The Essential Johnny Cash (1992 album)

This article is about the 1992 compilation album. For the 2002 album, see The Essential Johnny Cash (2002 album).

The Essential Johnny Cash 1955–1983 is a three-disc compilation album containing Johnny Cash's material from 1955–1983. It was originally released in 1992 by Sony Music, as part of its Columbia Country Classics series, as a long box set containing three individually-cased discs. Later pressings would be housed in a single, standard-side 3-disc jewel case.

The Essential Johnny Cash 1955–1983
Box set by Johnny Cash
Released	1992
Recorded	1955–1983
Genre	Country
Length	3:29:11
Label	Legacy

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic

Track listing

Disc one

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Hey Porter"	Johnny Cash	2:11
2.	"Cry! Cry! Cry!"	Johnny Cash	2:23
3.	"Folsom Prison Blues"	Johnny Cash	2:48
4.	"Luther Played the Boogie"	Johnny Cash	2:01
5.	"Get Rhythm"	Johnny Cash	2:12
6.	"I Walk the Line"	Johnny Cash	2:42
7.	"Home of the Blues"	Johnny Cash / Glen Douglas / Vic McAlpin	2:38
8.	"Give My Love to Rose"	Johnny Cash	2:43
9.	"Rock Island Line"	Lead Belly	2:08
10.	"Doin' My Time"	Jimmie Skinner	2:37
11.	"Big River"	Johnny Cash	2:30
12.	"Ballad of a Teenage Queen"	Jack Clement	2:10
13.	"Guess Things Happen That Way"	Jack Clement	1:48
14.	"The Ways of a Woman in Love"	Bill Justis / Charlie Rich	2:14
15.	"Thanks a Lot"	Charlie Rich	2:36
16.	"Oh, What a Dream"	Johnny Cash	2:03
17.	"What Do I Care"	Johnny Cash	2:07
18.	"All Over Again"	Johnny Cash	2:05
19.	"I Still Miss Someone"	Johnny Cash / Roy Cash	2:34
20.	"I'd Just Be Fool Enough (to Fall)"	Melvin Endsley	2:08
21.	"Walking the Blues"	Johnny Cash / Robert Lunn	2:08
22.	"Frankie's Man, Johnny"	Johnny Cash	2:14
23.	"Tennessee Flat Top Box"	Johnny Cash	2:58
24.	"Sing It Pretty, Sue"	Johnny Cash	1:57
25.	"Pickin' Time"	Johnny Cash	1:57
26.	"Five Feet High and Rising"	Johnny Cash	1:46
27.	"The Old Account"	Traditional	2:18
28.	"(There'll Be) Peace in the Valley (For Me)"	Rev. Thomas A. Dorsey	2:45
29.	"Were You There (When They Crucified My Lord)"	Traditional	3:53
Total length:			1:08:34

Disc two

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Don't Take Your Guns to Town"	Johnny Cash	3:01
2.	"The Ballad of Boot Hill"	Carl Perkins	2:34
3.	"The Rebel – Johnny Yuma"	Richard Markowitz	1:51
4.	"The Big Battle"	Johnny Cash	4:02
5.	"When the Roses Bloom Again"	A. P. Carter	2:34
6.	"The Ballad of Ira Hayes"	Peter La Farge	4:07
7.	"The Legend of John Henry's Hammer"	Johnny Cash / June Carter Cash	8:24
8.	"Dark as a Dungeon"	Merle Travis	2:27
9.	"The Long Black Veil"	Danny Dill / Marijohn Wilkin	3:06
10.	"I Got Stripes"	Johnny Cash / Charlie Williams	2:02
11.	"25 Minutes to Go"	Shel Silverstein	3:11
12.	"The Wall"	Harlan Howard	2:08
13.	"Busted"	Harlan Howard	2:15
14.	"Bad News"	John D. Loudermilk	2:56
15.	"Dirty Old Egg-Sucking Dog"	Jack Clement	2:06
16.	"Orange Blossom Special"	Ervin T. Rouse	3:05
17.	"Ring of Fire"	June Carter Cash / Merle Kilgore	2:36
18.	"Understand Your Man"	Johnny Cash	2:42
19.	"Jackson"	Jerry Leiber [as Gaby Rodgers] / Billy Edd Wheeler	2:44
20.	"Blistered"	Billy Edd Wheeler	2:20
21.	"See Ruby Fall"	Johnny Cash / Roy Orbison	2:50
22.	"Cisco Clifton's Fillin' Station"	Johnny Cash	2:40
23.	"Daddy Sang Bass"	Carl Perkins	2:19
Total length:			1:08:00

Disc Three

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Folsom Prison Blues" (live)	Johnny Cash	2:41
2.	"Cocaine Blues" (live)	T.J. "Red" Arnall	2:44
3.	"San Quentin 2" (live)	Johnny Cash	2:32
4.	"A Boy Named Sue" (live)	Shel Silverstein	3:46
5.	"Wanted Man"	Bob Dylan	2:50
6.	"Singin' in Viet Nam Talkin' Blues"	Johnny Cash	2:54
7.	"Man in Black"	Johnny Cash	2:52
8.	"What Is Truth"	Johnny Cash	2:37
9.	"Flesh and Blood"	Johnny Cash	2:35
10.	"Sunday Morning Coming Down"	Kris Kristofferson	4:06
11.	"Oney"	Jerry Chesnut	3:04
12.	"One Piece at a Time"	Wayne Kemp	4:00
13.	"Hit the Road and Go"	Johnny Cash	2:41
14.	"Rockabilly Blues (Texas 1955)"	Johnny Cash	3:19
15.	"I Will Rock and Roll with You"	Johnny Cash	2:50
16.	"No Expectations"	Mick Jagger / Keith Richards	3:10
17.	"(Ghost) Riders In The Sky"	Stan Jones	3:46
18.	"Bull Rider"	Rodney Crowell	3:08
19.	"Highway Patrolman"	Bruce Springsteen	5:20
20.	"After the Ball"	Johnny Cash	3:00
21.	"Without Love"	Nick Lowe	2:28
22.	"The Last Time"	Kris Kristofferson	3:14
23.	"I'm Gonna Sit on the Porch and Pick on My Old Guitar"	Johnny Cash	3:00
Total length:			1:12:37