Unearthed (Johnny Cash album)

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Unearthed
Box set by
ReleasedNovember 25, 2003
Recorded1993–2002
Genre
Length242:31
LabelAmerican Recordings
ProducerRick Rubin
Johnny Cash chronology
American IV: The Man Comes Around
(2002)
Unearthed
(2003)
Life
(2004)
American series chronology
American IV: The Man Comes Around
(2002)
Unearthed
(2003)
American V: A Hundred Highways
(2006)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]

Unearthed is a box set by American country singer Johnny Cash. It was released by American Recordings on November 25, 2003, two months after Cash's death. The album was compiled by Cash and Rick Rubin, who also produced the set. It was certified Gold on December 2, 2004, by the Recording Industry Association of America.[2]

Content[edit]

The first three discs feature outtakes and alternate versions of songs recorded for American Recordings, American II: Unchained, American III: Solitary Man and American IV: The Man Comes Around. The fourth disc, My Mother's Hymn Book, features gospel songs Cash first learned from his mother as a child and was later reissued as a standalone album in 2004. The final disc is a best-of distillation of the first four American albums.

Previous recordings[edit]

Many of the songs Cash recorded during the American sessions were updated versions of songs he had previously recorded.

  • "Long Black Veil" was previously recorded by Cash for his 1965 album Orange Blossom Special.
  • "Flesh and Blood" was previously recorded by Cash for the soundtrack to the 1970 film I Walk the Line.
  • "Understand Your Man" was previously recorded by Cash for his 1964 album I Walk the Line.
  • "Banks of the Ohio" was previously recorded by Cash with the Carter Family for the 1964 album Keep on the Sunny Side.
  • "The Caretaker" was previously recorded by Cash for his 1959 album Songs of Our Soil.
  • "Old Chunk of Coal" was previously recorded by Cash for his 1979 album A Believer Sings the Truth.
  • "I'm Going to Memphis" was previously recorded by Cash for his 1960 album Ride This Train.
  • "Waiting for the Train" was previously recorded by Cash for his 1963 album Blood, Sweat & Tears.
  • "No Earthly Good' was previously recorded by Cash for his 1976 album The Rambler.
  • "The Fourth Man in the Fire" was previously recorded by Cash for his 1969 album The Holy Land.
  • "Dark as a Dungeon" was previously recorded by Cash as the B-side to his 1964 single "Understand Your Man".
  • "I'm Moving On" was previously recorded by Cash in 1984 as a duet with Waylon Jennings. This version would not be released until 2014 on Out Among the Stars.
  • "As Long as the Grass Shall Grow" was previously recorded by Cash for his 1964 album Bitter Tears: Ballads of the American Indian.
  • "Devil's Right Hand" was previously recorded by Cash with the Highwaymen for the 1995 album The Road Goes on Forever.
  • "The L & N Don't Stop Here Anymore" was previously recorded by Cash for his 1979 album Silver.
  • "Father and Son" was previously recorded by Cash as "Father and Daughter" for his 1974 album The Junkie and the Juicehead Minus Me.
  • "When the Roll Is Called Up Yonder" was previously recorded by Cash for his 1975 album Johnny Cash Sings Precious Memories.
  • "If We Never Meet Again This Side of Heaven" was previously recorded by Cash for his 1962 album Hymns from the Heart.
  • "Let the Lower Lights Be Burning" was previously recorded by Cash for his 1962 album Hymns from the Heart.
  • "When He Reached Down His Hand for Me" was previously recorded by Cash for his 1962 album Hymns from the Heart.
  • "In the Sweet By-and-By" was previously recorded by Cash for his 1975 album Sings Precious Memories.
  • "Softly and Tenderly" was previously recorded by Cash for his 1975 album Sings Precious Memories.
  • "Just as I Am" was previously recorded by Cash for his 1975 album Sings Precious Memories.

Critical reception[edit]

Rock historian Graeme Thomson in his monograph, The Resurrection of Johnny Cash: Hurt, Redemption, and American Recordings has called Unearthed a monolithic achievement.[3]

Track listing[edit]

