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Man in Black
The popular country-and-western singer chronicles the ups and downs of his life and career, profiling the people involved and describing his hard-found Christian faith
300 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 1975
30 people are currently reading
1624 people want to read
About the author
Johnny Cash
240 books314 followersJohnny Cash, born J. R. Cash, also known as "The Man in Black", was a multiple Grammy Award-winning American country singer-songwriter. Cash is widely considered to be one of the most influential American musicians of the 20th century.
Cash was known for his deep, distinctive voice, his trademark dark clothing which earned him his nickname, the boom-chick-a-boom or "freight train" sound of his Tennessee Three backing band, and his demeanor. He rarely (if ever) wavered from introducing himself before performing, with the greeting, "Hello, I'm Johnny Cash."
Much of Cash's music, especially that of his later career, echoed themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption. His signature songs include "I Walk the Line", "Folsom Prison Blues", "Ring of Fire", "That Old Wheel" (a duet with Hank Williams Jr.), "Cocaine Blues", and "Man in Black". He also recorded several humorous songs, such as "One Piece at a Time", "The One on the Right Is on the Left", "Dirty Old Egg-Sucking Dog" a duet with June Carter, Jackson, and "A Boy Named Sue"; rock-and-roll numbers such as "Get Rhythm"; and various railroad songs, such as "Rock Island Line" and "Orange Blossom Special".
He sold over 90 million albums in his nearly fifty-year career and came to occupy a "commanding position in music history".
Cash was known for his deep, distinctive voice, his trademark dark clothing which earned him his nickname, the boom-chick-a-boom or "freight train" sound of his Tennessee Three backing band, and his demeanor. He rarely (if ever) wavered from introducing himself before performing, with the greeting, "Hello, I'm Johnny Cash."
Much of Cash's music, especially that of his later career, echoed themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption. His signature songs include "I Walk the Line", "Folsom Prison Blues", "Ring of Fire", "That Old Wheel" (a duet with Hank Williams Jr.), "Cocaine Blues", and "Man in Black". He also recorded several humorous songs, such as "One Piece at a Time", "The One on the Right Is on the Left", "Dirty Old Egg-Sucking Dog" a duet with June Carter, Jackson, and "A Boy Named Sue"; rock-and-roll numbers such as "Get Rhythm"; and various railroad songs, such as "Rock Island Line" and "Orange Blossom Special".
He sold over 90 million albums in his nearly fifty-year career and came to occupy a "commanding position in music history".
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 116 reviews
May 18, 2015
I saw the movie Walk the Line many times and now I see how fictionalized the film was. The true story is an amazing testimony of redemption. God put specific people in Johnny's life to help him overcome drugs and when he did, he lived his life for others and for God. Great autobiography!
January 10, 2011
I read "Cash," which is a later memoir than "Men in Black," and appreciated Johnny Cash's no-holds-barred approach to telling his own story. How grateful I am to see that the earlier book is in much the same vein.
Cash tells the story of his addiction to amphetamines and barbiturates, his early career, and his faith in a plain-spoken, straightforward manner that readers can appreciate. He makes no secret of the challenges he faced as fame and fortune changed his life, and of how he stumbled along the path of recovery.
There is much to be inspired by in Cash's writing, as he overcomes challenges that might fell a lesser person.
Highly recommended for fans of the Man in Black.
Cash tells the story of his addiction to amphetamines and barbiturates, his early career, and his faith in a plain-spoken, straightforward manner that readers can appreciate. He makes no secret of the challenges he faced as fame and fortune changed his life, and of how he stumbled along the path of recovery.
There is much to be inspired by in Cash's writing, as he overcomes challenges that might fell a lesser person.
Highly recommended for fans of the Man in Black.
May 14, 2020
Great to read an autobiography with such focus. It turns out our boi JR is actually a very good writer, and he does a great job of refining and crafting the most important moments of his life into a neat and textured narrative. The book deals entirely with his addiction to amphetamines and how his faith in God helped him overcome it, but he also ties it all back quite beautifully to the tragic death of his older brother when he was a child. Within this theres all sorts of questions raised that give me some big thinks regarding specifically American Christianity and its relationship to blind patriotism. I also find myself asking how I should feel about Mr Cash winding up thinking he's been chosen by God to sing country songs about Israel?? What's the relationship between religious devotion and unprecedented financial wealth?? These questions dont dominate my mind too much while reading tho. For the most part I enjoyed how Cash wrote like a man aware of how much he'd grown and how much growing he had left to do. There's a lot of humility and honesty in these pages, and sometimes the stark reality of addiction is depicted so effectively that you gotta put the book down. But on the other side to this, the book pays amazing and refreshing tribute to just how darn kind people can be and how much we can all help each other to become better people.
