Johnny Cash Sings 'Mama Tried' On His Talk Show

Jun 20, 2020 by apost team

Johnny Cash sang Merle Haggard's song Mama Tried on his self-titled talk show, The Johnny Cash Show, which aired from June 1979 to March 1971.

Johnny Cash was the man who knew how to walk the line. As one of American’s cultural legends, his legacy is that of an actor, singer, songwriter, musician, and author. Johnny Cash was one of the best-selling performers of all time; not just a smash hit in the United States, he sold over 90 million records throughout the entire world. As his cover version of Merle Haggard's Mama Tried shows, he could always make anyone's song his own.

Although Johnny Cash is perhaps best known for his performances in the country music scene, his unique sound embraced rock and roll, gospel, blues, and rockabilly. This powerful appeal across multiple genres won him the right to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and the Country Music Hall of Fame, according to Rolling Stone.

Johnny Cash grew up on a poor cotton farm in Arkansas, and after spending four years in the United States Air Force, he was able to show off his calming baritone bass voice in his first public performances. He had a lot of practice perfecting his unique vocal range thanks to all of the isolation growing up while working in the fields.

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He had a bit of an outlaw image, which he was careful to cultivate to help support his brand and his records.

Eventually, Johnny Cash began performing in prisons. His reputation as a sort of American romantic outlaw allowed people to fantasize about a time gone by. His prison concerts would always feature songs about the concept of rehabilitation and redemption. Religious undertones, common at the time, were also featured. This was mostly due to Johnny Cash’s strong Christian upbringing.

In the late 60s and early 70s, Johnny Cash also became a household name through his popular TV show, The Johnny Cash Show. In one particular episode, he opened the show with the Merle Haggard hit Mama Tried. The song tells the story of a young boy who, despite the best efforts of his working-class mother, is simply unable to stay out of trouble. Before the song starts, you can also hear Johnny doing his signature self-introduction.

Mama Tried was one of the cornerstones of fellow Country music legend Merle Haggard's career, who had a huge hit with it in 1968. But as the enthusiastic crowd reaction clearly shows, Johnny Cash's cover version can certainly stand proudly beside the original. Maybe Johnny even saw parallels to his own life in the song's lyrics.

Can you or your friends relate to the backgrounds of Johnny Cash and his family? What would you do if you had all of that talent? Let us know your thoughts and pass this amazing rendition on to fellow music lovers.