I Walk the Line
| "I Walk the Line" | |
|---|---|
| Song | |
| B-side | "Get Rhythm" |
"I Walk the Line" is a song written by Johnny Cash and recorded in 1956. It was performed with the help of Marshall Grant and Luther Perkins, two mechanics that his brother introduced him to following his discharge from the Air Force. Cash and his wife, Vivian, were living in Memphis, Tennessee, at the time. Cash became the front man for the group and precipitated the introduction of the group to Sam Phillips of Sun Records. In 1955 they began recording under the Sun label. After three attempts with moderate chart ratings, "I Walk the Line" became the first number one Billboard hit for the group. The single remained on the record charts for over 43 weeks, and sold over 2 million copies.[1]
Background of Song
The unique chord progression for the song was inspired by an accidental backwards playback of guitar runs on Cash's tape recorder while he was in the Air Force stationed in Germany. 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."[2] After the writing of 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 as a slow ballad, but producer Sam Phillips preferred a faster arrangement,[3] which Cash grew to like as the uptempo recording met with success.
Once while performing the song on his TV show, Cash told the audience, with a smile, "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 was originally recorded at Sun Studio on April 2, 1956, and was released on May 1. 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.[4] "I Walk the Line" crossed over and reached number nineteen on the pop music charts.[5]
The song 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, in 1970 for the I Walk the Line soundtrack, and finally in 1988 for the Classic Cash: Hall of Fame Series album.
In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked the song at #30 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.[6]
Writing and Composition
The song is very simple and like most Cash songs, the lyrics tell more of a story than the music conveys. (You've got a way to keep me on your side/You give me cause for love that I can't hide/For you I know I'd even try to turn the tide).
It is based upon the "boom-chicka-boom" or "freight train" rhythm common in many of Cash's songs. In the original recording of the song, there is a key change between each of the five verses, and Cash hums the new root note before singing each verse. The final verse, a reprise of the first, is sung a full octave lower than the first verse. According to Cash, he loved the sound of a snare drum, but drums were not used in country music back then, so he placed a piece of paper in his guitar strings and created his own unique "snare drum". From that point onwards, at many concerts, Cash would tell the story and perform the song the same way.[citation needed]
Covers
In 1998, Rodney Crowell covered the song as a duet with Cash on Crowell's album The Houston Kid. This version was titled "I Walk the Line Revisited" and peaked at number 61 on the country music charts.[7]
Dean Martin also recorded a version of this song, the French DJ Laurent Wolf did so too.
Bobby Darin sang a parody of this song live at the Flamingo Las Vegas.
Dax did a World of Warcraft parody of this song called Aggro is mine (The Tank Song).
Leonard Nimoy, on his album Highly Illogical, also covered the song.
Chart positions
| Chart (1957) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 17 |
Notes
- ^ Johnny Cash - Biography.” CMT.com. MTV Networks. Web. http://www.cmt.com/artists/az/cash_johnny/bio.jhtml%7C Retrieved on 2010-07-11
- ^ Horstman, Dorothy (1976). Sing Your Heart Out, Country Boy, Country Music Foundation. p. 144.
- ^ Grant, Marshall (2006). I Was There When It Happened: My Life With Johnny Cash, Cumberland House Publishing. p. 54.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition. Record Research. p. 74.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits: Eighth Edition. Record Research. p. 110.
- ^ "The RS 500 Greatest Songs of All Time". RollingStone.com. Retrieved 2007-06-02.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2008). Hot Country Songs 1944 to 2008. Record Research, Inc. p. 109. ISBN 0-89820-177-2.
