(LP) Johnny Cash & The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra

This career-spanning collection reimagines 12 classic Johnny Cash performances via new symphonic arrangements recorded at the fabled Abbey Road Studio 2 with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. Performances range from archetypal Cash classics like “Man In Black” and “Ring Of Fire” to essential musical collaborations including “Girl From The North Country” (Bob Dylan with Johnny Cash), “The Loving Gift” (with June Carter Cash) and “Highwayman” (with Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Kris Kristofferson and Johnny Cash).

The recordings of “I Walk The Line” and “Flesh and Blood” used in making Johnny Cash and The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra are both previously unreleased alternate takes from Johnny Cash’s soundtrack sessions for I Walk The Line, a 1970 film starring Gregory Peck and Tuesday Weld.

“I remember when my father introduced me to the RPO,” writes John Carter Cash in his liner notes for the album. “I was around ten years old and he and I went to see three films from the James Bond saga at a festival in New York. When the theme for Goldfinger began, he leaned over to me. ‘That’s the finest orchestra in the world, son, he said. ‘That’s the Royal Philharmonic.’ … He knew the music of the RPO. He respected them all throughout his life.”