October 1, 2018
“Hello, I’m Johnny Cash”: Folsom Prison, Much More than a Performance.
“Hello, I’m Johnny Cash.” These famous words once echoed within the walls of a prison that earned its fame through a song. The performance, though, was much more that just a set of lyrics or a nice tune. On January 13, 1968 at the beginning of what would become a tumultuous year, Johnny Cash, June Carter, Carl Perkins and the Tennessee Three performed two shows at Folsom Prison in California. These performances would forever change the landscape of music, reaching Time Magazine’s 100 top albums of all-time in 2006, while also raising awareness for prison reform by putting it into the spotlight.1
Before this performance, Johnny Cash and his health were in a downward spiral. His song “Folsom Prison Blues” was inspired by the film “Inside the Walls of Folsom Prison” in which he saw himself as a prisoner at Folsom. This song caused many of the inmates and people around the United States to believe that he was once incarcerated at Folsom Prison. This was not true, although Mr. Cash had spent a few nights in other jails for drunk and disorderly conduct and possession of drugs. This led many to believe that because of this, Cash’s music and performances resonated with deeply with prisoners.2
The Civil Rights Movement brought attention to prison reform, and Cash’s home state of Arkansas was one of the worst offenders of these kinds of abuses. Their ineffective treatment and rehabilitation of their inmates, along with poor living conditions made him empathize with the men. He decided to use his social and celebrity status he decided to spark a change.His dependence on drugs at the time made Columbia Records unwilling to record a live performance at the prison. But in 1967 both Cash and Columbia Records underwent major changes, and when Bob Johnston was put in charge of Cash’s musical performances, Folsom Prison was a go.3
The performance was set for January 13, 1968, so the band and Cash’s father arrived three days earlier to rehearse the carefully crafted lineup of songs. While at El Rancho Motel in Sacramento, California, the Governor of California Ronald Reagan, who was there for an after-dinner speech, visited the band and offered his words of encouragement.4 The night before the performance, Cash stayed up late rehearsing a song written by inmate Glenn Shirley called “Greystone Chapel,” which was about finding God in the chapel at Folsom Prison. Moved by the lyrics “Inside the walls of prison my body may be/But the Lord has set my soul free.” Mr. Cash vowed to play the song the next day. 5
On the morning of January 13, Mr. Cash met with Los Angeles Times writer Robert Hilburn (who later wrote the biography Johnny Cash: The Life) and photographer Jim Marshall at Folsom Prison where things were tense. A guard had recently been taken hostage, and so the inmates were told not to stand during the show. Armed guards carefully watching the crowd from above, but apart from all the chaos stood a calm man dressed in all black. When he took the stage for his first performance out of two that day, the inmates were told not to cheer until he had introduced himself, and they listened. His first song on the list, Folsom Prison Blues, sent the crowd into an uproar and the entire event was a huge success.6
Four months after the performance, the album At Folsom Prison was released. More importantly was the success that came with it, which allowed Cash to speak more about the reform needed in prisons. “He thought the prison system was broken, it wasn’t fixing anybody,” said Mark Stielper, a friend of Cash’s and the family’s designated historian. “The population was mixed, kids and killers. This was his thing; he was really bothered by that.”7 With no other celebrity making society aware of those issues at the time Mr. Cash brought major spotlight, and as a result he was invited by Senator William E. Brock III (R-Tenn.) in July 1972 to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee’s subcommittee on national penitentiaries. During the same visit Cash met with President Richard M. Nixon in the Oval Office to further discuss the issue. After these important meetings he continued to perform at other prisons, Mr. Cash also spoke about the issue at concerts and on his TV program, and would also visit inmates at his home in Tennessee to play cards and socialize with them. 8
On top of all the musical success was a nation who did not support the cause of prison form enough, and so no traction was really gained from Cash’s advocacy. The performance though, left a lasting effect on country music and solidified Johnny Cash as someone who stood up for those who are often misunderstood and needed help, mirroring his own personal life in a special way.
“So my intuitive take on the time around Folsom is paradoxical, given what the subject matter was: It was the moment that he came into the light. It’s a paradox, but it’s true. When I think about my dad’s life and I think about that moment, that’s when there’s a kind of force, when he embodied who he really was. And that’s light, no matter how much darkness is in it.”
