« Best Business Tapes for a Techie| Main | CIA Leak: Common Sense »
Haunting Songs
I heard the most awesome song last night; I had to drive from Richmond to Raleigh and back to give a presentation. On the way back, one of the NC stations was doing a most "haunting songs" list, I guess for Halloween.
Most of the stuff was 80s and 90s metal and hard rock, but they had one song, of all things, by Johnny Cash.
Turns out he had abused himself with drugs for years and had a hard life. On his death bed, he decided he wanted to do one more album. He had read the lyrics from a song by some group? Nine-inch nails maybe? About the pain and hurt of being a junkie.
It was called "hurt", and I'm still thinking about how haunting that song was. They say when he recorded it, there wasn't a dry eye in the studio. He died very soon afterwards. Just an incredible story and song.
It has been a week since I wrote that entry. I orginally thought that the feeling would not last, and I would not have this high opinion later. Since then, I have found the MTV video of the song. The more I hear/see it, the more powerful it becomes. A great example of masteful music selection and showmanship.
Have you heard the song "The Man Comes Around"?
It's off of the same album and it's really powerful also.
Yes. I bought the entire albumn yesterday and ripped it to my computer.
I also hear there is a movie coming out soon -- "Walk the line" -- about Cash's life.
I found a copy of this that a friend loaned me last year. I neglected to listen to it, but now I definitely will! They had stuck a note on it that says "Hurt" is amazing. And they comment on how the lyrics sound like something from a high school literary magazine in the original NIN version, but Cash transforms them into something profound.