Johnny Cash Is Coming to Town

Last updated
Johnny Cash Is Coming to Town
JohnnyCashisComingtoTown.jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedApril 13, 1987
VenueCowboy Arms
Studio Mercury Nashville
Genre
Length32:37
Label Mercury
Producer Jack Clement
Johnny Cash chronology
Believe in Him
(1986)
Johnny Cash Is Coming to Town
(1987)
Classic Cash: Hall of Fame Series
(1988)
Singles from Johnny Cash Is Coming to Town
  1. "The Night Hank Williams Came to Town"
    Released: March 1987
  2. "Sixteen Tons"
    Released: June 1987
  3. "Let Him Roll"
    Released: September 1987
  4. "W. Lee O'Daniel (and the Light Crust Dough Boys)"
    Released: November 1987

Johnny Cash Is Coming to Town is the 73rd album by American country singer Johnny Cash, released in 1987, and his first for Mercury Records. It was re-released in 2003, paired with Boom Chicka Boom on a single CD. "Sixteen Tons" was previously a hit for Tennessee Ernie Ford, "The Big Light" is an Elvis Costello song from his album King of America , released the previous year and "Let Him Roll" is from Guy Clark's debut, Old No. 1 . The album reached #36 on the country charts, while the only released single, "The Night Hank Williams Came to Town", peaked at #43. [2]

Contents

"Ballad of Barbara" is a rerecording of a track that had been a hit single for Cash in the early 1970s. A number of tracks left over from the album's recording sessions would later surface on Cash's final Mercury album, The Mystery of Life , released in 1991.

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg link
Robert Christgau (B+) link

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."The Big Light" Elvis Costello 2:41
2."Ballad of Barbara" Johnny Cash 4:21
3."I'd Rather Have You"Cash3:11
4."Let Him Roll" Guy Clark 4:29
5."The Night Hank Williams Came to Town" (with Waylon Jennings) Bobby Braddock, Charlie Williams3:24
6."Sixteen Tons" Merle Travis 2:46
7."Letters from Home"J.C. Crowley, Jack Wesley Routh3:21
8."W. Lee O'Daniel (and the Light Crust Dough Boys)" James Talley 2:46
9."Heavy Metal (Don't Mean Rock and Roll to Me)"Clark, Jim McBride2:50
10."My Ship Will Sail" Allen Reynolds 2:46

Personnel

Additional personnel

Charts

Album - Billboard (United States)

Chart (1987)Peak position
Top Country Albums36

Singles - Billboard (United States)

YearSinglePeak positions
US Country
1987"The Night Hank Williams Came to Town"43
"Sixteen Tons"-
"Let Him Roll"-
"W. Lee O'Daniel (and the Light Crust Dough Boys)"72

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References

  1. "Johnny Cash is Coming to Town - Johnny Cash | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic .
  2. C. Eric Banister -Johnny Cash FAQ: All That's Left to Know About the Man in Black 1617136085 2014 "“Sixteen Tons,” written by Merle Travis, fits, as one would expect, like a coal miner's glove, while “Letters from Home,” by Jack Wesley Routh and John Charles Crowley, finds Cash in a sentimental mood."