At San Quentin

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At San Quentin
Live album by Johnny Cash

Publication
(s)

1969

Label (s) Columbia Records

Format (s)

LP, CD (RR), 2 CD + DVD (RR2)

Genre (s)

Country music

Title (number)

18 (RR), 31 (RR2)

running time

59 min 6 s (RR), 99 min 56 s (RR2)

occupation

production

Bob Johnston (Original) / Bob Irwin (RR)

Studio (s)

Recorded live at the San Quentin State Prison

chronology
The Holy Land
(1969) 		At San Quentin More of Old Golden Throat
(1969)

At San Quentin is a live music album by Johnny Cash that was recorded on February 24, 1969 at San Quentin State Prison , California . It stayed at number 1 on the Billboard Country Albums chart for 20 weeks and at number 1 on the pop charts for four weeks .

The album

Performing artists

As with Cash's previous album from a prison, At Folsom Prison , his wife June Carter Cash as well as the Carter Family , Carl Perkins and the Statler Brothers appeared as guest musicians . In Cash's backing band Tennessee Three , Bob Wootton played guitar after Luther Perkins died in the fire in his house in August 1968.

concert

Cash was playing at San Quentin for the fourth time; the mood among the prisoners who, together with the guards, made up Cash's audience, was emotionally charged. Cash had already played a few songs, including with his wife, when he announced that he had written a song that afternoon about his impressions of San Quentin. When he began to sing, the prisoners fell silent, only to break out into frenetic cheers shortly afterwards. Every line of the song like "San Quentin, may you rot and burn in hell" or "Do you think I'll be different when you're through" was greeted with loud comments and heckling. Cash also presented the full-length Silverstein hit A Boy Named Sue for the first time , the single also becoming a No. 1 hit. At the final medley all musicians involved were on stage together again.

When asked by Ralph J. Gleason, reporter for the San Francisco Chronicle and co-founder of Rolling Stone magazine , why Cash was so popular with inmates, one of the convicts replied that Cash was real and who was a "fake fifty" the prisoners would notice immediately. Cash, on the other hand, told Gleason backstage: "Prisoners are the best audience in the world" .

Republication

The album was re-released on CD in 2000, this edition contains nine songs more than the original release from 1969, and all of Cash's announcements can be heard unabridged and uncensored.

Title List (Re-Release 2000)

  1. "Big River" (J. Cash) - 1:56
  2. "I Still Miss Someone" (J. Cash - Roy Cash Jr.) - 1:52
  3. " Wreck of the Old 97 " (Arranged by J. Cash, B. Johnson, N. Blake) - 2:05
  4. "I Walk the Line" (J. Cash) - 3:29
  5. "Darlin 'Companion" (J. Sebastian) - 3:21
  6. "I Don't Know Where I'm Bound" (J. Cuttie) - 2:24
  7. "Starkville City Jail" (J. Cash) - 6:15
  8. "San Quentin" (J. Cash) - 4:07
  9. "San Quentin" (J. Cash) - 3:13
  10. "Wanted Man" ( B. Dylan - J. Cash) - 3:24
  11. " A Boy Named Sue " ( S. Silverstein ) - 3:59
  12. "Peace in the Valley" ( T. Dorsey ) - 2:30
  13. "Folsom Prison Blues" (J. Cash) - 4:24
  14. " Ring of Fire " (J. Carter - M. Kilgore) - 2:07
  15. "He Turned the Water Into Wine" (J. Cash) - 4:01
  16. "Daddy Sang Bass" ( C. Perkins ) - 2:43
  17. "The Old Account Was Settled Long Ago" (LR Dalton) - 2:16
  18. "Closing Medley: Folsom Prison Blues / I Walk the Line / Ring of Fire / The Rebel-Johnny Yuma" (J. Cash - J. Carter - M. Kilgore - R. Markowitz - A. Fenady) - 5:08

In 2006 the “Legacy Edition” was released, which, in addition to the complete 100-minute concert on CD, also contains a DVD with the television recording of the British broadcaster “Granada Television”, which also shows interviews with prisoners and guards. The recording was initially not broadcast in 1969 because of Cash's socially critical statements.

Chart successes and awards

Album - US Billboard Charts

year Chart position
1969 Country albums 1
1969 Pop albums 1

Singles - US Billboard charts

year single Chart position
1969 "A Boy Named Sue" Country singles 1
1969 "A Boy Named Sue" Pop singles 2

At San Quentin also won the CMA Award for Best Album of 1969.

Country / Region Award Sales
Awards for music sales
(country / region, Award, Sales)
Australia (ARIA) Australia (ARIA) Platinum record icon.svg platinum 70,000
Ireland (IRMA) Ireland (IRMA) Gold record icon.svg gold 7,500
Canada (MC) Canada (MC) Platinum record icon.svg platinum 100,000
United States (RIAA) United States (RIAA) Platinum record icon.svg 3 × platinum 3,000,000
United Kingdom (BPI) United Kingdom (BPI) Gold record icon.svg gold 100,000
All in all Gold record icon.svg2 × gold
Platinum record icon.svg5 × platinum
 3,277,500

Main article: Johnny Cash / Music Sales Awards

Sources and web links