Cash: The Autobiography
by Johnny Cash
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Book Reviews of Cash: The Autobiography
Book Review: Fireside Chats
Summary: 4 Stars
Johnny Cash's autobiography makes the reader feel like you're in his living room while he tells you his stories. One can picture a blazing fire with Johnny (or JR--he'll tell you) in a comfy chair relating his life and career--to you. Indeed it is so intimate, that each chapter marks a place where he could start by saying, "Did I tell you about the one when...?" Of course he doesn't do that, but the fact that the chapters are sorted more by a stream of thought or a concept makes the lack of chronological order seem more like a plus. Part memoir, part autobiography, and part reflection, '...The Autobiography' is a deeply satisfying read. He shares his faith without proselytizing; he shares his highlights without bragging; and he shares his low times without much sensoring. Johnny Cash provides interesting anecdotes about Elvis, Billy Graham, Carl Perkins, and Bob Dylan--to name but just a few. He's particularly generous about his family. In fact a sizable amount of the sixteen pages of photos are of his family, but the professional ones are key, too. There's a certain amount of class in the way he does it. He doesn't gloss over any strife, but he always gives people their due. Johnny's honest, but he's not vindictive. Relating the tragedies and triumphs on the road, as well as the inroads and motivations for major recordings, make this '...Autobiography' a must read for even the most casual Cash fans (if there is such a thing.)Book Review: CASH 'nuff said!
Summary: 5 Stars
Those were hard times, but the best times then. Johnny came from hard work, dedication and a no quit attitude.*AMERICA* It's true. He is a legend. I loved the book, the come here let me show you something style and the blunt honesty he relates to the reader about not only his life but others in his life. This is not in the book but you might find it interesting. You may have to do some digging around on the internet to find it but early in his career Johnny used to come through Lafayette and Chickamauga Georgia to see a girl. During one of his bad periods while on a lot of drugs my great aunt almost shot him through her front porch screen door late one night when he wouldn't leave (this was one of the times he just went walking-like in the movie Walk the Line when he found his lakehouse). Luckily she had had the gun lying around for a long time and it didn't fire when she pulled the trigger. He got picked up by the sheriff and appologized and said he thought he was at the right house. After he sobered up and got a good talking to by the sheriff he was released. Johnny made good on his promise to help out the area and donated some money to a local high school. There are many reasons why you could like Johnny Cash but for me it's simply because he was just a man and he was not afraid to show it or tell it. Please read the book, you'll enjoy that kind of front porch storytelling.Book Review: An absolute delight to read! Johnny writes as if he's talking to you over a cup of coffee in the breakfast nook.
Summary: 5 Stars
I've recently become re-acquainted with the music of Johnny Cash. Thanks to seeing Walk the Line and buying Rick Rubin's astounding American recordings (American Recordings, Unchained, Solitary Man and The Man Comes Around), plus nearly all of Johnny's remastered CD back catalog (including the perfect The Legend box set), I've gained enormous respect for this charismatic and talented music star. I can't seem to get enough of him, in fact.
I wanted to know more about Johnny Cash. However, I nearly always approach biographies and autobiographies with a grain of salt, skeptical that they'll be (a) untruthful, or (b) unable to hold my attention.
With Cash: The Autobiography my natural skepticism was totally eliminated within the first 10 pages.
This book is wonderfully engaging. It reads exactly like a conversation with an old friend. In fact, I can hear Johnny's rich baritone voice in my head as I read it. I can picture his sincere face. And I'm enthralled.
If you want to know who Johnny Cash was, this book is a great introduction to the man. Not just because of what he wrote about; but, also, because of how it was written: conversationally, openly, honestly, and sincerely.
I'm about 3/4 of the way through the book. I love it.
I highly recommend Cash: The Autobiography.
Book Review: On the Money
Summary: 4 Stars
'Cash' is an entertaining book that chronicles the life and work of an American musical icon. Johnny created many memorable songs and made just as many friends. However, as the book details, there were some among his contemporaries who were less than generous in their appreciation of his formidable talent. Jealousy appears to be the cause and Waylon Jennings appears as the constant thorn in the side of the super star. On page 78, Johnny cites the incident that occurred just prior to his appearance at a Nashville concert in 1992. 'I was about to go on stage when Waylon handed me my hat and wished me luck. I didn't know it, but Jennings had put superglue on the inside and I couldn't get the hat off for three days. When the surgeons finally removed it, the glue had caused some sort of chemical reaction and my hairpiece had turned into a pink Afro.'
At the time, Jennings denied any involvement in the 'prank' and rejected the claims of jealousy, but during his recent interview with Conan O'Brien on 'Late Night', it seems that Johnny's assessment of Waylon's consuming envy was correct. O'Brien asked Waylon what he thought of the autobiography and he replied, 'I read 'Cash'. I want mine back.'
Fortunately, many others read it and don't feel shortchanged.
Book Review: Great storyteller, enjoy at your leisure
Summary: 5 Stars
Had Johnny Cash never picked up a guitar or sung a word, this book would still be a well told story of a bygone American life. Cash grew up picking cotton in an America he's both grateful to be past but remiss to see disappear. In total, this book reads like an afternoon spent with a genial storyteller who likes to pluck out memories at leisure, telling a lifetime's worth of stories out of sequence.
His candid confession to past wrongs and misdeeds make him a compelling narrator not just for his candor, but for the details he's willing to share. This book is better than the movie "Walk The Line," and it adds a deeper understanding to the themes Cash wrote into his songs.