November 19, 2013
I've read many reviews that don't like this book because Johnny Cash was religious and was raised as such. It amazes me. Obviously these people know enough about him to know he was a spiritual person. Most of these bandwagon fans came around 2003 when he died and the famous "Hurt" video came out. A video that I might remind you was loaded with religious imagery, reflecting the artists personal beliefs YET we still get some zombies giving this a low rating because of his faith.
Basically, that's the problem with atheists. Most are no better than the "hell-fire and brimstone" preachers who want to send everyone to Hell (more people I disagree with). Blindly criticizing other mortals for their method in bettering themselves.
I guess it's hard for me to touch on the book because I'm literally too flummoxed by the bad reviews because the man talked about his faith. It's really like going to a pool and complaining about getting wet...if you knew about the subject beforehand, which I'm willing to bet these hipster didn't when they stumbled across the book at Half Priced Books or bought it off Ebay because it's "vintage" and will look good sitting next to their old school Nikon camera.
Basically, that's the problem with atheists. Most are no better than the "hell-fire and brimstone" preachers who want to send everyone to Hell (more people I disagree with). Blindly criticizing other mortals for their method in bettering themselves.
I guess it's hard for me to touch on the book because I'm literally too flummoxed by the bad reviews because the man talked about his faith. It's really like going to a pool and complaining about getting wet...if you knew about the subject beforehand, which I'm willing to bet these hipster didn't when they stumbled across the book at Half Priced Books or bought it off Ebay because it's "vintage" and will look good sitting next to their old school Nikon camera.
July 13, 2025
Cash första självbiografi ”Man in black” från 1975 och alltså inte den mer kända ”Cash: The Autobiography” från 1997. I denna skildrar Johnny sin uppväxt, familj, framgång, drogproblem och hur Gud varit den ständige vägvisaren och räddaren i hans liv. Det sistnämnda vakar som en ande över hela boken och sådant kan ibland störa en icketroende men inte denna gång. Cash visste hur man berättade en historia.
August 2, 2024
hallelujah!
December 10, 2020
I find it strange how I like this man's music so much. I'm not a country music fan, but I own on CD or vinyl just about every song Cash recorded. I grew up listening to his most popular songs, not by choice, but because my grandmother always had the radio tuned to a country station in the background. So, Cash and his contemporaries were an unconscious, integral part of my childhood that I wouldn't recognize or give credence to until I was closing in on middle-age. In the early '90s, Cash started putting out the American Recordings. My buddy, Woods, reintroduced me to Cash with a gift of one of these CDs. I was hooked. Then I started buying up all the older stuff, and I fell in love. That's about the time I read this book. Cash can tell a story, and he does a fantastic job telling of his remarkable life in this book. This autobiography came out in '76, so there were quite a few years he'd lived since. I was really hankering for more, and I got it in '97 when he published his up to date Cash. That one is a masterpiece of autobiography, thus the reason I give this one 4 stars, instead of 5. The newer bio covers a lot more, but if you're a fan, you should read both.
January 6, 2025
+ Great character story about a religious man who lives without his faith at his height of popularity. Then rediscoveres the depth of faith later in life.
- I wish there was more insight into his writing inspirations but a deeper appreciation is found in his form of gospel.
- I wish there was more insight into his writing inspirations but a deeper appreciation is found in his form of gospel.
January 23, 2019
I obtained “Man in Black” after seeing the movie “I Walk the Line.” The movie didn’t show me enough of his life, and I was dissatisfied with the movie and wanted to learn more. Still unsatisfied, I looked for more books and wound up reading his second autobiography “Cash: The Autobiography;” his first wife Vivian’s book “I Walked the Line: My Life with Johnny Cash;” Marshall Grant’s book “I Was There When It Happened,” and Cash’s son John Carter Cash’s account of Cash’s life when married to June Carter “Anchored in Love.” Now I can learn much more about his life. It is not every day that someone heavily addicted to drugs and alcohol and immersed into something as worldly as Rock and Roll would suddenly have a conversion experience, quit drugs practically on his own and spend the next thirty-five years of his life bearing witness to Jesus Christ.
