Home Jambase Remembering Johnny Cash: ‘The Gift’ Documentary

Remembering Johnny Cash: ‘The Gift’ Documentary

97

Johnny Cash died on September 12, 2003. In other words, exactly 19 years have passed since the world wore black for The Man In Black, such was the scope of his influence. His ability to reach across genres is remarkable. Country fans, rock fans, metal fans, hip hop fans, electronic fans, jam fans, one would be hard-pressed to find someone who doesn’t like Johnny Cash among them.

The reason for this universality? Johnny Cash and his music are infinitely relatable: from growing up a poor farm boy in rural Arkansas to experiencing the loss of a loved one, to serving in the military, to becoming famous as so many dream of, to having his heartbroken, to struggling with addiction, to using his powerful voice as a vehicle for change and more.

But as with many transcendent icons, much of Cash’s life has become tied up in myth and legend. But in 2019, a YouTube documentary directed by Thom Zimny (Springsteen on Broadway) called The Gift: The Journey of Johnny Cash premiered at SXSW. The film sought to untangle the man from the myth using recently unearthed archival footage and seen through the lens of Johnny’s iconic Folsom Prison concert.

The doc also features interviews with family, friends and those Cash influenced including Rosanne Cash, John Carter Cash, Bruce Springsteen, Emmylou Harris, Robert Duvall, Dwight Yoakam and Paul Muldoon among others with a score by Pearl Jam guitarist Mike McCreedy.

To remember Johnny Cash, watch The Gift below:

[Originally Published: September 12, 2020]

Source: JamBase.com