Johnny Cash - One of us?

[Screaming Lord Byron]

Had this argument the other day. I called Cash a left-winger (think I remember him calling himself a socialist, due to his christianity). Other guy points to him getting pally with Nixon. Who's right?

[CMT]

1. I don't know about Nixon

but Johnny Cash was a big Carter supporter.

[Hep]

7. He married one!

n/t

[peekaloo]

2. thought he once referred to Nixon as a "skunk".

Maybe your pals are thinking of Elvis.

[Champion Jack]

3. Yeah,...it's easy to get those 2 mixed up

NOT!!!

[Screaming Lord Byron]

6. All i found was -

In 1970, Cash was asked by Richard Nixon to perform at the White House.
Not too conclusive, really.

Update - He does have an exhibit at the Nixon library, though.

[peekaloo]

10. seems he was friends with Billy Graham

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/09/15/sunday/main573336.shtml

---------------
"...and how Graham’s such a good man that on the Christmas after Richard Nixon resigned in disgrace, Graham talked Cash into calling Nixon to cheer him up.

Cash didn’t want to do it because he thought Nixon was a skunk, but Graham is such a good man that he reminded him that every sinner can be redeemed."

[Robin Hood]

51. Wasn't Graham on the Nixon tapes saying racial slurs?

I guess that Johnny Cash was a trusting, if not, gullible man, to believe that Graham was a good man.

[argyl]

48. Cash performing for Nixon.

I recall that Nixon asked Cash to sing two songs in particular,"Okie From Muskogee" by Merle Haggard and "Welfare Cadillac",artist(?)unknown.Cash refused,saying both were denigrating to particular segments of society who had been unfairly categorized,or something to that effect.

In defense of Merle legend has it that this song was written as a tongue in cheek jibe at the people who came to his concerts,and he was stoned out of his gourd when he wrote it.One reply to a reporter asking how he could write such an antidrug song when he was an obvious user was,"Well,we haven't been to Muskogee in a long time".The other song was racist dreck,best buried and forgotten.

[Terwilliger]

4. one of us? American?

I think he was "one of us"

Man In Black
--------------------------------------

Well, you wonder why I always dress in black,
Why you never see bright colors on my back,
And why does my appearance seem to have a somber tone.
Well, there's a reason for the things that I have on.

I wear the black for the poor and the beaten down,
Livin' in the hopeless, hungry side of town,
I wear it for the prisoner who has long paid for his crime,
But is there because he's a victim of the times.

I wear the black for those who never read,
Or listened to the words that Jesus said,
About the road to happiness through love and charity,
Why, you'd think He's talking straight to you and me.

Well, we're doin' mighty fine, I do suppose,
In our streak of lightnin' cars and fancy clothes,
But just so we're reminded of the ones who are held back,
Up front there ought 'a be a Man In Black.

I wear it for the sick and lonely old,
For the reckless ones whose bad trip left them cold,
I wear the black in mournin' for the lives that could have been,
Each week we lose a hundred fine young men.

And, I wear it for the thousands who have died,
Believen' that the Lord was on their side,
I wear it for another hundred thousand who have died,
Believen' that we all were on their side.

Well, there's things that never will be right I know,
And things need changin' everywhere you go,
But 'til we start to make a move to make a few things right,
You'll never see me wear a suit of white.

Ah, I'd love to wear a rainbow every day,
And tell the world that everything's OK,
But I'll try to carry off a little darkness on my back,
'Till things are brighter, I'm the Man In Black.

[WhoCountsTheVotes]

16. best ... song ... ever

:)

[Badger1]

5. Cash

Yes , at one time he considered Nixon and Bob Dylan as close friends. He was really a unique person. His last LP, The Man Comes Around kicks ass! Everyone should have it in their collection.

[deutsey]

8. I believe he performed at Billy Graham Crusades too

Still, over all, his life and songs indicate to me that he's "one of us".

[DarbyUSMC]

52. Billy Graham is a life long Democrat but a friend to all kinds of people.

Johnny and June were often invited to testify about their faith and sing a Gospel song or two at Dr. Graham's crusades.

