He had believed in his younger days that he was mainly Irish and partially Native American. Even after learning he was not Native American, Cash's empathy and compassion for Native Americans was unabated. These feelings were expressed in several of his songs, including "Apache Tears" and "The Ballad of Ira Hayes", and on his album, Bitter Tears.
"The Ballad Of Ira Hayes"
Ira Hayes, Ira Hayes
Call him drunken Ira Hayes. He won't answer anymore
Not the whiskey drinkin' Indian, Nor the Marine that went to war
Gather round me people there's a story I would tell
About a brave young Indian you should remember well
From the land of the Pima Indian A proud and noble band
Who farmed the Phoenix valley in Arizona land
Down the ditches for a thousand years The water grew Ira's peoples' crops'
Till the white man stole the water rights And the sparklin' water stopped
Now Ira's folks were hungry And their land grew crops of weeds
When war came, Ira volunteered And forgot the white man's greed
Call him drunken Ira Hayes, He won't answer anymore
Not the whiskey drinkin' Indian Nor the Marine that went to war
There they battled up Iwo Jima's hill, Two hundred and fifty men
But only twenty-seven lived to walk back down again
And when the fight was over And when Old Glory raised
Among the men who held it high Was the Indian, Ira Hayes
Call him drunken Ira Hayes, He won't answer anymore
Not the whiskey drinkin' Indian Nor the Marine that went to war
Ira returned a hero Celebrated through the land
He was wined and speeched and honored; Everybody shook his hand
But he was just a Pima Indian No water, no crops, no chance
At home nobody cared what Ira'd done And when did the Indians dance
Call him drunken Ira Hayes He won't answer anymore
Not the whiskey drinkin' Indian Nor the Marine that went to war
Then Ira started drinkin' hard;Jail was often his home
They'd let him raise the flag and lower itlike you'd throw a dog a bone!
He died drunk one mornin' Alone in the land he fought to save
Two inches of water in a lonely ditch Was a grave for Ira Hayes
Call him drunken Ira Hayes He won't answer anymore
Not the whiskey drinkin' Indian Nor the Marine that went to war
Yeah, call him drunken Ira Hayes But his land is just as dry
And his ghost is lyin' thirsty In the ditch where Ira died
Johnny Cash was born J. R. Cash in Kingsland, Arkansas, to Ray (1897–1985) and Carrie (née Rivers) Cash (1904–1991), and raised in Dyess, Arkansas.
Cash was given the name "J.R." because his parents could not agree on a name, only on initials. When he enlisted in the United States Air Force, the military would not accept initials as his name, so he adopted John R. Cash as his legal name. In 1955, when signing with Sun Records, he took Johnny Cash as his stage name. His friends and in-laws generally called him John, while his blood relatives usually continued to call him J.R.
Cash was one of seven children: Jack, Joanne Cash Yates, Louise Garrett, Reba Hancock, Roy, and Tommy. His younger brother, Tommy Cash, also became a successful country artist.
By the age of five, J.R. was working in the cotton fields, singing along with his family as they worked. The family farm was flooded on at least one occasion, which later inspired him to write the song "Five Feet High and Rising". His family's economic and personal struggles during the Depression inspired many of his songs, especially those about other people facing similar difficulties.
Five Feet High And Rising (lyrics)
My mama always taught me that good things come from adversity if we put our faith in the Lord. We couldn't see much good in the flood waters when they were causing us to have to leave home, But when the water went down, we found that it had washed a load of rich black bottom dirt across our land. The following year we had the best cotton crop we'd ever had.
I remember hearing:
How high's the water, mama?
Two feet high and risin'
How high's the water, papa?
Two feet high and risin'
We can make it to the road in a homemade boat
That's the only thing we got left that'll float
It's already over all the wheat and the oats, Two feet high and risin'
How high's the water, mama?
Three feet high and risin'
How high's the water, papa?
Three feet high and risin'
Well, the hives are gone, I've lost my bees
The chickens are sleepin'In the willow trees
Cow's in water up past her knees, Three feet high and risin'
How high's the water, mama?
Four feet high and risin'
How high's the water, papa?
Four feet high and risin'
Hey, come look through the window pane,
The bus is comin', gonna take us to the train
Looks like we'll be blessed with a little more rain, 4 feet high and risin'
How high's the water, mama?
Five feet high and risin'
How high's the water, papa?
Five feet high and risin'
Well, the rails are washed out north of town
We gotta head for higher ground
We can't come back till the water comes down, Five feet high and risin'
Well, it's five feet high and risin'
Cash was very close to his brother Jack, who was two years older. In 1944, Jack was pulled into a whirling table saw in the mill where he worked, and cut almost in two. He suffered for over a week before he died. Cash often spoke of the horrible guilt he felt over this incident.
According to Cash: The Autobiography, his father was away that morning, but he and his mother, and Jack himself, all had premonitions or a sense of foreboding about that day, causing his mother to urge Jack to skip work and go fishing with his brother. Jack insisted on working, as the family needed the money. On his deathbed, Jack said he had visions of heaven and angels. Decades later, Cash spoke of looking forward to meeting his brother in heaven. He wrote that he had seen his brother many times in his dreams, and that Jack always looked two years older than whatever age Cash himself was at that moment.
Cash's early memories were dominated by gospel music and radio. Taught by his mother and a childhood friend, Cash began playing guitar and writing songs as a young boy. In high school he sang on a local radio station; decades later he released an album of traditional gospel songs, called My Mother's Hymn Book. He was also significantly influenced by traditional Irish music that he heard performed weekly by Dennis Day on the Jack Benny radio program.
Cash enlisted in the United States Air Force. After basic training at Lackland Air Force Base and technical training at Brooks Air Force Base, both in San Antonio, Texas, Cash was assigned to a U.S. Air Force Security Service unit, assigned as a code intercept operator for Soviet Army transmissions, at Landsberg, Germany. On July 3, 1954, he was honorably discharged as a sergeant.
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