BMO’s NEWS’eum – Today in 1959, Johnny Cash played a free concert for the inmates of San Quentin Prison, California. One of the audience members was 19 year-old Merle Haggard, who was in the midst of a 15 year sentence (he served three years) for grand theft auto and armed robbery.
Also on this date in 1970, Johnny Cash released his 33rd album Hello, I’m Johnny Cash on Columbia Records which peaked at #1 on the Country charts. “If I Were a Carpenter”, a famous duet with Cash’s wife, June Carter Cash taken from the album earned the couple a Grammy Award for Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal in 1971, the song also reached #2 on the Country charts. #JohnnyCash #MerleHaggard #SanQuentinStatePrison #BMOintheMOrning #Kicks967