Disc 1 – Unearthed, Vol. 1: Who's Gonna Cry
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Long Black Veil"Danny Dill, Marijohn Wilkin3:15
2."Flesh and Blood"Johnny Cash2:29
3."Just the Other Side of Nowhere"Kris Kristofferson3:18
4."If I Give My Soul"Billy Joe Shaver3:01
5."Understand Your Man"Cash2:06
6."Banks of the Ohio"Maybelle Carter4:07
7."Two Timin' Woman"Hank Snow2:06
8."The Caretaker"Cash1:55
9."Old Chunk of Coal"Billy Joe Shaver1:54
10."I'm Going to Memphis"Cash, Hollie Dew, Alan Lomax2:40
11."Breaking Bread"Cash2:48
12."Waiting for a Train"Jimmie Rodgers1:46
13."Casey's Last Ride"Kristofferson3:21
14."No Earthly Good"Cash2:43
15."The Fourth Man in the Fire"Arthur "Guitar Boogie" Smith2:48
16."Dark as a Dungeon"Merle Travis3:00
17."Book Review" (bonus track) 2:07
18."Down There by the Train (Alternate Take)" (bonus track)Tom Waits5:49
Total length:51:13
  • Note: All tracks previously unreleased. A different take of "Down There by the Train" was issued on the 1994 album American Recordings. "Flesh and Blood" is a newer version of the original that was written for I Walk the Line (Soundtrack).
Disc 2 – Unearthed, Vol. 2: Trouble in Mind
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Pocahontas"Neil Young3:43
2."I'm a Drifter (Version 1)"Dolly Parton3:50
3."Trouble in Mind"Richard M. Jones3:32
4."Down the Line"Roy Orbison, Sam Phillips2:38
5."I'm Moving On"Hank Snow2:54
6."As Long as the Grass Shall Grow"Peter La Farge, Cash4:21
7."Heart of Gold"Young3:01
8."The Running Kind" (with Tom Petty)Merle Haggard3:11
9."Everybody's Trying to Be My Baby"Carl Perkins2:11
10."Brown-Eyed Handsome Man" (with Carl Perkins)Chuck Berry2:21
11."T for Texas"Rodgers3:38
12."Devil's Right Hand"Steve Earle2:33
13."I'm a Drifter (Version 2)"Parton3:45
14."Like a Soldier" (with Willie Nelson) (bonus track)Cash2:55
15."Drive On (Alternate Lyrics)" (bonus track)Cash2:23
16."Bird on a Wire (Live with Orchestra)" (bonus track)Leonard Cohen5:13
Total length:52:10
  • Note: All tracks previously unreleased. A solo version of "Like a Soldier", a version of "Drive On" featuring different lyrics, and an acoustic studio version of "Bird on a Wire" were issued on the 1994 album American Recordings.
Disc 3 – Unearthed, Vol. 3: Redemption Songs
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."A Singer of Songs"Tim O'Connell2:48
2."The L & N Don't Stop Here Anymore"Jean Ritchie3:13
3."Redemption Song" (with Joe Strummer)Bob Marley3:27
4."Father and Son" (with Fiona Apple)Cat Stevens2:49
5."Chattanooga Sugar Babe"Norman Blake3:16
6."He Stopped Loving Her Today"Bobby Braddock, Curly Putman2:37
7."Hard Times Come Again No More"Stephen Foster4:01
8."Wichita Lineman"Jimmy Webb3:03
9."Cindy" (with Nick Cave)Traditional2:53
10."Big Iron"Marty Robbins3:52
11."Salty Dog"Traditional, Rudy Toombs2:26
12."Gentle on My Mind" (with Glen Campbell)John Hartford3:24
13."You Are My Sunshine"Jimmie Davis/Charles Mitchell3:18
14."You'll Never Walk Alone"Oscar Hammerstein II, Richard Rodgers2:59
15."The Man Comes Around (Early Take)" (bonus track)Cash3:51
Total length:47:58
  • Note: All tracks previously unreleased, except "Wichita Lineman" and "Big Iron" which were previously released on the original vinyl pressing of American IV: The Man Comes Around. The final version of "The Man Comes Around" was also released on American IV: The Man Comes Around.
Disc 4 – Unearthed, Vol. 4: My Mother's Hymn Book
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Where We'll Never Grow Old"James C. Moore3:31
2."I Shall Not Be Moved"V.O. Fossett2:41
3."I Am a Pilgrim"Merle Travis2:27
4."Do Lord"Fossett2:12
5."When The Roll Is Called Up Yonder"James Milton Black1:36
6."If We Never Meet Again This Side of Heaven"Albert E. Brumley2:31
7."I'll Fly Away"Brumley1:54
8."Where the Soul of Man Never Dies"William Lee Golden, Wayne Raney2:15
9."Let the Lower Lights Be Burning"Philip Bliss3:14
10."When He Reached Down His Hand for Me"Marion Easterling, Thomas Wright, J.F.B. Wright2:14
11."In the Sweet By-and-By"Sanford Fillmore Bennett, Joseph Philbrick Webster2:25
12."I'm Bound for the Promised Land"Traditional2:15
13."In the Garden"C. Austin Miles3:18
14."Softly and Tenderly"Will L. Thompson3:17
15."Just as I Am"William Batchelder Bradbury, Charlotte Elliot2:38
Total length:38:28
  • Note: All tracks previously unreleased.
Disc 5 – Unearthed, Vol. 5: Best of Cash on American
No.TitleWriter(s)Original releaseLength
1."Delia's Gone"Silbersdorf, ToopsAmerican Recordings (1994)2:19
2."Bird on a Wire"Leonard CohenAmerican Recordings (1994)4:04
3."Thirteen"Glenn DanzigAmerican Recordings (1994)3:23
4."Rowboat"BeckAmerican II: Unchained (1996)3:45
5."The One Rose (That's Left in My Heart)"Lyon, McIntireAmerican II: Unchained (1996)2:28
6."Rusty Cage"Chris CornellAmerican II: Unchained (1996)2:50
7."Southern Accents"Tom PettyAmerican II: Unchained (1996)4:42
8."Mercy Seat"Nick Cave, Mick HarveyAmerican III: Solitary Man (2000)4:35
9."Solitary Man"Neil DiamondAmerican III: Solitary Man (2000)2:25
10."Wayfaring Stranger"TraditionalAmerican III: Solitary Man (2000)3:22
11."One"Bono, Clayton, Edge, MullenAmerican III: Solitary Man (2000)3:52
12."I Hung My Head"StingAmerican IV: The Man Comes Around (2002)3:52
13."The Man Comes Around"Johnny CashAmerican IV: The Man Comes Around (2002)4:29
14."We'll Meet Again"Hughie Charles, Ross ParkerAmerican IV: The Man Comes Around (2002)2:57
15."Hurt"Trent ReznorAmerican IV: The Man Comes Around (2002)3:38
Total length:52:14
  • Note: All tracks previously released, although "Thirteen" features an additional verse that was omitted from its original album release.