I saw some inconsistences about Cash posted on The Internet, so here are my attempts to sort fact from fiction. Johnny Cash joined the Air Force in 1950; He met Vivian Liberto in 1951 shortly before being sent to Germany. He was discharged in 1954 and married Vivian one month later. A year later, he started his rise to fame. Vivian and Johnny were happy together; both enthused with his success until Johnny started taking amphetamines to boost his energy for his performances and barbiturates to calm down after the performances. This is a murderous recipe, and no one benefits from heavy intake of these drugs. His mood changed drastically; and the demands of his singing engagements kept him away from home, eventually, most of the time. He began womanizing, drinking heavily, showing burst of violent behavior, having problems with the law, many things he later became ashamed of. His marriage fell apart because he was not there for his wife and daughters. Finally, in 1966, his wife filed for divorce, hoping this might shock him into cleaning up his act. When she later asked him if there is any chance for reconciliation, he said “No, it’s too late.” Finally, in late August 1966, the divorce became final because Cash did not want to contest it.
Eleven months after his divorce, the personal crisis leading to his conversion came after Cash spent the night in jail for possession of drugs. The sheriff released Cash the next morning, returning his money and his illegal drugs, telling him “I’m going to give you your money and your dope because you know better than most people that God gave you a free will to do with yourself whatever you want to do. You can throw away the pills and live or kill yourself with the pills, which you know is a sin.” Cash decided to throw away the pills. This was his moment of conversion.
Withdrawing from drugs cold turkey like this is almost impossible to do. Cash phoned June Carter to help him and he went to his home in Henderson TN. June arrived the next day with some friends and family to help him. Cash endured a month of living hell as he struggled with withdrawal, but with the help of June Carter, her parents and friends, he made it. He was drug free on November 11, 1967. Almost four months later, on March 1, 1968, he and June Carter married. His life was basically exemplary for the remaining thirty-five years, but he did have a few setbacks with addiction. But he steadfastly bore strong witness to Jesus Christ in his public appearances and in the special things he did. He narrated The New Testament for a producer of bibles on tape, he wrote a story about St. Paul’s conversion “Man in White,” produced a movie about salvation through Jesus Christ “The Gospel Road,” and frequently expressed in public his faith in Jesus Christ and his conversion story. He spent the remaining thirty-five years of his life trying to be faithful to Christ compared to approximately nine years when he was out of control due to drugs.
His conversion experience, as told on The Internet, has him deciding to commit suicide by crawling deep into the crevices of Nickajack Cave in Tennessee and just lying down in the darkness to wait for death. Cash does not mention this experience in “Man in Black” but he does mention it in his later “Cash, the Autobiography.” Trying to piece the two accounts together, I think it probably occurred right after he threw away the pills the sheriff returned to him in October 1967. He claimed, while in the cave, he soon realized that God is in charge of when he will die, not him; and he changed his mind about suicide. He then tried to try to find his way out of the cave by crawling through the darkness. He noticed a breeze of fresh air, and following the air, emerged out of the cave and was surprised to see his mother and June Carter waiting for him at the entrance to the cave. His mother had a premonition and had flown from California to find her son and help him. His mother and June took him directly to his home in Henderson where Cash experienced his withdrawal from drugs. The two accounts merge at that point, but Cash does not mention the sheriff that returned his drugs to him in “Cash: the Autobiography.” Cash composed a song about his conversion entitled “Nickajack Cave.”
As I write this, Johnny Cash has already left this life to meet the Lord; his wife, June, had left this life four months previously. A few years later his first wife, Vivian leaves; Vivian’s parents, June’s parents, Johnny’s parents, all have already left this life to meet the same Lord taking with them their hopes and expectations, their fidelity to the Lord, their wounds inflicted upon them by some of Cash’s actions and, I’m sure, some things they are not proud of. I don’t have any idea how their conflicting expectations sorts out before God. I’m sure when each of these persons stood before the Judgment Seat; Jesus was standing there along with each one of them, showing the wounds he bore from the cross he carried for all of us. I agree with Johnny Cash that Jesus Christ is our only arbiter before the Father. In the end, I think all of us will be glad to have had Jesus plead our case before the father because, I think, none of us have been fully compliant with the Father’s will while we were in this life.
