"Red Velvet"
Single by Johnny Cash
from the album Old Golden Throat
A-side"Red Velvet"
"The Wind Changes"
Released1967 (1967)
Genrecountry
LabelColumbia 4-44288
Songwriter(s)Ian Tyson
Producer(s)Don Law and Frank Jones[1]
Audio
"Red Velvet" on YouTube

"Red Velvet" is a song written by Ian Tyson and recorded by Johnny Cash. While the Cash version is the best known, it was first recorded by Ian & Sylvia Tyson in 1965 on their album Early Morning Rain.[2]

Recorded by Cash at the Columbia Studios in Nashville, Tennessee,[3] the song was released in September 1967[4][5] as a single (Columbia 4-44288, with "The Wind Changes" on the opposite side).[4][6][7][8][9]

U.S. Billboard gave the song a "Country Spotlight" review, stating: "Folkster Ian Tyson's plaintive ballad serves as potent material for Cash as he performs it in his compelling and winning style. Another big Cash hit,"[10] but in the end, "Red Velvet" did not chart at all,[6] while the flip side charted on the Billboard country chart, but made it only to number 60 and dropped off completely after only six weeks.[11][5]

Later the song was included on Johnny Cash's album Old Golden Throat (1968).

Analysis

During the sessions for From Sea to Shining Sea Cash recorded "Red Velvet." [...] It's a truly inspired piece of writing from Tyson, and a song Cash was immediately drawn to. Cash once remarked that he usually had good ears for picking a hit song, and he thought this song would be a huge hit for him. Ultimately it wasn't, but it should have been. It's a beautiful, descriptive westernthemed story with poetic lyrics. It tells about a girl who comes down on a day coach to be with her boyfriend, told very well and nicely sung.

— John M. Alexander. The Man in Song: A Discographic Biography of Johnny Cash[7]

Other Versions

Track listing

7" single (Columbia 4-44288,[1] 1967)
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Red Velvet"I. Tyson2:43
2."The Wind Changes"J. Cash2:46

References

  1. 1 2 "Johnny Cash - Red Velvet". Discogs. 1967. Retrieved 2020-05-10.
  2. ↑ "Early Morning Rain ~ Release by Ian & Sylvia". Musicbrainz. Retrieved 18 February 2021.
  3. ↑ John L. Smith (1 January 1999). Another Song to Sing: The Recorded Repertoire of Johnny Cash. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-3629-7.
  4. 1 2 The Johnny Cash Record Catalog. Greenwood Publishing Group. 1994. pp. 8–9. ISBN 978-0-313-29506-5.
  5. 1 2 Peter Lewry (2001). I've Been Everywhere: A Johnny Cash Chronicle. Helter Skelter. p. 53. ISBN 978-1-900924-22-1.
    September
    "The Wind Changes"/"Red Velvet" (Columbia 4-44288) released. Following the recent chart successes this single is a relative failure, reaching only #60 during a six-week chart spell.
  6. 1 2 C. Eric Banister (1 August 2014). Johnny Cash FAQ: All That's Left to Know About the Man in Black. Backbeat. pp. 138–. ISBN 978-1-61713-609-2.
    C. Eric Banister (1 August 2014). Johnny Cash FAQ: All That's Left to Know About the Man in Black. Backbeat Books. pp. 123–. ISBN 978-1-61713-608-5. Curiously, just prior to the album's release, Columbia issued another single featuring two songs—"Red Velvet" and "The Wind Changes"—that were not duets, with the latter stalling at #60 on the Country chart before quickly dropping off. Released in the fall of 1967, Carryin' On brought together Johnny and June's two ...
  7. 1 2 John M. Alexander (16 April 2018). The Man in Song: A Discographic Biography of Johnny Cash. University of Arkansas Press. pp. 150–. ISBN 978-1-61075-628-0.
  8. ↑ Steve Turner (1 November 2005). The man called Cash: the life, love, and faith of an American legend. Thomas Nelson Inc. p. 266. ISBN 978-0-8499-0815-6.
  9. ↑ "Billboard". Billboard. 23 May 1970. pp. 1–. ISSN 0006-2510.
    Standard Catalog of American Records, 1950-1975. Krause Publications. 2000. ISBN 978-0-87341-934-5.
    Tim Neely (1 August 2002). Goldmine Standard Catalog of American Records: 1950-1975. Krause Publications. ISBN 978-0-87349-471-7.
    Tim Neely (31 August 2006). Goldmine Standard Catalog of American Records: 1950-1975. Krause Publications. ISBN 9780896893078.
    John L. Smith (1 January 1999). Another Song to Sing: The Recorded Repertoire of Johnny Cash. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-3629-7.John L. Smith (1 January 1985). The Johnny Cash Discography. Greenwood Press. ISBN 978-0-313-24654-8.
  10. ↑ "Billboard". Billboard. 23 September 1967. pp. 18–. ISSN 0006-2510.
  11. ↑ Joel Whitburn (2002). Top Country Singles, 1944 to 2001: Chart Data Compiled from Billboard's Country Singles Charts, 1944-2001. Record Research. ISBN 978-0-89820-151-2.
    Joel Whitburn (2005). Joel Whitburn's Top Country Songs: 1944-2005, Billboard. Record Research. ISBN 978-0-89820-165-9.
    "The Wind Changes Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved 2020-05-11.
  12. ↑ "A Painter Passing Through". Wikipedia. Retrieved 18 February 2021.
  13. ↑ "Play One More - The Songs Of Ian & Sylvia ~ Release by Tom Russell". Musicbrainz. Retrieved 18 February 2021.
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