The Day Johnny Cash Went To Prison

01/13/2011
. On this day in 1968, Johnny Cash played a show, which was recorded for his forthcoming live album, at Folsom Prison, near Sacramento, California in front of 2,000 inmates. Gibson takes a look back: Johnny Cash had his share of troubles and vices in his lifetime, but he never did prison time. Despite this, nobody in music history is more associated with the clink than the Man in Black. It's interesting that Cash is much more tied to the struggles and frustrations of prison life than the legions of pop, rock and country music stars who have actually had to serve a sentence.

The legendary country singer first learned of prison life � particularly, life in Folsom State Prison � through the movies. He was a member of the U.S. Air Force Security Service in 1953, when his unit watched the film Inside the Walls of Folsom Prison. It was that movie that inspired Cash to write one of his early songs, "Folsom Prison Blues," in which he imagined what a prisoner felt like. After signing with Sun Records, "Folsom Prison Blues" became Cash's second single � a #1 country hit and a Top 40 pop hit in 1955.

Although Cash had never been in prison, he apparently captured the feeling of being incarcerated perfectly. The song became very popular with those doing time, who wrote letters to the country star thanking him for writing the tune and sometimes asking him to come perform at their prisons. By 1957, he obliged some inmates, by performing at Huntsville State Prison. The event went over so well that Cash continued this practice, playing concerts at prisons around the U.S. He had the idea for recording a live album at one such show, although the proposal was rejected by the country executives at Columbia Records. more on this story

Gibson.com is an official news provider for the Day in Rock.

Preview and Purchase Johnny Cash CDs

Johnny Cash MP3 Downloads

.

Day In Rock

Dark Angel Launching First North American Tour in Decades- Queens of the Stone Age, The Black Crowes and Neon Trees To Rock SEMA Fest- Silverstein- more

When Motley Met Dolly, How the New 'Home Sweet Home' Duet Happened- My Chemical Romance Hit New Milestones With 'The Black Parade'- more

Day In Country

Hear John Prine's Previously Unreleased 'Hey Ah Nothin'- Kameron Marlowe's 'Seventeen' Lands At Country Radio- more

Day In Pop

Bruno Mars Makes Surprise Appearance At BLACKPINK's Final L.A. Show- Original Bela Fleck & The Flecktones Reuniting For 'Jingle All the Way' US Tour- more

Reviews

Dave Koz & Friends at Sea Cruise, Part 4: The Cruise Wraps Up In Reykjavik

Dave Koz & Friends at Sea Cruise, Part 3: All Ashore! The Cruise Reaches Norway and Iceland

Caught In The Act: Cheap Trick Rocks Chicagoland On July 4th

Dave Koz & Friends at Sea Cruise, Part 2: Dave, Dave, Dave!

Sites and Sounds: Montana Folk Festival Coming to Butte (And It's Free!)