Arguably the most famous Johnny Cash cover is his duet with Bob Dylan on the song “Girl From The North Country.” Cash and Dylan were already fans of one another upon Dylan’s entry into Nashville. However, their fandom of one other can be publicly tracked all the way back to 1963. That said, in 1964, Cash performed a cover of Dylan’s “Don’t Think Twice (It’s Alright)” at The Newport Folk Festival. It was this performance that further solidified their fondness for each other and their music.
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Cash was never a consistent act at the festival, as the two notable times he appeared were to perform this cover and to introduce a young Kris Kristofferson. When he first performed at the festival he seemingly aimed to honor the prince of popular folk music. This performance of Dylan’s classic is just another one of the musical crossovers that has been forgotten about through time. Although, we’re here to remind you of its magnificence.
Johnny Cash’s Love of The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan
When Dylan released his album, The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan in 1963, Cash became a fan instantaneously. According to the Country Music Hall of Fame, when Cash procured the record he would play it “incessantly.” Furthermore, Cash once wrote Dylan a letter about how much of a fan he was of both the record and his music.
In addition to these two signs of admiration, Cash’s affinity towards the album ran deeper than one might think. Cash actually wrote in his autobiography, “I’d put on [The] Freewheelin’ [Bob Dylan] backstage, then go out and do my show, then listen again as soon as I came off.” Thus it seems Johnny Cash’s fondness for the album extended beyond just sound. Rather, it seems to have gifted him a deep sense of inspiration as a result of his admiration.
The 1964 Performance
Cash’s cover of “Don’t Think Twice (It’s Alright)” is a culmination of his iconic country breakdown sound paired with Dylan’s cerebrally emotional lyrics. To say the least, it’s something that shouldn’t work, but it does. It seems Cash completely reinvented the musical arrangement to better fit his musical strong suit. However, he stayed true to the best part of the song—The words.
Other than this merely being an iconic crossover between two music giants, it also marked a major milestone for Dylan. Dylan who’d been a Cash fan since his beginnings, said the moment was the “high thrill of a lifetime,” per The Country Music Hall of Fame. It seems Dylan’s sophomore album and Johnny Cash’s rendition of the song is what helped give the world the infamous cover of “Girl From The North Country” and inspired Dylan to take on Nashville.
Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
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