Johnny Cash
American VI: Ain't No Grave

THE MAN IN BLACK still seems to be there, watching us common mortals from the height of his stature. Never as revered as in this past decade. Tributes, films, and already two posthumous records remember him almost annually, evoking his deeds, voice, music, and words. We remember him with his middle finger raised, guitar slung over his shoulder, foreshadowing punk by many years. Now, as if to ward off death, we can also remember him as a child, as he appears on the cover of this latest "American".

LAST STOP. Seven years after his death, the second posthumous record of Johnny Cash is released. When an artist dies, especially a legend like Cash, there's always the risk of scraping the bottom of the barrel to release a collection of unreleased songs at all costs.

With Cash, fortunately, this danger seems to have been averted. After American V: Hundred Highways from 2006, Rick Rubin assembles the very last recordings that should (conditionally) put an end to the long saga of the American Recordings.

Cash, after a long period of oblivion, returned to new artistic life thanks to the great American producer's interest, winning back the old audience but, above all, capturing the interest of a younger audience by reinterpreting in his own way the most varied classics of modern rock, from U2 to Beck, from Soundgarden to Nine Inch Nails.

This sixth chapter is slightly inferior to the previous one, but the presence of Cash's very last composition would, in itself, warrant the purchase. "Corinthias 15:55" is a readaptation of the sacred text and seems to be prophetic. Cash's voice is noticeably more tired, but still manages to be evocative and full of the pathos that pervaded the previous five chapters. The traditional "Ain't No Grave" calls to mind the beautiful "God's Gonna Cut You Down" but is magnificent and opens the album in the best possible way. "Redemption Day" by Sheryl Crow is a dark and gloomy country ballad.

Almost like a favor exchange, "For The Good Times" by Kris Kristofferson is one of the best songs on the record. Kristofferson, a great friend of Cash, did not fail to honor him in his last and splendid record Closer To The Bone and in the song "Good Morning John". The album, unlike its predecessors, presents older compositions like "Can't Help But Wonder Where I'm Bound" by Tom Paxton, the western "Cool Water" by Bob Nolan, or the finale entrusted to "Aloha Oe", a song with strong Hawaiian tones. Accompanying Cash on this last journey are the same musicians from the previous work, among whom Mike Campbell on guitars and Benmont Tench on piano stand out.

The desire to be lulled once more by his wise and protective voice is an experience that seems to transcend the mystical, to hear Cash's voice singing new songs and telling new but old stories of hope and redemption, increasingly bridging the gap between us common mortals and THAT MAN IN BLACK who from above seems to still be imparting lessons.