The Folk Singer

This article is about the Johnny Cash song. For the Tommy Roe song, see The Folk Singer (Tommy Roe song).

1968 song by Johnny Cash

"The Folk Singer"

Spanish release picture sleeve

Single by Johnny Cash
A-side| "Folsom Prison Blues"
Released| April 1968 (1968-04)
Recorded| 1968
Genre| Folk
Length| 3:01
Label| Columbia
Songwriter(s)| Charles E. Daniels, Johnny Cash

"The Folk Singer" is a folk song, written by Charles E. Daniels and American musician Johnny Cash and first recorded by Cash in 1968.[1] It is also known as "Folk Singer" or, less often, "The Singer".

Allegedly about American pop singer Tommy Roe, "The Folk Singer" was first recorded in 1968 and released as a B-side on a 45 RPM live reissue of Cash's "Folsom Prison Blues" single in April 1968. Later recorded by Burl Ives (on the album, The Times They Are A-Changin') the same year[2] and Glen Campbell (on the album, Try a Little Kindness) in 1970,[3] the song reached a wider audience from these versions.

## Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds version (1986)

[edit]

"The Singer"

Single by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
from the album  Kicking Against the Pricks
B-side| "Running Scared"/"Black Betty"
Released| 16 June 1986 (1986-06-16)
Recorded| 1985
Genre| Rock, folk rock
Length| 3:08
Label| Mute
Songwriter(s)| Charles E. Daniels, Johnny Cash
Producer(s)| Flood
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds singles chronology
| "Tupelo"
(1985)  | "The Singer"
(1986)  | "The Mercy Seat"
(1988)

|
|

"The Folk Singer" was recorded by Australian post-punk group Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds in 1985, with a slightly altered lyric, under the title "The Singer." First released as a single in June 1986,[4] the song later appeared on the band's third studio album, Kicking Against the Pricks, which was composed entirely of cover versions.

"The Singer" was performed live on all of the band's following tour dates throughout 1986—1989 and on a number of other occasions up until 2005.[5]

### Track listing

[edit]

UK 7" (7 MUTE 47)

1. "The Singer" (Daniels, Cash) – 3:08
2. "Running Scared" (Roy Orbison, Joe Melson) –2:07

UK 12" (12 MUTE 47)

1. "The Singer" (Daniels, Cash) – 3:08
2. "Running Scared" (Orbison, Melson) – 2:07
3. "Black Betty" (Lead Belly) – 2:33

### Personnel

[edit]

Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds

* Nick Cave \- vocals
* Mick Harvey \- guitar, drums (on "Running Scared")
* Barry Adamson \- bass
* Thomas Wydler \- drums
* Hugo Race \- guitar (on "Running Scared" and "Black Betty")
* Tracy Pew \- bass (on "Running Scared" and "Black Betty")

Additional musicians

* The Berliner Kaffeehausmusik Ensemble - strings
* Gini Ball \- strings (on "Running Scared")
* Martin McCarrick \- strings (on "Running Scared")

Technical personnel

* Flood \- producer, engineer
* Tony Cohen \- co-producer, engineer
* Peter Gruchot - art direction, photography

### Charts

[edit]

Chart (1986)  | Peak
position

|

UK Indie Chart[6] | 1

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Second Hand Songs – Recording: The Folk Singer – Johnny Cash". Second Hand Songs. 22 April 2005. Retrieved 25 October 2010.
2. ^ ""All My Best" song list". burlives.com. Retrieved 25 October 2010.
3. ^ Try a Little Kindness – Glen Campbell at AllMusic. Retrieved 25 October 2010.
4. ^ "Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds – The Singer (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs. 16 June 1986. Retrieved 25 October 2010.
5. ^ "Nick Cave – chronological song list – 1985". Maurice Maes. Retrieved 25 October 2010.
6. ^ Lazell, Barry (1997). Indie Hits 1980-1989. Cherry Red Books. Archived from the original on June 5, 2011. Retrieved September 5, 2014.

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Johnny Cash

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Studio albums|

| 1950s|

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1960s|

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1970s|

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1980s|

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1990s|

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2000–2020s|

* American III: Solitary Man
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Live albums|

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Soundtracks|

* I Walk the Line
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Compilations|

* Johnny Cash Sings the Songs That Made Him Famous
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* 16 Biggest Hits
* Love, God, Murder
* The Essential Johnny Cash (2002)
* 20th Century Masters – The Millennium Collection: The Best of Johnny Cash
* Unearthed
* The Legend
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* The Legend of Johnny Cash Vol. II
* The Complete Columbia Album Collection
* Johnny Cash and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra

Songs|

* "25 Minutes to Go"
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* "Flesh and Blood"
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* "Folsom Prison Blues"
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* "Goodnight, Irene"
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Film|

Gospel Road: A Story of Jesus

Television|

The Johnny Cash Show

Biographies|

* Man in Black: His Own Story in His Own Words
* Cash: The Autobiography
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* Walk the Line
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Tribute albums|

* The Sound Behind Johnny Cash
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* Dressed in Black: A Tribute to Johnny Cash
* Johnny's Blues: A Tribute to Johnny Cash
* Walk the Line: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
* Fade to Black: Memories of Johnny
* All Aboard: A Tribute to Johnny Cash
* Johnny Cash Remixed
* We Walk the Line: A Celebration of the Music of Johnny Cash
* Forever Words

Associated acts|

* The Highwaymen
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Family|

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Historical sites|

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Legacy|

Statue of Johnny Cash

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Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds

* Martyn P. Casey
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Studio albums|

* From Her to Eternity
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* Kicking Against the Pricks
* Your Funeral... My Trial
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* The Good Son
* Henry's Dream
* Let Love In
* Murder Ballads
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* Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!
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Live albums|

* Live Seeds
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* Live at the Royal Albert Hall
* Live from KCRW
* Idiot Prayer

Compilations|

* The Best of Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds
* B-Sides & Rarities
* Lovely Creatures: The Best of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
* B-Sides & Rarities Part II

Extended plays|

* Distant Sky: Live in Copenhagen

Singles|

* "In the Ghetto"
* "Tupelo"
* "The Singer"
* "The Mercy Seat"
* "Deanna"
* "The Ship Song"
* "The Weeping Song"
* "Straight to You"
* "I Had a Dream, Joe"
* "What a Wonderful World"
* "Do You Love Me?"
* "Loverman"
* "Red Right Hand"
* "Where the Wild Roses Grow"
* "Henry Lee"
* "Into My Arms"
* "(Are You) The One That I've Been Waiting For"
* "Fifteen Feet of Pure White Snow"
* "Love Letter"
* "Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!"
* "More News from Nowhere"
* "We No Who U R"
* "Jubilee Street"

Other songs|

* "From Her to Eternity"
* "The Carny"

Cave and Ellis|

* The Proposition
* The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
* The Road
* West of Memphis
* Lawless
* Far from Men
* Hell or High Water
* Wind River
* Carnage

Grinderman|

* Grinderman
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* "Get It On"
* "No Pussy Blues"
* "(I Don't Need You To) Set Me Free"
* "Heathen Child"
* "Worm Tamer"
* "Palaces of Montezuma"
* Grinderman discography

Related articles|

* Discography
* Bad Seeds members
* 20,000 Days on Earth
* One More Time With Feeling
* Idiot Prayer
* This Much I Know to Be True
* And the Ass Saw the Angel
* The Birthday Party
* Dirty Three
* Ghosts… of the Civil Dead
* Original Seeds
* Shell Shock
* Tuff Monks
* Sex O'Clock

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