Town Hall Party
Available Now On DVD
From Bear Family Records
The 24 tracks on this DVD originate from two of Johnny
Cash’s appearances on “Town Hall Party” The dates were 15th
November 1958 and 8th August 1959 before we look in more detail
at the tracks and Cash’s career at the time we should give a brief
history of the show.
“Town Hall Party” was
California
longest country music barn dance, running from 1952 until early 1961. The
show was broadcast every Saturday night from a theater made up to look
like an old barn, at
400 South Long Beach Boulevard
in the Campton suburb of Los Angles. On a good night crowds numbering up
to 2000 would fill the venue to see and hear the top artists of the day
performing their hits. The First hour was broadcast live over KFI and
reached a wider audience when NBC syndicated the show on radio. The
broadcast was extended was extended to three hours when KTTV-TV televised
the show on Channel Eleven. International coverage came from the Armed
Forces Television Services. Jay Stewart (who later hosted the TV quiz show
Lets Make A Deal ) and occasionally
Tex
Ritter, were the MCs and the house band was led by Joe Maphis, and
included regulars like Merle Travis, Skeets McDonald Johnny Bond,and Tommy
Duncan. Artists appearing on the show included the Collins Kids, Carl
Perkins, Jim Reeves, Patsy Cline, Edie Cochran,
Gene
Vincent, Wanda Jackson, and of course Johnny Cash. The Show was so popular
that, in 1958,
Columbia
Records issued the “Town Hall Party” album featuring cast members.
In
August 1957 following an appearance on “Town Hall Party” Cash was
approached by Don Law with the idea of signing with
Columbia
Records at the expiration of his Sun contract. Cash agreed, but there was
still a year to on his contract. On August 1958 he signed with his new
label. He was already one of the most successful artists in the country
music. His three years on Sun Records had resulted in a unbroken string of
hits that included “I Walk The Line” “Folsom Prison Blues “Big
River” and “Get Rhythm” the song that opens this DVD. Although
Johnny Cash didn’t officially sign with Columbia until August he held
his first session for the label on 24th July 1958 and among the
tracks recorded were “it was Jesus “ and “Supertime”. In August he
was back in the in the studio recording “All Over Again” which became
the a-side of his first single for the label, as well as “Frankie Man
Johnny” and Don’t take Your Guns To Town.
Throughout September, October and November1958 Cash was
touring the Midwest on a package with Carl Perkins, Sonny James and
Mitchell Torok.As the show moved into Texas, they added Bob Luman, Gordon
Terry and Johnny Horton. Following the tour and on an appearance at the
DJ-Convention in
Nashville
, Johnny Cash and The
Tennessee
Two appeared on “Town Hall Party” on the 15th November. The
first eleven songs on this DVD are taken from that show. They opened with
a record they had cut back at Sun Records in 1956 and one that had become
a concert favorite with the fans, “Get Rhythm”. Cash returned to Sun
for “You’re The Nearest Thing To Heaven” “I Was There When It
Happened” “I Walk The Line” “The Was Of A Woman In Love” and
Give My Love To Rose. The last two tracks had been recent success on the
country charts and the opportunity to promote his latest
Columbia
single wasn’t missed, either. Both “All Over Again” and the
follow-up, “Don’t Take You’re Guns To Town” were preformed.
Cash’s first album for
Columbia
, “The Fabulous Johnny Cash” was issued in November, and included
Frankie’s Man Johnny” as well as the song that closes this first show.
Johnny Cash and the Tennessee Two were busy during 1959
with sessions, concert tours and more TV appearances. “Hymns By Johnny
Cash” his first gospel album, was issued in May followed in September by
“Songs Of Our Soil”. The latter featured “Five Feet High And
Rising” the story of the 1937
Mississippi
floods, which was paired with “I Got Stripes” for single release in
July. Both these songs featured on the 8th August “Town Hall
Party” appearance which makes up the remainder of this DVD. Once again
Cash turns to his Sun catalogue for several songs and opens the show with
“Guess Things Happen That Way” followed by “Folsom Prison Blues”
and “Big River” two of his biggesthits for the label. “Don’t Take
You’re Guns To Town” and “Frankie’s Man Johnny” were reprised
for his show.
Around this time, Cash often used to perfrom a
selection of impressions during his shows. Ernest Tubb, Red Foley, and
Kitty Wells were just a few and on his show Cash turns a great impression
of Elvis Presley performing “Heartbreak Hotel”. The show ends with a
second performance of “I Got Stripes” There has been very little live
material from the fifties released featuring Cash with Luther and Marshal,
and even less on video, and this CVD captures all the excitement of those
early shows.
|
