God

Today I had an exam, but on the way to that exam I had the best soundtrack possible. The God compilation that Johnny Cash released.
If the rules dictated that you could have a compilation as your favourite Johnny Cash record, this would top that list. I don’t set the rules, that’s set by the International Favourite Johnny Cash Album League, they are sticklers.
This album is really as fantastic as it gets, I used to mistakenly think my very favourite Johnny Cash track was on this album, Far Side Banks Of Jordan, it isn’t, that’s on a June Carter Cash album, no harm no foul and as is the quality of this album, its still a great great album even minus that song.
This album revisits songs from almost his entire career that deal with God, religion or some other spiritual nonsense. The subject matter is neither here nor there, the delivery is the important thing and boy does he deliver it.
Cash can talk about spiritual awakening with the same tone that he talks about fixing to shoot someone, there is fire in his belly and sincerity in his voice.
Normal run of things this album would drop around 10 points due to having that fucking idiot Bono write the liner notes, I didn’t read them though so the points stay in tact.
What of the songs then, by golly they are good, some originals, some traditional, some by June, some by others, every single one a great. From Johnny’s rendition of Swing Low, Sweet Chariot to his take on Kristofferson’s Why Me Lord. Each one delivered with more meaning, more passion, more beauty than a million Aled Jones’s.
Even amongst all of the great songs on this album, one song stands head and shoulders above everything else, the ridiculously good Were You There (When They Crucified My Lord, a traditional song that has the most gorgeous vocal of any record you will hear any time or any place. June Carter Cash on this record will not be equalled, sincerely. If I do find it on Youtube, stick with it and listen please, (I have, 31 seconds in, stunning) I would like to know your thoughts as well.
That all said, an easy 10 out of 10. An album everyone should own.



Were You There When They Crucified My Lord by Johnny Cash