[DinahMoeHum]

9. An American patriot, with a heart big enough for nearly every

kind of human being on this planet.

:toast:

[kentuck]

11. Johnny Cash was a good human being with compassion for others...

and conscious of his environment and the social ills around him. Does that make him one of us??

[Screaming Lord Byron]

12. Most certainly. By one of us, all I mean is left-wing.

[Brian Sweat]

13. Johnny Cash was unique and refused to be pigeon holed

as a liberal, a conservative, a Democrat or a Republican. He stood up for what he believed in and never tailored his beliefs to fit the mold of a single political ideology. There is no doubt that he held many liberal views, but he also held some conservative ones.

[kentuck]

19. Remember the Cash song ?

Paraphrasing...

"The one on the left was in the middle and the one in the middle was on the right and the one on the left got drafted..." :)

[theboss]

22. Close . . .

There once was a musical troupe
A pickin' singin' folk group
They sang the mountain ballads
And the folk songs of our land

They were long on musical ability
Folks thought they would go far
But political incompatibility led to their downfall

Well, the one on the right was on the left
And the one in the middle was on the right
And the one on the left was in the middle
And the guy in the rear was a Methodist

This musical aggregation toured the entire nation
Singing the traditional ballads
And the folk songs of our land
They performed with great virtuosity
And soon they were the rage
But political animosity prevailed upon the stage

Well, the one on the right was on the left
And the one in the middle was on the right
And the one on the left was in the middle
And the guy in the rear burned his driver's license

Well the curtain had ascended
A hush fell on the crowd
As thousands there were gathered to hear The folk songs of our land
But they took their politics seriously
And that night at the concert hall
As the audience watched deliriously
They had a free-for-all

Well, the one on the right was on the bottom
And the one in the middle was on the top
And the one on the left got a broken arm
And the guy in the rear, said, "Oh dear"

Now this should be a lesson if you plan to start a folk group
Don't go mixin' politics with the folk songs of our land
Just work on harmony and diction
Play your banjo well
And if you have political convictions keep them to yourself

Now, the one on the left works in a bank
And the one in the middle drives a truck
The one on the right's an all-night deejay
And the guy in the rear got drafted

[Laughing Mirror]

31. yes indeedy, i remember that wonderful song

thanks for the memory jolt

and yes, Johnny sang for the man or woman at the bottom
if that's what we mean by one of "us"

a lot of musicians were associated with Nixon, if i recall

The Carpenters (not too much a surprise)
Duke Ellington (well they played in tails together at the White House, still a surprise)
James Brown (yes James Brown, the Godfather of Soul, the Hit Man, who, like Cash, represents the same man or woman at the bottom, struggling to rise up)

[Screaming Lord Byron]

33. Yes, by one of us, I mean socially concerned, liberal etc

As for James Brown, the man has said some spectacularly dumb things over the years.

[Screaming Lord Byron]

20. For sure.

I'm not criticizing one of my heroes, but I think some of the more openly right-wing stuff may have been misinterpreted by the Country Establishment for whom the left is pretty much anathema.

[Scairp]

40. Thank you

He was his own man with his own point of view. He hurt himself an awful lot but I don't believe he ever intentionally hurt another human being in his whole life. He was a wonderful man, not perfect, but honest in his life and his music, and we will never see his kind again.

[WhoCountsTheVotes]

14. He's one of us

not sure if he's one of you though :evilgrin:

[Screaming Lord Byron]

17. No. Not a secret Canadian, i'm afraid.

Native, Scots and Irish in his blood, I believe.

[Scairp]

46. He was part Chocktaw

He also believed his family to be of Scottish decent, but that is not entirely certain.

[mac56]

15. I think he was.

It's hard to believe that Johnny could have gone through all he did in his life, and not emerge with some compassion and empathy for the "have nots". "Man In Black" is a pretty good summary of his views, I believe.

[theboss]

18. Johnny Cash was a Christian.

And that's all that really needs to be said.

It's clear in his music and interviews that he did not believe in an "us" and "them." He believed in a "we." It didn't matter if he was playing to prisoners or presidents. Everyone had sinned in one way or another but they all deserved dignity and love.

