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I Walk the Line
"I Walk the Line" is a song written and recorded in 1956 by Johnny Cash. After moderate chart success, it soon became Cash's first #1 hit on the Billboard country chart, and eventually crossed over to the pop charts, reaching #19 on the Billboard "Top 100" (later renamed "Hot 100").
The song remained on the charts for over 43 weeks, and sold over two million copies. It has also been used on many LPs released from Sun Records, such as Johnny Cash with His Hot and Blue Guitar!, Johnny Cash Sings the Songs That Made Him Famous, and Johnny Cash Sings Hank Williams. It was the title song for a 1970 film starring Gregory Peck and a 2005 biopic of Cash starring Joaquin Phoenix. The song captures Johnny Cash's "boom-chicka-boom" sound by Cash putting a dollar bill in the neck of his guitar.
The unique chord progression for "I Walk the Line" was inspired by the backwards playback of guitar runs on Cash's tape recorder while he was stationed in Germany as a member of the United States Air Force. Later in a telephone interview, Cash stated, "I wrote the song backstage one night in 1956 in Gladewater, Texas. I was newly married at the time, and I suppose I was laying out my pledge of devotion." After writing the song, Cash had a discussion with fellow performer Carl Perkins, who encouraged him to adopt "I Walk the Line" as the song title. Cash originally intended the song to be a slow ballad, but producer Sam Phillips preferred a faster arrangement; in the end, Cash agreed to the change, and the uptempo recording met with success.
On one occasion, while performing "I Walk the Line" on his TV show, Cash explained to the audience the reason for his humming during the song: "People ask me why I always hum whenever I sing this song. It's to get my pitch." The humming was necessary since the song required Cash to change keys several times while singing it.
The song's lyrics discuss resisting temptation, being accountable, and remaining faithful to Vivian Liberto during his first marriage. However, Johnny and Vivian divorced, and he married June Carter. Liberto would write a book called I Walked the Line about her time with Cash.
"I Walk the Line" was originally recorded at Sun Studio on April 2, 1956, and was released around May 5th. It spent six weeks at the top spot on the U.S. country Juke Box charts that summer, one week on the C&W Jockey charts and number two on the C&W Best Seller charts. Besides the showing in Billboard's "Top 100," Johnny's Sun single also reached #17 on the Billboard "Best Sellers in Stores" chart.
The track was cut with the Tennessee Two, Marshall Grant on bass and Luther Perkins on lead guitar, originally two mechanics introduced to Cash by his older brother Roy after Cash was discharged from the Air Force. Cash and his wife Vivian were living in Memphis, Tennessee, at the time. Cash became the frontman for the group and precipitated their introduction to Sam Phillips of Sun Records. In 1955, they began recording under the Sun label.
It was re-recorded four times during Cash's career: in 1964 for the I Walk the Line album, again in 1969 for the At San Quentin album (a live performance), in 1970 for the I Walk the Line soundtrack, and finally in 1988 for the Classic Cash: Hall of Fame Series album. Additional live performances have been released since Cash's death, along with a demo version recorded prior to the formal 1956 recording session that was released on Bootleg Vol. II: From Memphis to Hollywood (Columbia/Legacy) in 2011.
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I Walk the Line
"I Walk the Line" is a song written and recorded in 1956 by Johnny Cash. After moderate chart success, it soon became Cash's first #1 hit on the Billboard country chart, and eventually crossed over to the pop charts, reaching #19 on the Billboard "Top 100" (later renamed "Hot 100").
The song remained on the charts for over 43 weeks, and sold over two million copies. It has also been used on many LPs released from Sun Records, such as Johnny Cash with His Hot and Blue Guitar!, Johnny Cash Sings the Songs That Made Him Famous, and Johnny Cash Sings Hank Williams. It was the title song for a 1970 film starring Gregory Peck and a 2005 biopic of Cash starring Joaquin Phoenix. The song captures Johnny Cash's "boom-chicka-boom" sound by Cash putting a dollar bill in the neck of his guitar.
The unique chord progression for "I Walk the Line" was inspired by the backwards playback of guitar runs on Cash's tape recorder while he was stationed in Germany as a member of the United States Air Force. Later in a telephone interview, Cash stated, "I wrote the song backstage one night in 1956 in Gladewater, Texas. I was newly married at the time, and I suppose I was laying out my pledge of devotion." After writing the song, Cash had a discussion with fellow performer Carl Perkins, who encouraged him to adopt "I Walk the Line" as the song title. Cash originally intended the song to be a slow ballad, but producer Sam Phillips preferred a faster arrangement; in the end, Cash agreed to the change, and the uptempo recording met with success.
On one occasion, while performing "I Walk the Line" on his TV show, Cash explained to the audience the reason for his humming during the song: "People ask me why I always hum whenever I sing this song. It's to get my pitch." The humming was necessary since the song required Cash to change keys several times while singing it.
The song's lyrics discuss resisting temptation, being accountable, and remaining faithful to Vivian Liberto during his first marriage. However, Johnny and Vivian divorced, and he married June Carter. Liberto would write a book called I Walked the Line about her time with Cash.
"I Walk the Line" was originally recorded at Sun Studio on April 2, 1956, and was released around May 5th. It spent six weeks at the top spot on the U.S. country Juke Box charts that summer, one week on the C&W Jockey charts and number two on the C&W Best Seller charts. Besides the showing in Billboard's "Top 100," Johnny's Sun single also reached #17 on the Billboard "Best Sellers in Stores" chart.
The track was cut with the Tennessee Two, Marshall Grant on bass and Luther Perkins on lead guitar, originally two mechanics introduced to Cash by his older brother Roy after Cash was discharged from the Air Force. Cash and his wife Vivian were living in Memphis, Tennessee, at the time. Cash became the frontman for the group and precipitated their introduction to Sam Phillips of Sun Records. In 1955, they began recording under the Sun label.
It was re-recorded four times during Cash's career: in 1964 for the I Walk the Line album, again in 1969 for the At San Quentin album (a live performance), in 1970 for the I Walk the Line soundtrack, and finally in 1988 for the Classic Cash: Hall of Fame Series album. Additional live performances have been released since Cash's death, along with a demo version recorded prior to the formal 1956 recording session that was released on Bootleg Vol. II: From Memphis to Hollywood (Columbia/Legacy) in 2011.