January 13, 1968: Johnny Cash plays his most legendary concert – in “Folsom Prison” jail

“At Folsom Prison”
55 years ago Johnny Cash played one of the most legendary concerts ever at Folsom Prison

Johnny Cash at a performance in 1969. With his concert at Folsom Prison in California, he set a monument for himself

© Ronald Grant / Imago Images

Johnny Cash’s star seemed to be fading when he performed for a live album at the notorious Folsom Prison. The concert and record became legends – and made Cash a world star.

It all started as usual when Johnny Cash took the stage on January 13, 1968. As always, the singer introduces himself with the words “Hello, I’m Johnny Cash” before beginning the first song. But that’s pretty much the only thing Cash’s performance that day has in common with his other concerts.

First of all, the time is unusual: the clock shows 9.40 in the morning when Cash opens the concert. And then, of course, the location: Johnny Cash plays in a prison – and not just any prison, but the Folsom State Prison in California, after which he had named one of his best-known hits years earlier. The audience consists of 2000 prison inmates, all criminals. It is a concert that has never existed in this form before. And that therefore also brings with it many challenges.

His career seemed to be over at the age of 35

At that time, Cash had long been on the decline: Although he was only 35 years old, his drug addiction was giving him a hard time, and public interest in his music had waned significantly. The country star needs an achievement to turn things around. And that’s why he comes back to an idea that he had been carrying around for a long time: a large-scale prison concert.

Crime and criminals had long fascinated Cash, all too often he had sung about them in his songs. And he had also performed a few times in smaller prisons. But a concert in the notorious Folsom Prison – that was a completely different house number.

First, because the prison near Sacramento is known for felons and harsh prison conditions, more than 90 inmates were executed there. Second, because Cash himself had a special connection to this prison. While never an inmate himself, it inspired his hit “Folsom Prison Blues,” which famously included the line “I shot a man in Reno just to watch him die,” and made him a star in his early 20s made the USA.

It was also very convenient for Cash that personnel changes had just taken place at his Columbia label: Bob Johnston was taken over by someone who was open to unconventional ideas. Unlike his predecessors, Johnston was immediately enthusiastic about the suggestion of recording a live album in prison and then releasing it and took the planning into his own hands.

Johnny Cash in prison – close to the inmates

On the morning of January 13, 1968, the time had come: Johnny Cash entered the stage made of boards nailed together, in front of the tense eyes of the inmates who were waiting, dead silent. They had been told not to cheer until the singer introduced himself with his famous words of welcome. “The mood was tense,” recalls Cash biographer Robert Hilburn, who witnessed the concert as a reporter. Guards with machine guns are ready to intervene at any time.

Cash played for a little over an hour – and it felt like he could be someone who might as well be on the other side. Of course, “Folsom Prison Blues” was the beginning, the song that picked up on the listener’s situation: “I ain’t seen the sunshine since I don’t know when / I’m stuck in Folsom prison, and time keeps draggin’ on.” But also songs like “Busted” or “I got stripes” took up prison life.

Cash seems to be enjoying the performance, joking with the inmates (“This is all being recorded for an album, so don’t say ‘shit’ or anything, ok?”), as does his girlfriend June Carter, whom he brought along for backup. And the distraction from everyday prison life seems to do the big boys just as well. At the end, Cash even performed “Greystone Chapel”, a song written by a prison inmate.



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“At Folsom Prison” made him a world star

Strictly speaking, the “Man in Black” even played two concerts that day – one in the morning, one in the afternoon. Apparently, the label wasn’t quite sure if Cash would produce enough releasable material with a try. In retrospect, however, the concern turned out to be unfounded. The concert and record were a complete success, which was not affected by the fact that Cash didn’t play his biggest hit “Ring of Fire” at all.

“At Folsom Prison” has sold more than six million copies and is considered one of the most important albums ever. For Johnny Cash, whom many had already written off, it was the beginning of the most successful period of his career.

Sources: “Mirror” / “Washington Post” / “Johnny Cash At Folsom Prison: The Making Of A Masterpiece” by Michael Streissguth

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