We need more people like that.

[Terwilliger]

23. excuse me...you mean a 'true' Christian

George W. Bush is a 'Christian', but I don't give Christians a lot of props for that

[IrateCitizen]

47. Neither do a lot of "true Christians" and other people of faith

I certainly don't. In fact, his actions are about as far as one can get from being a "Christian", IMHO.

[Screaming Lord Byron]

24. Why aren't more christians left-wing?

What are they getting from the New Testament that I'm not?

[nannygoat]

27. I think they're stuck in the Old Testament (with that wrathful,

vengeful God).

[theboss]

28. A lot of us are

We're just not organized. Don't confuse "Evangelicals" with the rest of us. There are about a billian Christians in the world.

Yet fifteen million or so define us politcally.

You don't think REVERAND Jesse Jackson is a left-winger? It's not an honorary title.

[Screaming Lord Byron]

30. No. This is no flame. I know a lot of you are left-wing.

I just wonder how anyone can read the word of Jesus, and then go on to do such blatantly un-christian things.
I'm a Buddhist, btw. I've got nothing against faith.

[theboss]

32. Any "philosophy" can be twisted

Christians have killed in the name of their faith. So have Muslims. So have Hindus.

For that matter, so have "socialists," "Communists" and any other "-ists" you can think of.

[Terwilliger]

34. sorry, there's no 'faith' in economic systems

but the fact of the matter is, the right-wing Christians are the ones to shun and the ones in control of our government. I have yet to see a mass co-ordianted effort of moderate and liberal Christians to DENOUNCE the tyranny of the intolerance that the Christian-right espouses. It's time for ya'll to clean up your own house.

[theboss]

35. You're ignoring the Democrats main voting bloc

"Black churches" are the core of our party. They're Christian. They're organized. They're Democrats. And they vote.

Personally, I'm not terribly comfortable mixing religion and politics. I guess that puts me at a disadvantage with "The Christian Right," but I don't want to win an election at the price of my soul. Ralph Reed seems not to have that conflict.

[Terwilliger]

41. I appreciate Ralph Reed not having that conflict...

I want to understand how you both read the same book and come up with such different conclusions.

And, I don't know why you're talking about religious blacks...I'm talking about the religious-right, most of whom are not black.

[theboss]

42. Ask him that question

I honestly don't know how someone reads the Bible and decides that Supply-Side Economics is what America needs. I'm more concerned with getting into Heaven myself.

And the reason I mention black churches is to give an example of a huge group of organized, left-leaning Christians, of which you said we needed. I was explaining we already had what you wanted.

Frankly, most "progressive" causes in this country's history have been fermented, organized, and pushed by churches. From Abolition to civil rights to nuclear freeze, Christians have been at the front. Heck, the last two Democrats to get elected were deeply religious men. (Jimmy Carter's sister was a minister).

The reason the Religious Right gets attention is that they are modern-day Pharisees. They advertise their religion to gain political power. Their eyes are on the wrong world. Personally, I think they are sinning.

[SlavesandBulldozers]

21. Johnny Cash

was like any progressive, he saw those who were less fortunate as victims, in some sense, of society. He did not see those less fortunate, as conservatives do, as being poor because of lack of work-ethic, will, or morals. Johnny Cash was a creator, an srtist, a philosopher - how many artists do you know that are conservative?

[Screaming Lord Byron]

25. Very few.

[KAZ]

26. Alterman says, one of us. Nice article.

http://www.thenation.com/doc.mhtml?i=20031020&s=alterman

-snip
A guy whose death makes the cover of both Time and People doesn't require a Nation columnist to sign off on his cultural significance. "Johnny Cash" is a two-word answer to anti-Americanism everywhere. If money and crass commercialism have warped this nation's soul beyond hope, then how is it that this angry, unvarnished truth-teller with a voice filled with gravel became that America's unofficial national poet? Cash, who opposed the war in Iraq, was not noisily political, but his integrity forced him to speak out just the same. This symbol of American patriotism questioned the Vietnam War as he simultaneously entertained the troops in the field and told their story at home. He threw himself into the cause of Native Americans when, at the height of his success in the mid-1960s, he released an album animated by their plight called Bitter Tears. The record contains an unforgettable version of "The Ballad of Ira Hayes," a song about a heroic American Indian soldier who helped raise the famous flag at Iwo Jima but died in a haze of alcoholism induced by anti-Indian bias at home. Cash also sang of a US government that "broke the ancient treaty with a politician's grin." Columbia Records did not want to release it, but they did not want to lose Johnny either. It came out and received almost no radio play, leading Johnny to risk career suicide with a full-page ad in Billboard accusing record companies of wishing to "wallow in meaninglessness."

