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by: Chris Talbott
Johnny Cash was a big-tent artist, drawing followers from every corner. “We Walk the Line: A Celebration of the Music of Johnny Cash” is a perfect example of this.
The DVD/CD release chronicles a concert held earlier this year in Austin, Texas, to celebrate what would have been Cash’s 80th birthday. Drawing musicians from not just the world of country music, but also from rock, pop and folk, “We Walk the Line” shows just how wide-ranging an influence the American icon remains.
The concert included a few key acts from the outlaw country music world like Willie Nelson and Kris Kristofferson, Cash’s longtime friends and collaborators. And Jamey Johnson and Shooter Jennings take over for Cash and Waylon Jennings in a moving re-imagining of The Highwaymen with Nelson and Kristofferson.
The rest of the lineup comes from all over the map and includes Ronnie Dunn, Brandi Carlile, Andy Grammer, Shelby Lynne, Lucinda Williams, Sheryl Crow, Train’s Pat Monahan, Iron & Wine and the Carolina Chocolate Drops, who steal the show.
Like all such tributes, some of the song-artist pairings are head-scratchers. But there are some great moments: Nelson’s guitar playing, Johnson’s rumbling voice standing in for Cash on “Highwayman,” Grammer’s strangely beautiful shuffling take on “Get Rhythm,” Dunn’s sense of humor and horn section, and a crackerjack band led by Don Was and Buddy Miller.
CHECK OUT THIS TRACK: The concert really doesn’t get rolling until the Chocolate Drops show up midway through with a rolling, rollicking rendition of “Jackson.” And Dom Flemons pulls out the reed flute and totally enlivens the concert-ending group singalong of “I Walk the Line.” Not to be missed.
We Walk The Line: A Celebration of the Music of Johnny Cash
DVD/Blu-ray
Folsom Prison Blues – performed by Brandi Carlile
Get Rhythm – performed by Andy Grammer
I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry – performed by Amy Lee
Hey Porter – performed by Buddy Miller
Why Me Lord – performed by Shelby Lynne
Help Me Make It Through the Night – performed by Pat Monahan
It Ain’t Me Babe – performed by Shelby Lynne and Pat Monahan
Sunday Morning Coming Down – performed by Jamey Johnson and Kris Kristofferson
Jackson – performed by Carolina Chocolate Drops
Wreck Of The Old 97 – performed by Rhett Miller
Ring Of Fire – performed by Ronnie Dunn
Cocaine Blues – performed by Shooter Jennings
Hurt – performed by Lucinda Williams
The Long Black Veil – performed by Iron & Wine
Big River – performed by Kris Kristofferson
Cry, Cry, Cry – performed by Sheryl Crow
If I Were A Carpenter – performed by Willie Nelson and Sheryl Crow
Highwayman – performed by Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, Shooter Jennings and Jamey Johnson
I Walk The Line – performed by Full Ensemble
Bonus Features
I Still Miss Someone – rehearsal performance by Willie NelsonThe Man Comes Around – performed by Matthew McConaughey
Johnny Cash, His Life and Music – Artist interviews, Johnny Cash archival footage, more
Walking The Line: The Making of a Celebration – behind-the-scenes of the historic Johnny Cash 80th Birthday Concert CelebrationCD (same artists/performances as DVD, different order)
Folsom Prison Blues – performed by Brandi Carlile
Ring Of Fire – performed by Ronnie Dunn
Hey Porter – performed by Buddy Miller Hurt – performed by Lucinda Williams
Wreck Of The Old 97 – performed by Rhett Miller
Jackson – performed by Carolina Chocolate Drops
The Long Black Veil – performed by Iron & Wine
Big River – performed by Kris Kristofferson
Why Me Lord – performed by Shelby Lynne
Help Me Make It Through the Night – performed by Pat Monahan
It Ain’t Me Babe – performed by Shelby Lynne and Pat Monahan
Sunday Morning Coming Down – performed by Jamey Johnson and Kris Kristofferson
Get Rhythm – performed by Andy Grammer
Cocaine Blues – performed by Shooter Jennings
I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry – performed by Amy Lee
Cry, Cry, Cry – performed by Sheryl Crow
I Still Miss Someone – rehearsal performance by Willie Nelson
If I Were A Carpenter – performed by Willie Nelson and Sheryl Crow
Highwayman – performed by Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, Shooter Jennings and Jamey Johnson
I Walk The Line – performed by Full Ensemble