To Johnny Cash’s credit, he did, for later half of his life, bear better witness to Christ than many of us would be bold enough to do.
I saw some inconsistences about Cash posted on The Internet, so here are my attempts to sort fact from fiction. Johnny Cash joined the Air Force in 1950; He met Vivian Liberto in 1951 shortly before being sent to Germany. He was discharged in 1954 and married Vivian one month later. A year later, he started his rise to fame. Vivian and Johnny were happy together; both enthused with his success until Johnny started taking amphetamines to boost his energy for his performances and barbiturates to calm down after the performances. This is a murderous recipe, and no one benefits from heavy intake of these drugs. His mood changed drastically; and the demands of his singing engagements kept him away from home, eventually, most of the time. He began womanizing, drinking heavily, showing burst of violent behavior, having problems with the law, many things he later became ashamed of. His marriage fell apart because he was not there for his wife and daughters. Finally, in 1966, his wife filed for divorce, hoping this might shock him into cleaning up his act. When she later asked him if there is any chance for reconciliation, he said “No, it’s too late.” Finally, in late August 1966, the divorce became final because Cash did not want to contest it.
Eleven months after his divorce, the personal crisis leading to his conversion came after Cash spent the night in jail for possession of drugs. The sheriff released Cash the next morning, returning his money and his illegal drugs, telling him “I’m going to give you your money and your dope because you know better than most people that God gave you a free will to do with yourself whatever you want to do. You can throw away the pills and live or kill yourself with the pills, which you know is a sin.” Cash decided to throw away the pills. This was his moment of conversion.
Withdrawing from drugs cold turkey like this is almost impossible to do. Cash phoned June Carter to help him and he went to his home in Henderson TN. June arrived the next day with some friends and family to help him. Cash endured a month of living hell as he struggled with withdrawal, but with the help of June Carter, her parents and friends, he made it. He was drug free on November 11, 1967. Almost four months later, on March 1, 1968, he and June Carter married. His life was basically exemplary for the remaining thirty-five years, but he did have a few setbacks with addiction. But he steadfastly bore strong witness to Jesus Christ in his public appearances and in the special things he did. He narrated The New Testament for a producer of bibles on tape, he wrote a story about St. Paul’s conversion “Man in White,” produced a movie about salvation through Jesus Christ “The Gospel Road,” and frequently expressed in public his faith in Jesus Christ and his conversion story. He spent the remaining thirty-five years of his life trying to be faithful to Christ compared to approximately nine years when he was out of control due to drugs.
His conversion experience, as told on The Internet, has him deciding to commit suicide by crawling deep into the crevices of Nickajack Cave in Tennessee and just lying down in the darkness to wait for death. Cash does not mention this experience in “Man in Black” but he does mention it in his later “Cash, the Autobiography.” Trying to piece the two accounts together, I think it probably occurred right after he threw away the pills the sheriff returned to him in October 1967. He claimed, while in the cave, he soon realized that God is in charge of when he will die, not him; and he changed his mind about suicide. He then tried to try to find his way out of the cave by crawling through the darkness. He noticed a breeze of fresh air, and following the air, emerged out of the cave and was surprised to see his mother and June Carter waiting for him at the entrance to the cave. His mother had a premonition and had flown from California to find her son and help him. His mother and June took him directly to his home in Henderson where Cash experienced his withdrawal from drugs. The two accounts merge at that point, but Cash does not mention the sheriff that returned his drugs to him in “Cash: the Autobiography.” Cash composed a song about his conversion entitled “Nickajack Cave.”
As I write this, Johnny Cash has already left this life to meet the Lord; his wife, June, had left this life four months previously. A few years later his first wife, Vivian leaves; Vivian’s parents, June’s parents, Johnny’s parents, all have already left this life to meet the same Lord taking with them their hopes and expectations, their fidelity to the Lord, their wounds inflicted upon them by some of Cash’s actions and, I’m sure, some things they are not proud of. I don’t have any idea how their conflicting expectations sorts out before God. I’m sure when each of these persons stood before the Judgment Seat; Jesus was standing there along with each one of them, showing the wounds he bore from the cross he carried for all of us. I agree with Johnny Cash that Jesus Christ is our only arbiter before the Father. In the end, I think all of us will be glad to have had Jesus plead our case before the father because, I think, none of us have been fully compliant with the Father’s will while we were in this life.
