Christmas Records, Day 14: Christmas With Johnny Cash

Christmas With Johnny Cash (Sony Legacy, 2003)

Family, religion and cheesiness are hallmarks of the Christmas record and also ingredients that country music, more than any other genre, has in spades. It's no surprise then that during his long career the Man in Black released a number of festive albums and in the 70s hosted an annual seasonal TV special.

This 2003 album compiles a mixture of traditional carols, originals and standards that Cash recorded from the 60s to the 80s. His prison concerts, American Recordings albums and the film Walk the Line have helped etch a popular image of Cash as a lawless wild man. In truth he was never shy of the saccharine and even his 1963 version of Blue Christmas is awash with backing vocals. A gem from the '63 album is The Christmas Sprit, a recitation that imagines people on Christmas Eve around the world and gives listeners the chance to hear Cash speak German and try an English accent.

His baritone is obviously well suited to carols and the ones here are full-on production numbers with brass and choirs; Away in the Manger features a spoken-word segment that's like hearing the greatest ever nativity play narrator. The real curio comes at the end. Christmas As I Knew It is a previously unreleased rehearsal from one of the TV shows in which Johnny recalls the poverty of his childhood Christmas in Arkansas. Turkey? Little John had make do with a squirrel his dad killed.

Johnny Cash & Daughters sing Silent Night