"Get Rhythm" is the title of a song written and recorded by American country music

Country music

Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...

 singer-songwriter Johnny Cash

Johnny Cash

John R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...

. It was released in September 1969 as a single.

Content

The song is about optimism, centering on a shoeshine boy who "gets rhythm" (spends part of his pay at a jukebox

Jukebox

A jukebox is a partially automated music-playing device, usually a coin-operated machine, that will play a patron's selection from self-contained media...

, to hear music) to cope with the tedious nature of his job.

Critical reception

Alice Randall in the book "My Country Roots: The Ultimate MP3 Guide to America's Original Outsider Music" asks the question, "racist, racialist, or race appreciating? You decide. Maybe the grinning "boy" hides something worth knowing in his mask as well as behind his mask."

Chart performance

"Get Rhythm" was released in 1956 as the B-side to Cash's first Number One hit, "I Walk the Line

I Walk the Line

"I Walk the Line" is a song written by Johnny Cash and recorded in 1956. It was performed with the help of Marshall Grant and Luther Perkins, two mechanics that his brother introduced him to following his discharge from the Air Force. Cash and his wife, Vivian, were living in Memphis, Tennessee,...

." In 1969, the original recording of "Get Rhythm" was released as a single itself, with sound effects dubbed in to simulate the sound of a live recording. This rerelease went to #23 on the country charts.

Chart (1969)	Peak position
U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles	23
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	60
Canadian RPM Country Tracks	1
Canadian RPM Top Singles	59

Martin Delray version

In 1991, Martin Delray

Martin Delray

Michael Ray Martin is an American country music artist, known professionally as Martin Delray. He worked as a songwriter in the 1980s, with his writing credits including "Old Fashioned Love" by The Kendalls...

 recorded a cover of the song on his debut album, also entitled Get Rhythm. Released as his debut single, Delray's version featured guest vocals from Cash, as well as a guest appearance by him in the music video

Music video

A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...

. It peaked at #27 on the country charts.

Chart performance

Chart (1991)	Peak position
U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks	27
Canadian RPM Country Tracks	18