#216 Johnny Cash - Live at Folsom Prison

This was part of the Cash kick I went on back in the day, just recently got around to this one.

I'm not normally one for live albums, but because of its setting, this resonates in a way all its own. For one, the setlist choices carry bonus significance, and tales of imprisonment and freedom and execution abound. Plus, you get the experience of listening to the songs and imagining what it would be like to hear them as a prisoner, as opposed to, you know, as you, at some concert venue.

The setting also accounts for some of the brilliant tension in the first half of the album, the easy/uneasy banter, the ad libs and crackups, the unpredictable energy. The songs on the first half are the better of the lot too, climaxing with the rambling Orange Blossom Special and haunting Long Black Shawl; the latter putting the aging voice of Cash on full, gloriously rumbling display. The latter half seems to settle into more of a groove though, and loses some of its spark as a result. Maybe its the two Jack Clement-penned novelty clunkers, or the fact that two of the later songs came from a different performance than the rest, or simply the fact that the rush of the setting had worn off; for whatever reason, the second half didn't crackle for me. Still, the energy the album starts with is unmatched, and at least good enough for 3.5/5