POSTHUMOUS ALBUMS: Last Act of the Man in Black

Johnny Cash's late-career comeback was remarkable for a lot of reasons. It was remarkable that an artist over seventy could release a platinum album. It was remarkable because it resulted not just in huge commercial success, but also in some of the finest work of Cash's career. It was remarkable because, even after his death, it showed no signs of slowing down.

In the late 1970s and '80s, Cash's career descended into mediocrity and repetition. His longtime home, Columbia Records, dropped him. He endured a short, unsuccessful stint at Mercury Records, which saw him re-recording many of his classics, a pointless and empty use of the great man's time. Cash was even reduced to appearing in a Taco Bell commercial. Sure, he guest-starred on a U2 track ("The Wanderer"), but cameos don't make for satisfying careers.

Then, a frighteningly bearded but beloved rock producer named Rick Rubin took notice. In 1994, Rubin signed Cash to his American Recordings label, and recorded an album of solo acoustic performances in Cash's living room. Simply titled American Recordings, it was a jolting return to form for Cash, both as a performer and songwriter. Blending strong new originals ("Drive On") and cleverly chosen covers (Nick Lowe's "The Beast in Me"), it was Cash's biggest success in years, and as good an album as he had ever made.

Cash and Rubin followed it up with Unchained, featuring Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, and American III: Solitary Man. By the time of The Man Comes Around in 2002, Cash had finally started to sound his age. But that didn't stop the fourth installment of the series from becoming the most successful, selling over a million copies. It even got Cash back on the radio with his shattering cover of Nine Inch Nails' "Hurt."

Cash died in September of 2003, less than five months after his beloved wife June. This left Rubin with a mountain of unreleased material, much of it recorded in Cash's final days. In 2006, Rubin issued American V: A Hundred Highways. It debuted at #1 on the Billboard charts, and featured Cash's final compositions, plus covers ranging from Gordon Lightfoot to Odetta. Listening to the album can be emotionally trying; not only are most of the songs about death, but Cash sounds frail, and his once-mighty voice wobbles and cracks.

But music is made to elicit an emotional response, and on that note, A Hundred Highways is a fitting tribute to Cash's long, hard life. Joaquin Phoenix ain't bad, but no actor could reproduce the dramatic punch of an artist knocking at death's door and making music this damn good.

TODAY'S RECOMMENDATION: "God's Gonna Cut You Down" by Johnny Cash
AVAILABLE ON: American V: A Hundred Highways; iTunes

ADDENDUM: People have asked what Rick Rubin looks like. You can Google it for yourself, but here's a pretty good approximation.