To Johnny Cash’s credit, he did, for later half of his life, bear better witness to Christ than many of us would be bold enough to do.
July 12, 2024
I have found my appreciation of Johnny Cash and his music increase after reading his first of two memoirs. Although I am not a Christian, I deeply respect JC’s devotion to his religion and the way in which he applied his beliefs to his life — his defense of prisoners, people in poverty, Native Americans, and other vulnerable and oppressed people; his humility despite his fame; and his dedication to and respect for June were very moving to me. And although I know that after the publishing of this memoir he relapsed several times, he never denied any of his wrongdoings or shortcomings, and was very honest in discussing his addictions. More moving than anything else, though, was the obvious love he held for his brother Jack who was killed in an accident at a young age — it is obvious how this accident affected and shaped the rest of Johnny’s life and musical career. I have more respect for Johnny Cash and his music after this memoir.
January 26, 2020
I’ve always liked Johnny Cash, but after reading this book I love him. What an amazing talent. But more than this, a man who was humble and understood two things really well; that he was a sinner in need of a Savior and that Jesus Christ is that Savior. He used his fame to point others to Jesus. I’ll be happy to shake his hand when I get to glory.
May 7, 2025
Me gustó mucho cómo narra la iluminación de Saulo de Tarso y no me gustó absolutamente nada más
September 1, 2025
Nunca esperaba leer algo así así que ok ha sido mucho más por el Lore y el contexto que por el propio contenido en sí porque la verdad es que yo no soy tan fan de San Pablo 😂
July 13, 2024
Maybe 3.5 but rounding up bc 3 seems low…End had me crying
April 9, 2024
I've had a soft spot in my heart for Johnny ever since I knew he existed- I can't explain it but I ADORE him. It felt like I spent an entire weekend engrossed in the stories of his childhood & addiction. Each day I looked forward to opening the book & reading what he had to tell me! Quite preachy @ the start and end, and quite an interesting life! I want more! (went to his museum on sunday & found out there is, in fact, more - his book Cash, so duh that's next on my list)
July 23, 2024
Cash tries too hard to align his narrative to the conventional Christian lost-and-now-found trope. The result is that he too often writes what he is supposed to write rather than what he wants to write. It's a centuries-old trope, as old as the apostle Paul and his devotee Augustine. But it is also tired, tedious, and staged. I don't feel like I know the real Cash in this book.
I would have liked to see more of his contradictions. Toward the end, Cash eulogizes his father by saying that he always saw matters in black and white, never shades of gray. In this book, Cash tends to do the same.
I would have liked to see more of his contradictions. Toward the end, Cash eulogizes his father by saying that he always saw matters in black and white, never shades of gray. In this book, Cash tends to do the same.
December 21, 2009
Wow, does this suck ass! I guess it is my fault because I didn't look closely enough at the cover to see that this book was published by Zondervan Books, the Christian publishing company. Cash (assuming that he actually wrote this, and not some Christian zombie ghostwriter) can't write two sentences without saying How Great God Art, and how all his music was Inspired By The Lord. (Right, because Jesus always said that you should shoot a man in Reno just to watch him die, and that after you take a shot of cocaine and shoot your woman down, you should go to bed and stick that fuckin' .44 beneath your head. Amen!)
April 8, 2011
I'm not sure what it is about Christians working in the entertainment industry that makes them feel the call to make bad movies about Jesus. It is probably the same thing that makes them feel the need to write lame books about their spiritual journey. I really enjoyed the beginning of this book, and I was starting to enjoy the crazy drug party. It just wasn't written well, and it actually hurt my enjoyment of Cash's music. Just...not a very good read. Especially considering I paid a lot of money for it, since it is out of print. The way he threw around the Gospel was sort of offensive, and dumb. Just very, very dumb.
November 4, 2009
I enjoyed this book. It's not really an autobiography as much as "some stuff on my mind." The Christian stuff gets pretty boring and freaky superstitious in the last two chapters. It's clear that Johnny Cash has a million stories to tell but not a lot of interest in telling them.
Johnny's voice is clear and human. He's trying to show his own faults while hiding other people's failures. He mostly succeeds leaving the reader feeling like they had a really interesting conversation with an important but humble person.
Johnny's voice is clear and human. He's trying to show his own faults while hiding other people's failures. He mostly succeeds leaving the reader feeling like they had a really interesting conversation with an important but humble person.
