Hot DAMN.
When it comes to iconic artists like Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, Dolly Parton… nobody can really do ’em the kind of justice they deserve.
Many can come close, many can do a damn good job, but there’s usually just something missing…
Enter Chris Stapleton.
Chris could sing the phone book and turn it into an award winning country song. So when he took a run at Cash’s legendary “Folsom Prison Blues,” he crushed it.
Originally written in 1953, “Folsom Prison Blues” was recorded at Sun Studio in Memphis in 1955. And then, in January of 1968, Cash would go on to record a live version of the song from Folsom Prison itself, catapulting the hit to the top of the charts.
It was later released on Cash’s At Folsom Prison album, the most successful album of his entire career.
You can look all you want, but it just doesn’t get better than this.
Which, now that I think of it… I wouldn’t be mad at a Chris Stapleton cover album. He’s recorded a number of songs by Guy Clark, Willie Nelson, Charlie Daniels, and of course, his cover of “Tennessee Whiskey,” but can we just get a “Chris Stapleton Sings the Classics” kind of album?
Is that too much to ask?
“I Never Got To See Waylon Jennings Or Johnny Cash”
Music is so readily available today, most people can pull up footage of historic concerts like Johnny Cash at San Quentin, Jimi Hendrix at the Monterey Pop Festival, Woodstock, and more in a matter of seconds.
But nothing compares to the thrill of being there live in person.
Unfortunately, many of these great musical icons have passed away, leaving us only with what has been recorded, forever immortalized on tape, on vinyl, and on the internet.
But if you could fire up Doc Brown’s Delorean, gun it to 88 miles per hours, and blast off into the front row of a live show… where would you go?
According to a new interview with Audacy’s Rob + Holly, the great Chris Stapleton has a few artists in mind that he wishes he could’ve seen:
“I never got to see Aretha Franklin live and I always regretted that when she passed away recently. You make these plans, you’re like, ‘I’m gonna go see him when he comes around next year’ or I’ll see this person… and then you lose a lot of history musically, in recent years.
It would’ve been cool to see The Beatles in their entirety. I never got to see Waylon Jennings play or Johnny Cash, any of those guys… I got to see Haggard play and I played some shows with Haggard and Willie.
I Haven’t seen the Rolling Stones but it’s on the list and I keep meaning to see the Rolling Stones but I just haven’t made it.”
Well Chris, I’ve seen the Rolling Stones live (thanks for the tix Whiskey Myers), and I’ll tell ya what… Mick and Keith and boys still got it. Definitely get that one the calendar ASAP.
But overall, can’t say I disagree with any of Chris’ picks here… and you know he’s got that big, booming, soulful voice… makes sense that he’d want to go see the Queen Of Soul.”
So that begs the question… who would you like to go back in time and see?
I mean, a Waylon and Johnny show would be a helluva good time…