''Johnny 99'' is the 69th album by American

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while ...

singer Johnny Cash, released on Columbia Records in 1983. It is notable for including two covers of Bruce Springsteen songs, " Highway Patrolman" and " Johnny 99". "

I'm Ragged but I'm Right "Ragged But Right" is a traditional American song dating from the early 1900s.Richard L. Matteson, Jr. "Ragged But Right." ''Acoustic Music Source Book.'' Mel Bay Publications, 2012p. 181. It was recorded by George Jones and released in 1956 as " ...

," a

George Jones George Glenn Jones (September 12, 1931 – April 26, 2013) was an American country musician, singer, and songwriter. He achieved international fame for his long list of hit records, including his best-known song " He Stopped Loving Her Today", ...

song, was a minor hit, reaching No. 75. ''Johnny 99'' is generally regarded as a strong release at a point in Cash's career which is considered to be the least successful; it was also the second-to-last solo album released by Cash on Columbia, prior to his move to

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. In the United States, it i ...

. Hoyt Axton sings background on "Highway Patrolman" and "Joshua Gone Barbados". "New Cut Road" had been a relatively successful single for Bobby Bare in 1981; Paul Kennerley's "Brand New Dance" would go on to be covered, among others, by Emmylou Harris on her 1990 album of the same name. Several of the songs on ''Johnny 99'' contain political or social themes and commentary: the title track tells the story of a disgruntled former automobile plant employee who turns to crime after encountering serious financial difficulties; "God Bless Robert E. Lee" praises the Confederacy's most famous general for managing to prevent unnecessary loss of human life in the war-torn South by surrendering to the

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

at Appomattox Court House; "Joshua Gone Barbados" deals with a sugarcane-cutters'

strike Strike may refer to: People * Strike (surname) Physical confrontation or removal *Strike (attack), attack with an inanimate object or a part of the human body intended to cause harm *Airstrike, military strike by air forces on either a suspected ...

on Saint Vincent turned violent; "Highway Patrolman", in turn, discusses a troubled relationship between the title character and his

alcoholic Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol that results in significant mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognized diagnostic entity. Predomina ...

, violent brother.

Track listing

Personnel

* Johnny Cash - vocals, acoustic guitar *

James Burton James Edward Burton (born August 21, 1939, in Dubberly, Louisiana) is an American guitarist. A member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame since 2001 (his induction speech was given by longtime fan Keith Richards), Burton has also been recognized ...

- electric guitar *

Bob Wootton Robert "Bob" Wootton (March 4, 1942 – April 9, 2017) was an American guitarist. He joined Johnny Cash's backing band, the Tennessee Three, after original lead guitarist Luther Perkins died in a house fire. He remained Cash's guitarist for n ...

- electric guitar *

Jerry Scheff Jerry Obern Scheff (born January 31, 1941) is an American bassist, best known for his work with Elvis Presley from 1969 to 1977 as a member of his TCB Band and on the Doors' '' L.A. Woman''. Biography Scheff grew up in Vallejo, California. After ...

- bass guitar *

Hal Blaine Hal Blaine (born Harold Simon Belsky; February 5, 1929 – March 11, 2019) was an American drummer and session musician, thought to be among the most recorded studio drummers in the music industry, claiming over 35,000 sessions and 6,000 singles. ...

- drums * Glen D. Hardin - keyboards * Brian Ahern - gut-string guitar, 6-string bass, tambourine, arrangements * Tim Goodman - electric guitar, acoustic guitar, slide guitar, 6-string bass, banjo * Nick DeCaro - accordion *

Jo-El Sonnier Jo-El Sonnier (; born Joel Sonnier; October 2, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter and accordionist who performs country music and Cajun music. Originally signed to Mercury Nashville Records, Sonnier charted several minor singles on the '' B ...

- accordion *

David Mansfield David Mansfield (born September 13, 1956) is an American musician and composer. Mansfield was raised in Leonia, New Jersey. His father, Newton Mansfield was a first violinist in the New York Philharmonic. David played guitar, pedal steel guita ...

- mandolin, mandocello, fiddle * Marty Stuart - electric and acoustic guitar, mandolin *

Norton Buffalo Phillip Jackson (September 28, 1951 – October 30, 2009), best known as Norton Buffalo, was an American singer-songwriter, country and blues harmonica player, record producer, bandleader and recording artist who was a versatile proponent of ...

- harmonica * Hoyt Axton, Barbara Bennett, Donivan Cowart, Lynn Langham - vocals *

June Carter June is the sixth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars and is the second of four months to have a length of 30 days, and the third of five months to have a length of less than 31 days. June contains the summer solstice in t ...

- vocals on "Brand New Dance" ;Technical *Jack Grochmal, Donivan Cowart, Brian Ahern - engineer *John Seakwood - photography

Charts

Singles - ''Billboard'' (United States)

References

External links

Luma Electronic entry on ''Johnny 99''
{{Authority control Johnny Cash albums 1983 albums Albums produced by Brian Ahern (producer) Columbia Records albums Cultural depictions of Robert E. Lee