Personnel[edit]

Adapted from the album liner notes.

Charts[edit]

AlbumBillboard (United States)

Chart (2003) Peak
position
US Top Country Albums (Billboard)[4] 33

Certifications[edit]

Region Certification Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[5] Gold 500,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

My Mother's Hymn Book[edit]

My Mother's Hymn Book
Studio album by
ReleasedApril 6, 2004
RecordedOctober 12 – November 1, 1993
StudioCedar Hill Refuge Studio (Hendersonville)
GenreGospel
Length38:28
LabelAmerican Recordings
ProducerRick Rubin
Johnny Cash chronology
Life
(2004)
My Mother's Hymn Book
(2004)
The Legend
(2005)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic [6]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music

My Mother's Hymn Book is a collection of Christian spiritual songs and hymns that Cash originally learned from his mother while growing up. The album features only Cash's voice and a single acoustic guitar. This disc was released as a stand-alone disc the following year (his 89th overall album) under the same title, and peaked at #9 on the Christian music album chart. In the album's liner notes Cash mentions that this is his favorite album he ever made.

This was Cash's final album devoted to previously unreleased performances of faith-based music and hymns, following a long string of such releases dating back to 1959 and individual singles and album tracks even before that. Tracks 6, 9 and 10 were previously recorded for Hymns from the Heart (1962); tracks 5, 11, 14 and 15 were previously recorded for Sings Precious Memories (1975); and track 7 was recorded in concert for The Survivors Live (1982). Several other songs, such as track 13, had been performed by Cash on TV or live in concert, but formal studio recordings had not yet been issued until now.

Although the images used on the standalone CD depict Cash near the end of his life, most of the recordings on My Mother's Hymn Book actually date to Cash's early sessions for American in 1993–1994 (hence the fact they only feature Cash performing by himself).

Track listing[edit]

My Mother's Hymn Book
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Where We'll Never Grow Old"James C. Moore3:31
2."I Shall Not Be Moved"V.O. Fossett2:41
3."I Am a Pilgrim"Merle Travis2:27
4."Do Lord"Fossett2:12
5."When The Roll Is Called Up Yonder"James Milton Black1:36
6."If We Never Meet Again This Side of Heaven"Albert E. Brumley2:31
7."I'll Fly Away"Brumley1:54
8."Where the Soul of Man Never Dies"William Lee Golden, Wayne Raney2:15
9."Let the Lower Lights Be Burning"Philip Bliss3:14
10."When He Reached Down His Hand for Me"Marion Easterling, Thomas Wright, J.F.B. Wright2:14
11."In the Sweet By-and-By"Sanford Fillmore Bennett, Joseph Philbrick Webster2:25
12."I'm Bound for the Promised Land"Traditional2:15
13."In the Garden"C. Austin Miles3:18
14."Softly and Tenderly"Will L. Thompson3:17
15."Just as I Am"William Batchelder Bradbury, Charlotte Elliot2:38
Total length:38:28

Personnel[edit]

Adapted from the album liner notes.

  • Karen Adams – Group Member
  • Craig Allen – Design
  • Martyn Atkins – Photography
  • John Carter Cash – Liner Notes, Associate Producer
  • Rosanne Cash – Liner Notes
  • Lindsay Chase – Production Coordination
  • Steven Kadison – Assistant
  • Vlado Meller – Mastering
  • Rick Rubin – Producer

References[edit]

  1. ^ Jurek, Thom. Unearthed at AllMusic
  2. ^ "Gold & Platinum – RIAA". riaa.com.
  3. ^ Thomson, G. (2011). The Resurrection of Johnny Cash: Hurt, Redemption, and American Recording Jawbone Press, p. 232.
  4. ^ "Johnny Cash Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved July 13, 2020.
  5. ^ "American album certifications – Johnny Cash – Unearthed". Recording Industry Association of America.
  6. ^ Collar, matt. Unearthed at AllMusic

External links[edit]