Chapter 1: “I Am Bound for the Promised Land”This list isn't a greatest hits compilation, though some of those hits are here: "I Walk the Line" and "Folsom Prison Blues" from early in Cash's career, to "Hurt" and "The Man Comes Around" from the later years. I selected the songs to illustrate or highlight some theological or biographical aspect of Cash's career.
Chapter 2: “I Walk the Line”
Chapter 3: “The Man in Black”
Chapter 4: “Folsom Prison Blues”
Chapter 5: “Greystone Chapel”
Chapter 6: “San Quentin”
Chapter 7: “The Ballad of Ira Hayes”
Chapter 8: “Give My Love to Rose”
Chapter 9: “The Legend of John Henry's Hammer”
Chapter 10: “Sunday Mornin' Coming Down”
Chapter 11: “Ragged Old Flag”
Chapter 12: “Drive On”
Chapter 13: “Delia’s Gone”
Chapter 14: “Hurt”
Chapter 15: “The Man Comes Around”
Epilogue: "The Gospel Road"
For example, the very first chapter about Cash's boyhood is built around "I Am Bound for the Promised Land," the very first song Cash remembered hearing as a child. In Chapter 10, I use "Sunday Mornin' Coming Down" to tell the story of Cash's drug addiction. In Chapter 11 I use "Ragged Old Flag" to discuss how the gospel intersects with Cash's patriotism.
If you want to listen to the soundtrack of Trains, Jesus and Murder, Fortress Press has pulled the songs together on a Spotify playlist. It's a great way to listen your way through the book.
If you'd like to help launch the book, give it some social media love leading up to November 5. And if you like the book, consider giving it a review online.
If you're interested me bringing the gospel and Johnny Cash to your church, school or organization, I'd be excited to explore that with you. My speaking schedule and contact info is here.
