The 2020s to this point have been relatively light in terms of estate-backed, posthumously issued
Johnny Cash releases. Following his death in 2003, the vast, essential
Unearthed box -- a treasure trove of outtakes from
Cash's
Rick Rubin-marshalled later years -- kicked off an era of demo albums, such as 2006's
Personal File and returns to the
Rubin archives like 2010's
American VI: Ain't No Grave. Compared to 2020's
Johnny Cash and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra -- an unnecessary embellishment of core, previously released material --
Songwriter is an unexpected gem. It comprises 11 demos recorded in 1993 at his stepdaughter
Rosey's LSI Studios in Nashville during a period out of contract. Thirty years on -- with the help of
David Ferguson, his engineer from 1987's
Johnny Cash Is Coming to Town onwards -- his son,
John Carter Cash, assembled a band rich in experience, who overdubbed unobtrusive, sensitive backing to these recordings. The guitarist
Marty Stuart, a regular
Cash collaborator in the '80s, and the late bassist
Dave Roe, a member of
the Tennessee Three from 1992 until
Cash's passing, further raised the level of integrity. As the title suggests, each of the songs featured, including the ecological, celestial hymn "Hello Out There" and "I Love You Tonite," a paean to
June Carter Cash, are
Cash originals. In fact, it's the first time since 1977's concept album
The Rambler that an album has solely featured
Cash compositions.
Songwriter comprises eight never-before-heard songs, plus two -- "Drive On" and "Like a Soldier" -- that would eventually appear in stripped-back form on 1994's
American Recordings, as well as a return to "Sing it Pretty, Sue," the closing track from 1962's
The Sound of Johnny Cash. Understandably, on first listen,
Cash's vocal seems to sit detached from the album's instrumental backing. That is, until the heart rules the head, and the nuance of that iconic, gravitas-filled, deep bass-baritone -- combined with masterful and varied examples of his songcraft -- carve
Songwriter a rightful place as a highly listenable chapter in his discography. In some ways, it can be seen as a companion release to 2014's
Out Among the Stars, a lost album of early-'80s
Billy Sherrill-produced cuts, also augmented by a
John Carter Cash-approved contemporary ensemble. However, this is a marginally stronger set, knitted together by bold, intertwining, recurring themes: strong, inspirational women ("She Sang "Sweet Baby James""); nature and ecology ("Hello Out There," "Have You Ever Been to Little Rock?"); and the effect of war on the individual ("Drive On," "Soldier Boy") alongside devotion and the durability of family ("I Love You Tonite," "Poor Valley Girl"). Wisely, the posthumously added instrumentation is firmly rooted in the oft-visited styles of
Cash's early to mid-career -- from "boom chicka boom" rockabilly to countrypolitan commerciality -- instead of retroactively trying to anticipate
Rubin's influence. Consequently,
Songwriter works well as an important document of a previously underrepresented era for
Cash, whose career was about to enter a transformational new phase. ~ James Wilkinson
![The The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus [Expanded Edition]](http://prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/0018771855422_p0_v1_s90x140.jpg "The The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus [Expanded Edition]")