January 5, 2008
In his introduction, Cash refers to this memoir as a "spiritual odyssey." He tells the story of his life with emphasis on his faith. He is honest about his difficult years of drug addiction and the toll it took on his health and his personal relationships. It always comes back to how the Lord works in his life, though. There is also a focus on songs. Many song lyrics are reprinted in the book and it's wonderful to see how they came about and/or how they had an impact on his life.
December 15, 2009
It still blows my mind that my dad hung out with these old cowboys - Cash, Waylon etc. He's one of the last of the gang left - barely.
I tell you what though - if I ever had to throw down, I'd take these dudes in my corner over any of those stupid gang-bangers today. These guys were/are tougher than nails.
I tell you what though - if I ever had to throw down, I'd take these dudes in my corner over any of those stupid gang-bangers today. These guys were/are tougher than nails.
December 5, 2020
Zondervan sucker punch!
December 30, 2024
This makes a good companion piece to the book "Cash the biography". Some stories and people mentioned here in Man in Black do not make a reappearance in Cash, so I think it's important to read the two in comparison.
If I had any disappointments in Cash the biography about the lack of testimony from Johnny about the years when he was struggling with addiction, I feel like the audience got a front row seat in the Man in Black. That's why I say the two of these books together make a very comprehensive testimony of Cash's life.
Man in Black is maybe a little more confusing in it's storytelling. Johnny Cash goes from the then present day with him and June on stage singing Jackson back to his childhood and straight on into his stardom.
Now this one goes into more detail about the demonic battle he was having with drugs and the frightening experiences he would have under the influence. Hearing voices of demons and of God, and I'm sure that they were all real. It's not the first time I have heard people, whether it be alcoholism or drug use or whatever, talk about the demonic influence of it. I believe it.
I felt like I was there, watching him go through this struggle.
In one way that Man in Black is a little bit disappointing is he skips any introduction of when June came on the show and into his life. In fact, there is very little scenes of them together. Being that Cash commissioned this book in 1975, it very well could be he was reluctant to talk about how he and June fell in together in a decade where there was a lot of scrutiny about their love affair.
There were some interesting, somber stories though in the interactions of June and Johnny he shares throughout Man in Black that he did not repeat in the new biography.
Such as how mean he could be to her in his drug-induced mania. He also spoke more about the powerful Faith June had in claiming healing over him during his addiction battle, and all the lengths she went to to stop narcotics from getting to him on the road.
We learn here in Men in Black it was a good friend of Cash's, Gordon Terry, that first gave him amphetamines on tour. And according to John Carter Cash, everybody on the tour in the 50s took pills for energy. Makes you wonder if Gordon Terry ever knew what path that set his friend on, and I wonder if he ever felt guilty? Although I don't really know if he could be held responsible. Hardly anybody, least of all the musicians, had any idea what poison they were taking.
Many of the scenes recreated in Walk the Line, especially the Carter family helping Johnny through detox in the late '60s and chasing off people trying to bring Johnny drugs, they come from this book. So contrary to popular belief, Walk the Line does have a lot of Truth in it. If we believe Johnny, and we have to because it is HIS life! He experienced it.
The Jesus film he and June dreamed up together features very prominently in this book, I was surprised to learn that it brought hundreds of people to be saved. And I don't fault them for making the film as entertainers. Working on that film, with their own money and using their own personal talents, was obviously very important to them personally and spiritually as Christians. I think that should be respected. Especially since neither he nor June cared if it offended the secular society, and may they be blessed for eternity for that! We need more courageous Christians like them today!
Even in this biography, there is no other storyteller quite like Johnny Cash. I mean, the drunk lumberjack that spent the night in a prison cell with Johnny and threatened to break Johnny's neck until he started singing? That is pure Hollywood gold and it incensed me the more I read this book that so much didn't make it into the movie!
Don't get me wrong, I loved Walk the Line and I still do.. but this book, it proves again that Walk the Line did a bare Bones skeleton version of The incredible life Johnny had.
Once again, the Christian faith of Johnny Cash is front Row and center, as it should be, and it adds a charming beautiful touch to it. Even with all of the pain Cash caused the people around him, the damage unwillingly and willingly he did, you can't help but love the man.
If I had any disappointments in Cash the biography about the lack of testimony from Johnny about the years when he was struggling with addiction, I feel like the audience got a front row seat in the Man in Black. That's why I say the two of these books together make a very comprehensive testimony of Cash's life.
