On this day (July 29) in 1968, Johnny Cash was in the middle of a four-week run at the top of the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart with “Folsom Prison Blues.” He originally released the song as a B-side to a top-five hit in 1955. Two years later, it appeared on his debut album, Johnny Cash with His Hot and Blue Guitar. More than a decade later, it became a hit in its own right.
Cash originally released “Folsom Prison Blues” as the B-side to his second single, “So Doggone Lonesome.” The single peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. He recorded the track again for his first live album, At Folsom Prison, in 1968. He released it as the album’s sole single on April 30, 1968. and it peaked at No. 1 on July 20. “Folsom Prison Blues” topped the chart for four consecutive weeks.
Johnny Cash Faced Legal Issues Over “Folsom Prison Blues”
“Folsom Prison Blues” is one of Johnny Cash’s signature songs. He famously wrote the song after watching the 1951 movie Inside the Walls of Folsom Prison. However, some may not know that he also pulled heavily from the 1953 Gordon Jenkins-penned song “Crescent City Blues,” recorded by Jenkins’ wife, Beverly Mahr.
Cash pulled many of the lyrics of “Folsom Prison Blues” directly from “Crescent City Blues.” For instance, the opening lines of both songs reference the train “a-comin’ ‘round the bend.” Additionally, the opening lines of the songs’ second verses are almost identical. Cash’s version is When I was just a baby, my mama told me, Son. The older song’s second verse starts with When I was just a baby, my mama told me, Sue.
Jenkins didn’t take Cash to court when he initially released the song. However, when “Folsom Prison Blues” became a major hit, he sued the country legend. They settled out of court for $75,000, according to MPR News.
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