-Rosanne Cash, daughter of Johnny Cash.9
Video interviews made by Northern Light. | Courtesy of YouTube
- Wikipedia, 2018, s.v. “At Folsom Prison,” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/At_Folsom_Prison. ↵
- Allison Stewart, “At Folsom prison, Johnny Cash found his cause,” The Washington Post, May 29, 2018, Accessed September 7, 2018, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/at-folsom-prison-johnny-cash-found-his-cause/2018/05/28/740124ca-4f03-11e8-84a0-458a1aa9ac0a_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.1974f5815d36. ↵
- Colin Woodward, “The Arkansas prison scandal,” March 22, 2018, https://www.arktimes.com/arkansas/the-arkansas-prison-scandal/Content?oid=15957051. ↵
- The Encyclopedia of World Biography, 2nd ed., vol. 3, 2004, s.v. “Johnny Cash,” 353-355. ↵
- Allison Stewart, “At Folsom prison, Johnny Cash found his cause,” The Washington Post, May 29, 2018, Accessed September 7, 2018. ↵
- Robert Hilburn, Johnny Cash: The Life (New York: Little, Brown, and Company, 2013) 325-327. ↵
- Danny Robins, “Johnny Cash and his prison reform campaign,” BBC World Service, Arkansas, January 23, 2013, https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-21084323. ↵
- Allison Stewart, “At Folsom prison, Johnny Cash found his cause,” The Washington Post, May 29, 2018, Accessed September 7, 2018. ↵
- Michael Streissguth, Johnny Cash’s ‘At Folsom Prison’: Rosanne Cash Recalls Iconic Live Album, January 12, 2018, https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-country/johnny-cashs-at-folsom-prison-rosanne-cash-recalls-iconic-live-album-204100/. ↵
Tags from the story
1968
Folsom Prison
Folsom Prison Blues
Johnny Cash
prison reform
The Year 1968
Recent Comments
Stephanie Silvola
My family and I enjoys Johnny Cash’s music along with Elvis Presley, Prince, and Michael Jackson. He was one of the most famous country singers at that time and had appreciated the inmates because of what he experienced. It is sad that he had a connection with alcohol and drugs, like most celebrities in fame, and didn’t get the help he needed. I liked that the writer of this article had shared that not only was he a musician, but an advocate for prison reform. That is what I think is important in a famous person’s life, doing something right and advocating for justice.
01/10/2018
8:38 am
Greyson Addicott
Really informative, well-rounded article. I specifically enjoyed the beginning, as it captured my attention more than the events leading up to the event itself. This article goes to show that the events leading up to the event are just important as the event itself. Even with the lack of media in the 60’s, it is hard to understand the problem Cash had with people believing he was a hard prison convict for writing a single hit. Prison reform is not particularly appealing to me, primarily because it involves allocating public funds (the money out of hardworking peoples’ pockets) to raise the standard of living of prisoners, people who break the law and make society just that much worse.
02/10/2018
8:38 am
Christopher Hohman
Nice article.My grandfather loved Johnny Cash so much. It was nice to finally learn more about him. I had no idea that he was an advocate for prison reform. I always thought he was just a normal celebrity. But no he was a-lot more than that. He wanted to improve the lives of everyone in Folsom Prison. He must have seen a little of himself in those inmates. It is so cool how Cash continued to perform in other prisons and raise awareness. My grandfather’s favorite song was “A Boy named Sue”.
02/10/2018
8:38 am
Rebecca Campos
I’ve grown up listening to Johnny Cash and loving his music. I am familiar with this particular event from watching the film about Johnny Cash’s life called “Walk the Line.” They depicted the fun and rowdy show very well in the film in my opinion. I never realized that Johnny Cash was such an advocate for prison reform and that he wanted to better their conditions so badly. It was also very unique for him to stay up late the night before his big show in order to learn the songs of one of the prisoners. The author did a great job at telling this story and including details I never would have even considered.
03/10/2018
8:38 am
Gabriela Ochoa
Great Article. It really gave a good insight into who Johnny Cash was as a person. He cared for others and their rights. I have never heard of his performance at the prison but I’m glad that he was able to go and make a change for those that were in that prison and others. I;m glad he got a chance to tell the senate judiciary committee and the president at the time to held them change the way prisons treat people.
03/10/2018
8:38 am
Adrian Cook
Johnny Cash is all time music legend that will forever be known by a lot of people. Doing what he did for the inmates in Folsom Prison I’m sure helped a lot of them with what they were going through. This was a great song and resonated with not only the prisoners but also the world. Cash played a big part in society and used his platform to be the voice of millions. This was a very good article that reminded me of my grandfather who was a big time Johnny Cash fan.
03/10/2018
8:38 am
Alexandra Lopez
I am a fan of Johnny Cash’s music and I have heard about this famous performance that brought awareness of the mistreatment of prisoners. This article was well written and showed that Johnny Cash used his status in society to help those that are considered below him. I believe that if you have certain advantages that not many have or have a voice people listen to then you should use these tools to help those around you.
01/10/2018
8:38 am