At Folsom Prison is a live album by Johnny Cash, recorded on January 13, 1968 at Folsom State Prison. Also on the album are June Carter, Carl Perkins, and Cash's band, the Tennessee Three.

The final song, "Greystone Chapel", was written by an inmate, Glen Sherley. Johnny Cash had never sung the song until the night before the Folsom visit. A Reverend asked Cash to listen to an audio tape of Sherley singing the song. After hearing the tape Cash rushed to include the song on the live album the next night.

Throughout the album Cash seems to empathize with the plight of the prisoners, and the inmates for their part seem to have a great deal of respect for Cash and his works.

On the original LP release, the song order was changed and several songs were cut, probably for space reasons. The version released on CD in 2000 still does not contain the entire concert, but rather with added tracks from the concert that day.

In 2003, it was one of 50 recordings chosen that year by the Library of Congress to be added to the National Recording Registry.

Track listing

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Original Release

• Side 1
  1. Folsom Prison Blues
  2. Dark as the Dungeon
  3. I Still Miss Someone
  4. Cocaine Blues
  5. 25 Minutes to Go
  6. Orange Blossom Special
  7. The Long Black Veil
• Side2
  1. Send A Picture of Mother
  2. The Wall
  3. Dirty Old Egg-Sucking Dog
  4. Flushed From The Bathroom of Your Heart
  5. Jackson (with June Carter)
  6. Give My Love to Rose (with June Carter)
  7. I Got Stripes
  8. Green, Green Grass of Home
  9. Greystone Chapel

Re-release

1. Folsom Prison Blues (J. Cash) 1:42
2. Busted (H. Howard) 1:25
3. Dark as the Dungeon (M. Travis) 3:04
4. I Still Miss Someone (J. Cash - R. Cash, Jr.) 1:38
5. Cocaine Blues (T. J. Arnall) 3:01
6. 25 Minutes to Go (S. Silverstein) 3:31
7. Orange Blossom Special (E. T. Rouse) 3:06
8. The Long Black Veil (M. Wilkin - D. Dill) 3:58
9. Send a Picture of Mother (J. Cash) 2:05
10. The Wall (H. Howard) 1:36
11. Dirty Old Egg-Suckin' Dog (J. H. Clement) 1:30
12. Flushed From the Bathroom of Your Heart (J. H. Clement) 2:05
13. Joe Bean (B. Freeman - L. Pober) 3:05
14. Jackson (duet with June Carter) (B. Wheeler - J. Lieber) 3:12
15. Give My Love to Rose (J. Cash) 2:43
16. I Got Stripes (duet with June Carter) (J. Cash - C. Williams) 1:52
17. The Legend of John Henry's Hammer (J. Cash - J. Carter) 7:08
18. Green, Green Grass of Home (C. Putman) 2:13
19. Greystone Chapel (Glen Sherley) 6:02

Credits

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• Johnny Cash - vocal, guitar, harmonica
• June Carter - vocal
• Carter Family - vocals
• Marshall Grant - bass guitar
• W.S. Holland - drums
• Carl Perkins - electric guitar
• Luther Perkins - electric guitar
• The Statler Brothers - vocals

Walk the Line

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The 2005 film of Cash's life, Walk the Line, is largely framed by the Folsom Prison concert and includes the song "Cocaine Blues". The film includes some remarks by Cash (played by Joaquin Phoenix) that either vary from or do not appear on the album. However, Cash did comment on the prison's water quality, by sipping some and then kind of gagging on it, rather than taking a direct verbal shot at the warden as shown in the film. One line is taken directly from the concert. During the song "Dark as the Dungeon", a prisoner had yelled something inaudible that briefly disrupted the song. Afterward, Cash humorously chided the audience: "This is being recorded, so you can't say 'hell' or 'shit' or anything like that!"

References

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• Cash, Johnny, (2005) Inside Johnny Cash's Folsom Prison NPR NEWS STORY.

United States National Recording Registry | Johnny Cash albums | 1968 albums

At Folsom Prison