Man in Black is maybe a little more confusing in it's storytelling. Johnny Cash goes from the then present day with him and June on stage singing Jackson back to his childhood and straight on into his stardom.
Now this one goes into more detail about the demonic battle he was having with drugs and the frightening experiences he would have under the influence. Hearing voices of demons and of God, and I'm sure that they were all real. It's not the first time I have heard people, whether it be alcoholism or drug use or whatever, talk about the demonic influence of it. I believe it.
I felt like I was there, watching him go through this struggle.
In one way that Man in Black is a little bit disappointing is he skips any introduction of when June came on the show and into his life. In fact, there is very little scenes of them together. Being that Cash commissioned this book in 1975, it very well could be he was reluctant to talk about how he and June fell in together in a decade where there was a lot of scrutiny about their love affair.
There were some interesting, somber stories though in the interactions of June and Johnny he shares throughout Man in Black that he did not repeat in the new biography.
Such as how mean he could be to her in his drug-induced mania. He also spoke more about the powerful Faith June had in claiming healing over him during his addiction battle, and all the lengths she went to to stop narcotics from getting to him on the road.
We learn here in Men in Black it was a good friend of Cash's, Gordon Terry, that first gave him amphetamines on tour. And according to John Carter Cash, everybody on the tour in the 50s took pills for energy. Makes you wonder if Gordon Terry ever knew what path that set his friend on, and I wonder if he ever felt guilty? Although I don't really know if he could be held responsible. Hardly anybody, least of all the musicians, had any idea what poison they were taking.
Many of the scenes recreated in Walk the Line, especially the Carter family helping Johnny through detox in the late '60s and chasing off people trying to bring Johnny drugs, they come from this book. So contrary to popular belief, Walk the Line does have a lot of Truth in it. If we believe Johnny, and we have to because it is HIS life! He experienced it.
The Jesus film he and June dreamed up together features very prominently in this book, I was surprised to learn that it brought hundreds of people to be saved. And I don't fault them for making the film as entertainers. Working on that film, with their own money and using their own personal talents, was obviously very important to them personally and spiritually as Christians. I think that should be respected. Especially since neither he nor June cared if it offended the secular society, and may they be blessed for eternity for that! We need more courageous Christians like them today!
Even in this biography, there is no other storyteller quite like Johnny Cash. I mean, the drunk lumberjack that spent the night in a prison cell with Johnny and threatened to break Johnny's neck until he started singing? That is pure Hollywood gold and it incensed me the more I read this book that so much didn't make it into the movie!
Don't get me wrong, I loved Walk the Line and I still do.. but this book, it proves again that Walk the Line did a bare Bones skeleton version of The incredible life Johnny had.
Once again, the Christian faith of Johnny Cash is front Row and center, as it should be, and it adds a charming beautiful touch to it. Even with all of the pain Cash caused the people around him, the damage unwillingly and willingly he did, you can't help but love the man.
March 19, 2018
Las memorias de “Juanito efectivo” me han dejado un poco frío, más que “sexo, drogas y rock and roll” aquí vamos a encontrar “Jesús, anfetas y country-rock”. El tono beato que sobrevuela por todo el libro acaba siendo muy cansino. El primer tercio del libro en el que cuenta la muerte de su hermano Jack y su mili en Alemania es harto tedioso, afortunadamente otras partes ulteriores resultan algo más interesantes. Me refiero evidentemente a su tremenda adicción a las anfetaminas y barbitúricos que le llevó al borde del colapso. Finalmente pudo escapar de ese infierno gracias a sus amigos y en especial a June Carter (de la Carter family) con la que llevaba años compartiendo escenario y con la que acabó contrayendo matrimonio. Después comenzará su peregrinaje por un par de cárceles: Folsom y San Quintín cuyas actuaciones fueron un éxito comercial sin precedentes. Y poco más… el hecho de que el libro esté escrito en los setenta hace que las memorias queden un poco incompletas, cosa que arregló editando en 1997 “Cash: la autobiografía” que abordaré sin dudar cuanto caiga en mis manos.
February 15, 2023
This is a personal memoir written by the man himself so it doesn’t have a lot of room for nuance or outside perspective. He was clearly a man haunted by his mistakes and the many problems he brought into his own life through drug use and relationship strife.
