Disco de Johnny Cash: “Rainbow”

"Rainbow" was a hard album for me to review. I love Johnny Cash, and to give anything that he has done less than 4 stars is tough for me. "Rainbow" was released in 1985 and was Cash's last album for Columbia. Veteran Memphis producer Chips Moman was given the honors this time around. Chips Moman had produced some incredible R&B hits, as well as bringing Willie Nelson to the masses with "Always on my Mind." However, this pairing doesn't work as well. The material is weak and some quite ill-suited for Cash. "Easy Street" sounds contrived as Johnny Cash tries to relate to being a millionaire who's having a bad day. PLEEEEZ. On "Love Me Like You Used To" Cash sounds as bored singing it as I did listening to it. Sad. The album has three real good moments though. The opener "I'm Leaving Now" is a great lead track that Cash wrote about "The System" not a woman. Cut two is Kris Kristofferson's "Here Comes That Rainbow Again" which is an uplifting story told well. Cash's cover of CCR's "Have You Ever Seen the Rain" stands out also. This was the last digital download I needed to complete my collection. Now you know why.

This was the very last original album from Johnny Cash to be released on Columbia records, after you listen to it you'll see why. A few good gems are on this, like his version of the CCR classic "Have you ever seen the rain?" but all in all this album is just lame. BUT I will say this......he then signed to Mercury records and made 5....yes 5 totally awesome CDs! Buy all 5 of those merucry releases......1.Johnny cash is coming to Town....2.Water from the Wells of Home....3. Classic Cash '88 (re-recordings of his big hits)....4. Boom-chicka-Boom.....5. The Mystery of Life.

With all due respect to previous reviewers, I must offer a bit of a different opinion. I LOVE this album! I bought it on LP when it came out in '85 and it has remained a favorite of mine in spite of it's obvious flaws. True, "Easy Street" is a bit hard to relate to but even it has a nice chorus. And there are a few really great tunes here, my favorite being the track from which the title is derived, "Here Comes That Rainbow Again". This song just flat works on all levels for me. Great story and an original, haunting tune. "Unwed Fathers" is a great song and performance, too. Perhaps it's subject matter is a bit un-pc these days. That's just too bad, as the song speaks the cold, hard truth. The CCR cover, "Have You Ever Seen The Rain", while OK, is a bit wooden and lifeless to me; one of the weaker tracks. The rest are all very good, with "Love Me Like You Used To" and "Casey's Last Ride" being standouts.

Any Johnny Cash fan should not miss this album. Find an LP or download the mp3. You'll be glad you did. Everyone else should sample it and at least cherry pick the tracks that work for you!