Country Christmas (Johnny Cash album)

Untitled

Johnny Cash Country Christmas is a Christmas album and 78th overall album by American country singer Johnny Cash, released on Delta Records in 1991 (see 1991 in music), in-between Cash's contracts with Mercury Records and American Recordings. It came out in two different Versions with different cover art. It contains 15 or 13 songs, all Christmas classics and traditional holiday songs. A number of songs (such as "Blue Christmas", "Silent Night" and "Joy to the World") had previously been recorded by Cash - multiple times, in the case of "Silent Night" - for previous Christmas albums. It was also released on the LaserLight label in 1992. The 15-track version includes two additional Christmas songs, "White Christmas" and "I'll Be Home for Christmas". Four tracks do not feature Cash but instead feature vocals by his wife, June Carter Cash and the Carter Family. This was the last Johnny Cash release within his lifetime to feature the Carters, who had been a staple of his live show and studio recordings since the early 1960s, as the sisters would not participate in his subsequent work for American Recordings; nor would June Carter Cash, though a 2000 private release, Return to the Promised Land, would feature her alongside her husband.

In 2006, the 13 Track Version was re-released, with 2 additional songs that had been big hits for Cash, "Ring of Fire" and "I Walk the Line," despite neither song having anything to do with Christmas. It is unconfirmed whether these tracks are new recordings or any of the previous versions Cash recorded for Sun Records, Columbia Records or Mercury as "I Walk the Line" had previously been recorded for all three labels and "Ring of Fire" for the latter two.

Most tracks had been previously recorded by Cash for one (or more) of this three prior Columbia Christmas albums, most notably Classic Christmas, though the album also includes several tracks unique to this collection such as a version of Irving Berlin's "White Christmas" featured in the 15-track edition. "Silent Night" is performed on all each of Cash's four canonical Christmas albums. "Figgy Pudding" is an arrangement of the standard "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" with comedic interjections by June Carter Cash, reminiscent of her country-comedy work of the 1950s and 1960s before joining with Johnny Cash.

Due to this album not having any connection to the Columbia, Mercury or American labels, it is one of the more uncommon Johnny Cash releases and as of 2015 has yet to appear in any box sets or compilations.

Track listing (15-track version)

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Blue Christmas"	3:05
2.	"Silent Night"	3:26
3.	"White Christmas"	3:48
4.	"Figgy Pudding" (June Carter Cash and the Carter Family)	2:43
5.	"Here Was a Man"	2:44
6.	"Joy to the World"	3:42
7.	"O Little Town of Bethlehem"	4:16
8.	"What Child Is This?"	4:12
9.	"The First Noel" (June Carter Cash and the Carter Family)	3:26
10.	"Away in a Manger"	3:33
11.	"O Christmas Tree" (June Carter Cash and the Carter Family)	3:18
12.	"O Come All Ye Faithful"	3:59
13.	"It Came Upon The Midnight Clear" (June Carter Cash and the Carter Family)	3:52
14.	"Hark! The Herald Angels Sing"	3:14
15.	"I'll Be Home for Christmas"	4:12

Track listing (13-track version)

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Blue Christmas"	3:05
2.	"Silent Night"	3:26
3.	"Figgy Pudding"	2:43
4.	"Here Was a Man" (June Carter Cash and the Carter Family)	2:44
5.	"Joy to the World"	3:42
6.	"O Little Town of Bethlehem"	4:16
7.	"What Child Is This?"	4:12
8.	"The First Noel"	3:26
9.	"Away in a Manger" (June Carter Cash and the Carter Family)	3:33
10.	"O Christmas Tree"	3:18
11.	"O Come All Ye Faithful" (June Carter Cash and the Carter Family)	3:59
12.	"It Came Upon The Midnight Clear"	3:52
13.	"Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" (June Carter Cash and the Carter Family)	3:14

2006 re-release

1. "Silent Night"
2. "It Came Upon The Midnight Clear"
3. "Here Was A Man"
4. "Blue Christmas"
5. "What Child is This?"
6. "Joy To The World"
7. "Ring Of Fire"
8. "O Christmas Tree"
9. "Away In A Manger"
10. "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing"
11. "O Come All Ye Faithful"
12. "I Walk The Line"
13. "Figgy Pudding"
14. "O Little Town Of Bethlehem"
15. "The First Noel"

Personnel

• Johnny Cash - Vocals, Guitar
• June Carter - Vocals
• Carter Family - Vocals
• Jack Hale, Jr. & His Nashville All-Star Band & Singers - Vocals, Instruments. Hale is also credited as arranger on all of the traditional Christmas songs

External links

• [1]