-more

[tom_paine]

29. I remember his last interview in Time Magazine

They asked him how he felt about the direction Amerika was taking and whether he favored the Iraq Invasion.

He stammered a bit and then said "I'm not going to go there."

I felt very sad and tired, which is of course how Hitler, Stalin, Marcos, and Bush all want their victims to feel, because here was this big star, this great man, also nearing the end of his life...

and he STILL was gripped by fear and refused to speak out!

As we all know the Busheviks are very mean, vindictive and fight very damned hard. Cash undoubtedly knew this, and, looking at the Dixie Chicks, opted for the fearful option of remaining silent (much to my amazement).

I'll always love Johnny's music, but damn it all, his last interview is emblematic of Life in Imperial Amerika.

And these are very likely "The Good Old Days".

[mac56]

36. Give the man a break, tom.

He was dying, for chrissake.

[theboss]

43. . . . .and deeply, deeply depressed.

June had just died and he was never going to get over that. I'm sure he didn't think a lot about the outside world his last few months.

[tom_paine]

53. You'd think that would be the time when you would speak out most

Because you had no fears left. And being near towards meeting your maker, you'd think a person would want to speak out against the Bushevik evil.

Hell, even Ed Rollins spoke out against the Bushevik evil on his deathbed, and Barry Goldwater, too.

Look, I am not berating Johnny. I always liked Johnny's music and him as a person, I am only saying I found it deeply disturbing that he wouldn't speak out given the opportunity.

If a dying man was afraid to speak out, what hope does that hold for the living in Bushevik Imperial Amerika.

That all I was saying, not busting on Johnny.

[Ivote]

37. IS HE ONE OF US?

I'm a Johnny Cash fan from way back. I remember following Doug Kershaw backstage just to see Johnny Cash at Madison Square Garden and watching the whole show from backstage (watched his back). I think the best album he ever made was "BITTER TEARS". All you have to do is listen to the words. FALLING LEAVES,DRUMS AND IRA HAYES.The man sang from the soul. I think that since this administration not only doesn't have a soul and feel that they are intellectually (since they don't read and have no clue as to what is going on)iliterate that maybe we should bombard them with some cd's. But then again that might not work either since they dont listen. But Ira Hayes still stands today for our vets as much as it did years ago.

[Screaming Lord Byron]

39. Thanks. I knew I was right. Just trying to be 'fair and balanced'

[DeepModem Mom]

38. Johnny was close to Al Gore, who spoke at his funeral n/t

[info being]

44. STOP TRYING TO LABEL EVERYONE!!!!!

shees.

[Screaming Lord Byron]

45. Label? Hardly. Just wanted some feedback on an argument.

I've heard many rightists try to co-opt his stuff. Maybe you should be a little less dogmatic on this.

[dbt]

49. Just the opposite:

We were all part of him. That's what made him truly great. That's why he still won't fit into a convenient niche.

He was the King Of Rock And Roll.

:loveya:
dbt

[durutti]

50. He Opposed the Vietnam War n/t

[dolstein]

54. I think Johnny Cash was probably too genuine

to feel comfortable associating himself with a bunch of left-wing poseurs -- or right-wing poseurs, for that matter. I seriously doubt he spent much of his free time listening to NPR or reading the latest Michael Moore book, and I doubt he wrote many checks to the Brady Campaign, NARAL or the ACLU.

[Liberator_Rev]

55. Thanks to Terwilliger, the "Man in Black" song

has found a great place on our site, where it illustrates the main idea of
http://www.LiberalsLikeChrist.Org/GODvsGreed