I was a fan of the late larger than life Johnny Cash long before I developed a growing interest in Country Western music. I also had a fascination with prison life ever since I did an externship for three podiatrists which included treating and operating on notorious inmates at Statesville Correctional Center (SCC), a maximum security state prison in Joliet, Illinois, near Chicago
Johnny Cash opened almost all his concerts with “Folsom Prison Blues,” after greeting the audiences with his trademark
introduction, “Hello, I’m Johnny Cash,” for decades. He performed the song at Folsom Prison on January 13, 1968.
It was later recorded and released as a live album titled "At Folsom Prison".
Contrary to popular belief, Cash was never incarcerated at Folsom. That said, he was arrested seven times and spent a few nights in jail. He wrote Folsom Prison Blues after watching the 1951 crime drama Inside the Walls of Folsom Prison. “Folsom Prison Blues” won him the Grammy Award for Best Country Vocal Performance. In 2018, Johnny Cash At Folsom Prison on Columbia Records was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
More than any other song, “Folsom Prison Blues” cemented his status as the outlaw country archetype. Performing live shows for inmates made him an iconic figure with a reputation of reckless bad-assery.
Video Clip: Johnny Cash: Folsom Prison Blues in Las Vegas 1979
