Johnny Cash - The Essential Johnny Cash

Issued in commemoration of Cash's 70th birthday, this double CD is a good survey of 1955-1993 career highlights (and a different release than the similarly titled three-CD The Essential Johnny Cash 1955-1983). Is it a good place to start? That depends on what you have or don't have already, considering that so many greatest-hits compilations containing some or much of this material appeared prior to this, yet another repackage. All of his very biggest hits are here, and it leans very heavily on his first 15 years of recordings, with just eight of the 36 tracks postdating 1970 (and only one of them, his 1993 U2 collaboration "The Wanderer," postdating 1986). For that reason some may complain that it doesn't give some phases of his career proper weight, and certainly not evenly distributed weight. But let's be cold about this: Cash's best records were between 1955 and 1970, and focusing on his early work, as this compilation does, means higher overall quality. It's too bad nothing is included from his acclaimed, unadorned 1994 album, American Recordings, but otherwise this will serve as a quite satisfactory best-of for those who want both the familiar hits and a few good, not-so-overplayed ones, like his versions of "It Ain't Me Babe," "Jackson," and "If I Were a Carpenter." ~ Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide

Name Credits Bob Dylan Performer Bob Johnston Producer Brian Ahern Producer Brian Eno Producer Carter Family Performer Charlie Bragg Producer Chips Moman Producer Darren Salmieri A&R Don Davis Producer Don Hunstein Photography Don Law Producer Earl Ball Producer Flood Producer Frank Bez Cover Photo Frank Jones Producer Jaan Uhelszki Collaboration Jack Clement Producer John Jackson Project Director Johnny Cash Arranger, Producer June Carter Cash Performer Kris Kristofferson Performer Lisa Sparagano Design, Art Direction Mark Wilder Mastering Marvin Koner Photography Nedra Olds-Neal Compilation Producer Nick Shaffran Compilation Producer Patti Matheny A&R Sam Phillips Producer Sandy Speiser Photography Seth Foster Mastering Steven Berkowitz A&R The Edge Producer Urve Kuusik Photography Waylon Jennings Performer Willie Nelson Performer