Johnny Cash Sings "San Quentin" At State Prison

Jun 16, 2020

Johnny Cash's compassion for prisoners was demonstrated by his repeated live concerts in prisons. He recorded three live albums from prison concerts, including the 1969 hit album At San Quentin. At San Quentin sold more copies than any other Cash album before his death in September 2003.

Cash’s obsession with performing for prisoners started after he recorded "Folsom Prison Blues" in 1955. The song drove him to want to sing at Folsom Prison. He would wait to sing there until 1968, where he recorded a hit live album, reports Rolling Stone. By the time he made it to Folsom, Cash performed at San Quentin several times.

Cash first performed in San Quentin on January 1, 1958. According to Bowie News, Merle Haggard attended that concert as an inmate. Haggard, his life caught in a downward spiral, took inspiration from Cash’s performance. Haggard turned his life around and started a successful country music career. He always credited Cash for helping place him on the right path.

On February 24, 1969, Cash played a concert at San Quentin. On June 4, 1969, he released the album Johnny Cash At San Quentin. The album, which included "A Boy Named Sue" and "Folsom Prison Blues," went to No. 1 on both the pop and country charts. "A Boy Named Sue" topped the country charts and peaked at No. 2 on the pop charts.

After releases in several forms in the succeeding years, RIAA certified the album triple platinum, meaning it sold in excess of 3,000,000 copies. It also went platinum in Canada and Sweden and gold in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

Cash’s prison concerts remained controversial throughout his career. While the inmates loved the shows, guards, wardens, and some in the general public thought the concerts unnecessarily riled up the inmates. According to Rare Country, at the 1969 concert, Cash asked, "if any of the guards are still speaking to me, can I have a glass of water?" The quote shows that everyone understood that the system remained hostile to the performances.

At San Quentin featured a star-packed stage. The Statler Brothers, June Carter Cash, and the Cash Family performed vocals, while Carl Perkins played electric guitar. What do you think about the album, and how do you feel about Cash's prison concerts?