'All-Star Tribute to Johnny Cash' lives up to its title
Claudia Perry
* 04/08/99
The Star-Ledger Newark, N.J.
(Copyright Newark Morning Ledger Co., 1999)
The hair was gray, and the face was a little craggier than usual.
But it was still Johnny Cash, front and center of the stage at the
Hammerstein Ballroom Tuesday night, singing "I'll Walk the Line" with
all the power and menace you remember. "Hello, I'm Johnny Cash," he
drawled, and an audience that included Michael Stipe of R.E.M. and
producer Rick Rubin leaped to its feet.
Cash, who hadn't officially been onstage for nearly 19 months, was
being celebrated with an all-star tribute, provocatively titled "An
All-Star Tribute to Johnny Cash." The two-hour show will air on the
cable channel TNT April 18 at 8 p.m.
If you remembered that you were at a video taping session and
weren't expecting the smooth transitions and crazy emotional peaks of
a live concert, the three-hour-or-so event was fairly pleasant. It
will be even more pleasant for viewers who won't have to listen to
host Jon Voight re-do several intros. Nor will viewers have to be
berated by an unseen director to applaud more loudly and
enthusiastically.
Those points aside, there were some inspired musical moments
throughout the event. Wyclef Jean's reading of "Delia's Gone" was a
show-stopping moment because it drew parallels between country and
hip-hop that don't easily come to mind. Aided by Refugee Camp
bassist Jerry "Wonder" DuPlessis, Jean sounded strong and assured.
He also proved that a black cowboy hat is a nice accessory for
dreadlocks.
June Carter Cash, Johnny's wife of some 30 years, did a sweet
version of "Ring of Fire" with Marty Stuart and her son, Jason, who
* plays fiddle with bluegrass great Del McCoury.
The other Jerseyan involved was Bruce Springsteen, who delivered a
solo acoustic version of "Give My Love to Rose" on videotape.
Springsteen sounded fine, and Cash's inspiration is obvious. What
was less compelling was Springsteen's spoken intro about Cash's
gifts. It sounded more thought than felt.
U2 and Bob Dylan gave taped performances. U2's version of "Don't
Take Your Guns to Town" had a reggae feel, but the band seemed
disconnected from the performance. Bob Dylan expressed his love and
respect for Cash before saying he was sorry he couldn't be there "but
that's the way it is." Dylan performed a version of "Train of Love"
that sounded, well, Dylanesque.
Willie Nelson and Kris Kristofferson, old pals of Cash, pulled off
some entertaining moments. Nelson delivered a haunting version of "I
Still Miss Someone." He teamed up with fellow Texan Lyle Lovett and
Kristofferson to perform "Big River."
Kristofferson required a do-over on "The Ballad of Ira Hayes," but
the man's such an outlaw legend that nobody minded too much. Some
did mind his attempts to sing harmony with Trisha Yearwood on his own
"Sunday Morning Coming Down." Yearwood has a voice that inspires a
combination of jealousy and awe, and Kristofferson didn't need to
disturb her.
Another peculiar combination, Nelson and Sheryl Crow doing a
medley of "Jackson" and "Orange Blossom Special," grated because Crow
is a serviceable but not particularly charismatic singer. When she
teamed up with Mary Chapin Carpenter and Emmylou Harris to do "Flesh
and Blood," it felt a bit cut-rate.
But there was enough good music that tuning into the show would be
advised. Chris Isaak did a delirious job with "Get Rhythm," whose
speedy phrasing recalled the hell-bent fury of Cash's early
recordings with Sun Records.
Rosanne Cash, who didn't sing because of a throat problem,
introduced a segment on her father's gospel leanings by saying he was
raised Baptist, but "admitted a continuing attraction to the Seven
Deadly Sins." Her remarks introduced the venerable black gospel
group the Fairfield Four, which performed "Belshazzar" aided by
former Cash band member Stuart.
All of the performers, who also included the Mavericks (who served
as the backup band), Brooks and Dunn (who roared through "Ghost
Riders in the Sky") and Dave Matthews (who teamed up with Harris for
a decidedly mellow version of "Long Black Veil"), came out to stand
with Cash at the end.
