LISTEN – Johnny Cash: At San Quentin (Legacy Edition)

Johnny Cash: At San Quentin (Legacy Edition) [Columbia/Legacy -$39.98]

In 1969, Johnny Cash made his career-defining album — who knew it would be a live recording from inside one of the toughest prisons in the country? At San Quentin (Legacy Edition) features the entire 31-song concert, including opening acts Carl Perkins, the Statler Brothers, and the Carter Family. Cash’s intensity can be heard in every song, and his between-song dialogue is both funny and startling. Standouts include “Folsom Prison Blues”, “I Walk the Line”, and the debut of Cash’s biggest pop-chart hit, “A Boy Named Sue”. The package of two CDs also features a DVD of the show (recorded by England’s Granada TV), and a beautiful 40-page booklet. Johnny Cash re-invented himself and his career late in life, but At San Quentin (Legacy Edition) is the best slice of the early Cash at his pinnacle. [Amazon]