Johnny Cash has been dead for four years, but his kid brother Tommy has brought him back to life in what sounds like a ghoulish live show. Davin O'Dwyerlooks at the phenomenon of the posthumous duet.
THERE are few voices in music as uniquely identifiable and iconic as Johnny Cash's. Elvis and Pavarotti are probably his only competition, and that deep, textured baritone only grew in gravitas as the years wore on. Not only would Johnny Cash Sings the Phonebook have been a successful album, but it would probably have been a profoundly moving one too.
Cash's popularity has grown since his death in 2003, thanks in large part to the redemptive American Recordings series of albums and the biopic Walk the Line. The legions of recent Johnny Cash converts would never have had the chance to see him perform in the flesh, but in the next few weeks they can see the next best thing: his brother Tommy Cash is touring with My Brother Johnny Cash, a tribute show featuring two dozen of the Man in Black's biggest hits, sung with that authentic Arkansas drawl.
The show won't just feature the voice of Tommy, eight years Johnny's junior and the creator of a few hits of his own during his long musical career. Through the magic of video technology, y and Johnny Cash will perform two or three duets during the show.
"We found some songs and video that I could duet with him on, where our voices could match up," says Tommy, on the phone from Nashville. "We also found footage where he's talking to me. It's almost like having his presence there. There's a part of him there."
The posthumous duet will forever be associated with Natalie Cole, whose 1991 hit Unforgettable was a duet with her father, Nat King Cole, who had been dead for 26 years. The posthumous duet has since become big business, with Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin releasing entire albums of collaborations from beyond the grave.
In the tradition of the Coles, there's often a family connection - Lisa Marie and Elvis, Nancy and Ol' Blue Eyes. And Dweezil and Frank Zappa have toured together in the same manner as the Cash brothers. And then there's Céline Dion, pairing her vocals with every late icon she can find, and Notorious BIG, who has been notably more productive since his murder in 1997, with an entire album of duets released in 2005.
Needless to say, some people find such collaborations a touch, well, ghoulish.
"I was anticipating that criticism," responds Tommy Cash, "but most people have said that your brother would be proud. The reviews have been very positive. I was worried at first, but I realise how much people get that warm fuzzy feeling when they see the video of my brother. The show works just as well without the video, I think, but seeing Johnny and hearing his voice adds that golden touch."
There are, of course, moral implications to the whole posthumous duet industry, but it is rather more understandable when it involves two brothers who shared a musical inspiration and performed together in life, as opposed to Miles Davis and Jay-Z, who, it's safe to say, didn't. Just because modern technology would allow a duet between Bob Marley and Chuck D, for instance, doesn't mean that the world should have to endure it.
In some ways, then, it is fitting that Tommy is the one to keep his brother's flame alive. "I realise I was in his shadow," he says, "but it really wasn't that hard. There was no way to get away from his fame, anyway, and all of my family went through that. We lost our own identity when Johnny became famous and successful. The show is my way of honouring him and his life, and while my brother doesn't need anybody to honour him or protect his memory, I'll do it as long as it feels right."
Just don't be surprised if Tommy isn't the last singer to perform duets with the Man in Black.
My Brother Johnny Cash's Irish tour kicks off at the Knightbrook Hotel, Trim, Co Meath on November 28th, followed by Everyman Palace, Cork (29th); Gleneagle Hotel, Killarney, Co Kerry (30th); Millennium Forum, Derry (December 1st); and the Olympia Theatre, Dublin (2nd). www.tommycash.com
