If Johnny Cash were still alive, he'd be turning 80 this month. To mark the occasion, Columbia/Legacy is gearing up to release Bootleg Vol. IV: The Soul of Truth, bringing together many of the gospel and spiritual recordings the Man in Black recorded during in the '70s and '80s, including some unreleased material.
The first 20 songs come from the 1979 album A Believer Sings the Truth, with disc one rounded out by five more cuts from the same sessions. One of these, "Truth," is previously unreleased.
Disc two is composed of an unreleased 12-song album recorded in 1975 (although a couple of the tracks have previously appeared on compilations), plus the rare ten-song LP Johnny Cash -- Gospel Singer from 1983. There are also four additional, previously unreleased outtakes from the Gospel Singer sessions.
All told, that's 51 songs, 19 of them written by Cash himself. The set will come with a 1,500 word essay from the songwriter's son, John Carter Cash. A press release offers up this extract:
"The music set a foundation for J. R. Cash. and upon it he established the motivation for his existence. With the songs of the gospel came faith, and along with faith, a fortitude and persistence that would not be denied. If you were convinced of my Dad's honesty, it is because he was confident of his purpose, and that purpose was defined by gospel music. Though he would sing many kinds of music in his life, he was never truer than when he sang songs of faith."
Check out the hefty tracklist below. The double-disc collection will be out on April 3.
Bootleg Vol. IV: The Soul of Truth:
CD 1:
1. "Wings in the Morning"
2. "Gospel Boogie (A Wonderful Time Up There)"
3. "Over The Next Hill (We'll Be Home)" (ft. Anita Carter)
4. "He's Alive" (ft. June Carter Cash)
5. "I've Got Jesus in My Soul"
6. "When He Comes" (ft. Rosanne Cash)
7. "I Was There When It Happened" (ft. Marshall Grant)
8. "I'm a New Born Man"
9. "Strange Things Happening Every Day"
10. "Children Go Where I Send Thee"
11. "I'm Just an Old Chunk of Coal"
12. "Lay Me Down In Dixie" (ft. Cindy Cash)
13. "Don't Take Everybody To Be Your Friend"
14. "You'll Get Yours And I'll Get Mine" (ft. Rodney Crowell)
15. "Oh Come, Angel Band"
16. "This Train Is Bound for Glory" (ft. June Carter Cash)
17. "I'm Gonna Try to Be That Way" (ft. Jan Howard)
18. "What On Earth Will You Do" (For Heaven's Sake)
19. "That's Enough"
20. "The Greatest Cowboy of Them All" (ft. Jack Routh)
21. "Didn't It Rain"
22. "He Touched Me" (ft. Rodney Crowell)
23. "Way Worn Traveler" (ft. Helen Carter)
24. "I'll Have a New Life" (ft. June Carter Cash)
25. "Truth"
CD 2:
1. "Back in the Fold"
2. "Look unto the East"
3. "I Was There When It Happened"
4. "Sanctified"
5. "Would You Recognize Jesus"
6. "That's Just Like Jesus"
7. "What On Earth Will You Do (For Heaven's Sake)"
8. "Keep Me From Blowing Away"
9. "Don't Give Up on Me"
10. "Over The Next Hill (We'll Be Home)"
11. "Far Side Banks of Jordan" (ft. June Carter Cash)
12. "Our Little Old Home Town"
13. "Belshazzar"
14. "My Children Walk in Truth"
15. "The Old Rugged Cross" (ft. Jessi Colter)
16. "One of These Days I'm Gonna Sit Down and Talk to Paul"
17. "God Ain't No Stained Glass Window"
18. "Half a Mile a Day"
19. "Another Wide River to Cross"
20. "You're Drifting Away"
21. "Believe in Him"
22. "Over There"
23. "Gospel Road"
24. "What Is Man"
25. "Wildwood in the Pines"
26. "Never Grow Old"
The first 20 songs come from the 1979 album A Believer Sings the Truth, with disc one rounded out by five more cuts from the same sessions. One of these, "Truth," is previously unreleased.
Disc two is composed of an unreleased 12-song album recorded in 1975 (although a couple of the tracks have previously appeared on compilations), plus the rare ten-song LP Johnny Cash -- Gospel Singer from 1983. There are also four additional, previously unreleased outtakes from the Gospel Singer sessions.
All told, that's 51 songs, 19 of them written by Cash himself. The set will come with a 1,500 word essay from the songwriter's son, John Carter Cash. A press release offers up this extract:
"The music set a foundation for J. R. Cash. and upon it he established the motivation for his existence. With the songs of the gospel came faith, and along with faith, a fortitude and persistence that would not be denied. If you were convinced of my Dad's honesty, it is because he was confident of his purpose, and that purpose was defined by gospel music. Though he would sing many kinds of music in his life, he was never truer than when he sang songs of faith."
Check out the hefty tracklist below. The double-disc collection will be out on April 3.
Bootleg Vol. IV: The Soul of Truth:
CD 1:
1. "Wings in the Morning"
2. "Gospel Boogie (A Wonderful Time Up There)"
3. "Over The Next Hill (We'll Be Home)" (ft. Anita Carter)
4. "He's Alive" (ft. June Carter Cash)
5. "I've Got Jesus in My Soul"
6. "When He Comes" (ft. Rosanne Cash)
7. "I Was There When It Happened" (ft. Marshall Grant)
8. "I'm a New Born Man"
9. "Strange Things Happening Every Day"
10. "Children Go Where I Send Thee"
11. "I'm Just an Old Chunk of Coal"
12. "Lay Me Down In Dixie" (ft. Cindy Cash)
13. "Don't Take Everybody To Be Your Friend"
14. "You'll Get Yours And I'll Get Mine" (ft. Rodney Crowell)
15. "Oh Come, Angel Band"
16. "This Train Is Bound for Glory" (ft. June Carter Cash)
17. "I'm Gonna Try to Be That Way" (ft. Jan Howard)
18. "What On Earth Will You Do" (For Heaven's Sake)
19. "That's Enough"
20. "The Greatest Cowboy of Them All" (ft. Jack Routh)
21. "Didn't It Rain"
22. "He Touched Me" (ft. Rodney Crowell)
23. "Way Worn Traveler" (ft. Helen Carter)
24. "I'll Have a New Life" (ft. June Carter Cash)
25. "Truth"
CD 2:
1. "Back in the Fold"
2. "Look unto the East"
3. "I Was There When It Happened"
4. "Sanctified"
5. "Would You Recognize Jesus"
6. "That's Just Like Jesus"
7. "What On Earth Will You Do (For Heaven's Sake)"
8. "Keep Me From Blowing Away"
9. "Don't Give Up on Me"
10. "Over The Next Hill (We'll Be Home)"
11. "Far Side Banks of Jordan" (ft. June Carter Cash)
12. "Our Little Old Home Town"
13. "Belshazzar"
14. "My Children Walk in Truth"
15. "The Old Rugged Cross" (ft. Jessi Colter)
16. "One of These Days I'm Gonna Sit Down and Talk to Paul"
17. "God Ain't No Stained Glass Window"
18. "Half a Mile a Day"
19. "Another Wide River to Cross"
20. "You're Drifting Away"
21. "Believe in Him"
22. "Over There"
23. "Gospel Road"
24. "What Is Man"
25. "Wildwood in the Pines"
26. "Never Grow Old"