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Greatest!

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Album Review: Greatest!

  • Artist: Johnny Cash
  • Rating: StarStarStarHalf Star
  • Release Date: 1959
  • Genre: Country

Review

The title of Johnny Cash's third album for Sun Records, 1959's Greatest!, suggests that Cash's career already merited an anthology of hits a mere four years after he first hit the charts with "Cry! Cry! Cry!." However, this wasn't quite the case, and Greatest! was actually a collection of B-side and unreleased tunes Cash had left behind when he parted ways with Sun to sign with Columbia in 1958. The irony is there's a dearth of actual hits on Greatest!, and while the sizable majority of Cash's Sun output was outstanding, this album is decidedly weaker than the two Sun long-players which had preceded it. However, there are a handful of gems to be found here -- the rollicking "Get Rhythm," a fine cover of Charlie Feathers' "I Forgot to Remember to Forget," a pair of solid Hank Williams interpretations ("You Win Again" and "Hey Good Lookin'"), and his tribute to the singular talents of guitarist Luther Perkins, "Luther Played the Boogie." While Sam Phillips and his staff polished a few of these tunes with overdubs after the fact, they still sound leaner and more intense than Cash's early Columbia sides, and while Greatest! is second-tier stuff from his Sun period, there's still some great music here from one of the most powerful voices in country music. ~ Mark Deming, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track TitleComposersPerformersTime
Goodbye Little Darlin' Goodbye (Lyrics) Gene Autry, Johnny Marvin Johnny Cash
I Just Thought You'd Like to Know Charlie Rich Johnny Cash
You Tell Me Sam Phillips Johnny Cash
Just About Time (Lyrics) Jack Clement Johnny Cash
I Forgot to Remember to Forget Charlie Feathers, Stan Kesler Johnny Cash
Katy Too (Lyrics) Johnny Cash, Jack Clement Johnny Cash
Thanks a Lot (Lyrics) Charlie Rich Johnny Cash
Luther Played the Boogie (Lyrics) Johnny Cash Johnny Cash
You Win Again (Lyrics) Hank Williams Johnny Cash
Hey, Good Lookin' Hank Williams Johnny Cash
I Could Never Be Ashamed of You (Lyrics) Hank Williams Johnny Cash
Get Rhythm (Lyrics) Johnny Cash Johnny Cash

Credits

Johnny Cash (Vocals), Johnny Cash (Main Performer), Al Casey (Guitar)
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Wikipedia: Greatest!
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Greatest!
Studio album by Johnny Cash
Released Original: January 1959
Re-issued: May 6, 2003
Recorded July 30, 1955 - July 17, 1958
Genre Country
Length 25:46
Label Sun
Producer Sam Phillips, Jack Clement
Professional reviews
Johnny Cash chronology
The Fabulous Johnny Cash
(1959)
Greatest!
(1959)
Hymns by Johnny Cash
(1959)

Greatest! is the fourth album by country singer Johnny Cash, released on Sun Records on 12 January 1959 (see 1959 in music). It was Cash's third record on the label, which he had left the previous year to join Columbia Records. By the time the album was released, Cash had already recorded The Fabulous Johnny Cash, his first album with Columbia. The tracks on Greatest! were recorded between July 1955 and July 1958. Six out of the twelve songs became singles, with "Get Rhythm" topping the Country charts and becoming the most successful one. The album was rereleased on Varese Sarabande on May 6, 2003 (see 2003 in music) with four additional tracks, two of them being alternate versions of songs already on the record.

Contents

Track listing

  1. "Goodbye Little Darlin' Goodbye" (Gene Autry, Johnny Marvin) – 2:14
  2. "I Just Thought You'd Like to Know" (Charlie Rich) – 2:23
  3. "You Tell Me" (Sam Phillips) – 1:48
  4. "Just About Time" (Cash) – 2:07
  5. "I Forgot to Remember to Forget" (Stan Kesler, Charlie Feathers) – 2:09
  6. "Katy Too" (Cash, Jack Clement) – 1:57
  7. "Thanks a Lot" (Rich) – 2:38
  8. "Luther Played the Boogie" (Cash) – 2:03
  9. "You Win Again" (Hank Williams) – 2:18
  10. "Hey Good Lookin''" (Williams) – 1:41
  11. "I Could Never Be Ashamed of You" (Williams) – 2:14
  12. "Get Rhythm" (Cash) – 2:14

Bonus tracks

  1. "Fool's Hall of Fame" (Jerry Freeman, Danny Wolfe) – 2:26
  2. "I Forgot to Remember to Forget" (Kesler, Feathers) – 2:11
  3. "Hey Good Lookin'" (Williams) – 1:43
  4. "Rock and Roll Ruby" (Cash) – 1:42

Charts

Singles - Billboard (North America)

Year Single Chart Position
1958 "Just About Time" Country Singles 30
1959 "Thanks a Lot" Country Singles 12
1959 "Luther Played the Boogie" Country Singles 8
1959 "Katy Too" Country Singles 11
1959 "Cry Cry Cry" Pop Singles 66
1959 "Goodbye Little Darlin' Goodbye" Country Singles 22
1959 "Get Rhythm" Country Singles 1

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Album Review. Copyright © 2009 All Media Guide, LLC. Content provided by All Music Guide ®, a trademark of All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Greatest!" Read more