Grammy trivia is that Cash won her first Grammy for a song (“I Don’t Know Why You Don’t Want Me”) about not winning the Grammy the year before, when she was favored to win for “7 Year Ache.”
“One Hit Wonder” is becoming one of my fave PM features. Keep up the interesting work (that, too often, makes me feel old).
Comment by Michael Abernethy — September 18, 2009 @ 7:52 am
Roseanne Cash should be praised for her remarkable career as a songwriter. Seven Year Ache was one catchy song. But her album Interiors is a landmark piece of work; on par with Dylan’s Blood on The Tracks and Springsteen’s Tunnel of Love in how it dissected the rigors of mature relationships with skilled song craft. The Wheel and Black Cadillac are also fine albums that most artists today could not match.
Comment by TLD — September 21, 2009 @ 1:49 pm