I think he is very much aware of the kind of person he is and tries to hide behind it with multiple paragraphs about his religion and what it means to him. The book is very heavily involved with religious dogma and its place in his life as he continued to have many issues despite trying to be a good man.
He married a religiously devout woman and rumors flew about him cheating on her in order to gain a new form of status with a more publicly white woman. Yet the book doesn’t truly talk about that it talks more about music and God’s place in his life.
It’s not a very gripping and it reads more like a rambling diary, in the introduction he describes that he wrote it entirely in a notebook over the course of six years.
I think he is very much aware of the kind of person he is and tries to hide behind it with multiple paragraphs about his religion and what it means to him. The book is very heavily involved with religious dogma and its place in his life as he continued to have many issues despite trying to be a good man.
He married a religiously devout woman and rumors flew about him cheating on her in order to gain a new form of status with a more publicly white woman. Yet the book doesn’t truly talk about that it talks more about music and God’s place in his life.
It’s not a very gripping and it reads more like a rambling diary, in the introduction he describes that he wrote it entirely in a notebook over the course of six years.
February 24, 2023
This autobiography is a book about a poor boy who became a superstar in country music and gospel songs. A man who has problems with drugs finds a way to become sober after that he falls against his "demons" and uses drugs again but in the finale succeeds to beat the "demons". It is a book about not quitting, about music, about God, and about people. Some events seem to be exaggerated ( an example is when a friend of him who's alcoholic enters the van and after a short conversation about God he throws the bottle away and he goes to sleep. After that he will not touch the alcohol again.)
But I'm not here to judge. If you want to know more about Johnny Cash but not only the good part this book is a good one.
I think he wrote this book to reveal the heavy things as a singer as a man who lives in a car more time than in his own house. What sacrifices you have to do to entertain the world.
But I'm not here to judge. If you want to know more about Johnny Cash but not only the good part this book is a good one.
I think he wrote this book to reveal the heavy things as a singer as a man who lives in a car more time than in his own house. What sacrifices you have to do to entertain the world.
May 21, 2020
Just finished reading the book “MAN IN BLACK: HIS OWN STORY IN HIS OWN WORDS” by JOHNNY CASH. It is #29 in my AROUND THE YEAR IN 52 BOOKS CLUB (two books related to each other as a pair of binary opposites book #2).The popular country-and-western singer chronicles the ups and downs of his life and career, profiling the people involved and describing his hard-found Christian faith. Starting with his childhood years and on into the country and western music circuit, through the seven long years of drug addiction to the living faith he experienced, this is the real Johnny Cash. I have always loved his music. I also have seen two movies about his life. Always was and still am a huge fan. Also loved the movies “WALK THE LINE” & “RING OF FIRE”.
August 26, 2021
Un libro interesante y que es una foto perfecta del estado vital y espiritual de Cash en 1975. Una historia tremendamente americana: la dureza de la vida en el sur de una familia pobre, el ascenso a la fama, la gloria, la caída a los infiernos con el abuso de drogas y el renacimiento y redención personal y como artista.
La religión lo empapa todo, de manera absorbente y en mi opinión, muy naif.
Pero el texto de Cash parece muy honesto, abierto y sincero. Una buena autobiografía y un retrato en el tiempo del man in black.
La religión lo empapa todo, de manera absorbente y en mi opinión, muy naif.
Pero el texto de Cash parece muy honesto, abierto y sincero. Una buena autobiografía y un retrato en el tiempo del man in black.
November 9, 2018
A very inspirational book in which the readers can see how truly Johnny Cash had to fight against his addiction but also where he openly talks about his relationship with faith and religion.
Another aspect to be highlighted is the fact that lots of artists and friends were willing to help him and, luckily, he could always count on June Carter, who proved that she was not only a very strong woman but also kindhearted, positive, encouraging and faithful.
Another aspect to be highlighted is the fact that lots of artists and friends were willing to help him and, luckily, he could always count on June Carter, who proved that she was not only a very strong woman but also kindhearted, positive, encouraging and faithful.
October 25, 2022
Man in black is not really a straight biography about Johnny Cash, but more of a testament and detail of the specific instances of his life where he began to follow his own spiritual trial, every chapter has a connection to his faith and despite not being a Christian, I could really resonate with his own philosophy on life and his own mission to follow that spiritual path in relation to his art. Great little read and Cash’s voice really comes through the page.
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