Cash, Petty, and the Heartbreakers
Johnny Cash’s masterful 1996 album benefited from a great collaboration
In 1996, Rick Rubin, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, and a few other artists — including Mick Fleetwood and Lindsey Buckingham — collaborated with Johnny Cash to create a Cash masterpiece entitled American II: Unchained.
Featuring Cash’s cover of “Southern Accents” and with most tracks played by Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, the album consists of mostly covers, with a couple of Cash songs — including the hilarious “Mean Eyed Cat” — to flesh it out.
The album won a Grammy for Best Country Album, and Cash was nominated for Best Male Country Vocal Performance for his cover of Soundgarden’s “Rusty Cage.”
One song on the album was originally Australian, but was soon followed by an American version, a Western Australian version, a New Zealand version, a UK version, a Texas version, a Thailand version, and so on and so on.
The original Australian version of “I’ve Been Everywhere” was written by songwriter and singer Geoff Mack in 1959 and popularized by Australian singer Leslie Morrison, who used the stage name Lucky Starr.
In 1962, Mack rewrote the lyrics with places in America (using a map to determine place names), and country singer Hank Snow made it a #1 hit. The British version followed in 1963, and New Zealand’s came along in 1966. Others have appeared here and there (and everywhere) ever since, with the latest being the Lockdown version of 2020, which complains about going nowhere.
Cash’s version has been used in ads for Comfort Inns and in the movie Flight of the Phoenix.
Between June 2017 and October 2019, Brett Anderson (no known relation) rode his motorcycle (“Annie”) to all the locations named in the American version, including 16 countries and 49 states. His record of the 73,000+ mile trip can still be found online.
Where did he go?
Winnemucca.
Reno, Chicago, Fargo, Minnesota, Buffalo, Toronto, Winslow, Sarasota, Wichita, Tulsa, Ottawa, Oklahoma, Tampa, Panama, Mattawa, La Paloma, Bangor, Baltimore, Salvador, Amarillo, Tocopilla, Barranquilla, and Padilla.
Boston, Charleston, Dayton, Louisiana, Washington, Houston, Kingston, Texarkana, Monterey, Ferriday, Santa Fe, Tallapoosa, Glen Rock, Black Rock, Little Rock, Oskaloosa, Tennessee, Hennessey, Chicopee, Spirit Lake, Grand Lake, Devil’s Lake, and Crater Lake.
Louisville, Nashville, Knoxville, Ombabika, Schefferville, Jacksonville, Waterville, Costa Rica, Pittsfield, Springfield, Bakersfield, Shreveport, Hackensack, Cadillac, Fond du Lac, Davenport, Idaho, Jellico, Argentina, Diamantina, Pasadena, and Catalina.
Pittsburgh, Parkersburg, Gravelbourg, Colorado, Ellensburg, Rexburg, Vicksburg, Eldorado, Larimore, Atmore, Haverstraw, Chatanika, Chaska, Nebraska, Alaska, Opelika, Baraboo, Waterloo, Kalamazoo, Kansas City, Sioux City, Cedar City, and Dodge City.
How many of these places have you been?
So here’s a little “Petty Cash” for you today!
WooHoo!!