The Survivors Live
Encyclopedia
The Survivors Live is a live album
by country
musicians Johnny Cash
, Carl Perkins
and Jerry Lee Lewis
, released in 1982
on Columbia Records
. It was recorded on April 23, 1981 in Böblingen
, near Stuttgart
, West Germany
, when all three singers, who had been labelmates at Sun Records
at the beginning of their careers, were touring Europe
. The show had initially been meant to feature only Cash, but Lewis and Perkins joined him onstage on a night when they did not have a concert scheduled themselves. Without rehearsal, the three performed a number of songs they were known for - including Cash's "Get Rhythm
" and Perkins' "Blue Suede Shoes
" - as well as slightly more obscure compositions. Perkins, Cash and Lewis had previously collaborated with each other, and with Elvis Presley
(who had died in 1977), during the Million Dollar Quartet
session, and would later collaborate for the album Class of '55
with Roy Orbison
in 1985. For the last song on the record "I saw the light", Cash, Perkins and Lewis were joined by Cash's son John Carter
and his daughter Cindy Cash.
Side 2
Live album
A live album is a recording consisting of material recorded during stage performances using remote recording techniques, commonly contrasted with a studio album...
by country
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...
musicians 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...
, Carl Perkins
Carl Perkins
Carl Lee Perkins was an American rockabilly musician who recorded most notably at Sun Records Studio in Memphis, Tennessee, beginning during 1954...
and Jerry Lee Lewis
Jerry Lee Lewis
Jerry Lee Lewis is an American rock and roll and country music singer-songwriter and pianist. An early pioneer of rock and roll music, Lewis's career faltered after he married his young cousin, and he afterwards made a career extension to country and western music. He is known by the nickname 'The...
, released in 1982
1982 in music
This is a list of notable events in music from 1982. 1982 was a big year in music with Madonna making her debut as well as the year that Michael Jackson released Thriller which became the world's best selling album and it still holds that title today....
on Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
. It was recorded on April 23, 1981 in Böblingen
Böblingen
Böblingen is a town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, seat of Böblingen District. Physically Sindelfingen and Böblingen are continuous.-History:Böblingen was founded by Count Wilhelm von Tübingen-Böblingen in 1253. Württemberg acquired the town in 1357, and on 12 May 1525 one of the bloodiest battles...
, near Stuttgart
Stuttgart
Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million ....
, West Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
, when all three singers, who had been labelmates at Sun Records
Sun Records
Sun Records is a record label founded in Memphis, Tennessee, starting operations on March 27, 1952.Founded by Sam Phillips, Sun Records was known for giving notable musicians such as Elvis Presley , Carl Perkins, Roy Orbison, and Johnny Cash...
at the beginning of their careers, were touring Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. The show had initially been meant to feature only Cash, but Lewis and Perkins joined him onstage on a night when they did not have a concert scheduled themselves. Without rehearsal, the three performed a number of songs they were known for - including Cash's "Get Rhythm
Get Rhythm
"Get Rhythm" is the title of a song written and recorded by American country music singer-songwriter Johnny Cash. It was released in September 1969 as a single.-Content:...
" and Perkins' "Blue Suede Shoes
Blue Suede Shoes
"Blue Suede Shoes" is a rock and roll standard written and first recorded by Carl Perkins in 1955 and is considered one of the first rockabilly records and incorporated elements of blues, country and pop music of the time...
" - as well as slightly more obscure compositions. Perkins, Cash and Lewis had previously collaborated with each other, and with Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
(who had died in 1977), during the Million Dollar Quartet
Million Dollar Quartet
"Million Dollar Quartet" is the name given to recordings made on Tuesday December 4, 1956 in the Sun Record Studios in Memphis, Tennessee. The recordings were of an impromptu jam session among Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Johnny Cash. It was arguably the first...
session, and would later collaborate for the album Class of '55
Class of '55
Class of '55 is a 1986 album by Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison and Carl Perkins.While the album was in part a tribute to Elvis Presley, it was mainly a commemoration of those young performing hopefuls, the four album participants included, who came to Sun Records in 1955 to make music in...
with Roy Orbison
Roy Orbison
Roy Kelton Orbison was an American singer-songwriter, well known for his distinctive, powerful voice, complex compositions, and dark emotional ballads. Orbison grew up in Texas and began singing in a rockabilly/country & western band in high school until he was signed by Sun Records in Memphis...
in 1985. For the last song on the record "I saw the light", Cash, Perkins and Lewis were joined by Cash's son John Carter
John Carter Cash
John Carter Cash is an American Country music-singer, author, songwriter and producer. He is the only son of Johnny and June Carter Cash.-Biography:...
and his daughter Cindy Cash.
Track listing
Side 1- "Get RhythmGet Rhythm"Get Rhythm" is the title of a song written and recorded by American country music singer-songwriter Johnny Cash. It was released in September 1969 as a single.-Content:...
" (Cash) – 3:07 - "I Forgot to Remember to Forget" (Charlie FeathersCharlie FeathersCharles Arthur "Charlie" Feathers was an influential American rockabilly and country music performer.-Biography:...
, Stan Kesler) – 2:44 - "Goin' Down the Road Feelin' Bad" (Traditional) – 2:59
- "That Silver Haired Daddy of Mine" (Gene AutryGene AutryOrvon Grover Autry , better known as Gene Autry, was an American performer who gained fame as The Singing Cowboy on the radio, in movies and on television for more than three decades beginning in the 1930s...
, Jimmy Long) – 3:10 - "MatchboxMatchbox (song)"Matchbox" is a rock and roll and rockabilly song written by Carl Perkins and first recorded by him at Sun Records in December 1956 and released on February 11, 1957 as a 45 single on Sun Records. It has become one of Perkins' best-known recordings...
" (Carl PerkinsCarl PerkinsCarl Lee Perkins was an American rockabilly musician who recorded most notably at Sun Records Studio in Memphis, Tennessee, beginning during 1954...
) – 3:18 - "I'll Fly Away" (Albert E. BrumleyAlbert E. BrumleyAlbert Edward Brumley was a shape note gospel music composer and publisher.Brumley was born near Spiro, Oklahoma on October 29, 1905. Pre-Dustbowl Oklahoma was primarily made up of sparse agricultural communities; Brumley's family was no different. He spent much of his early life chopping and...
) – 4:02
Side 2
- "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' OnWhole Lotta Shakin' Goin On"Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On" is a song best known in the 1957 rock and roll/rockabilly hit version by Jerry Lee Lewis.-Origins of the song:...
" (Dave "Curly" Williams, Sunny David) – 4:04 - "Rockin' My Life Away" (Mack VickeryMack VickeryMack Vickery was a musician, songwriter, and inductee in the Hillbilly Hall of Fame whose songs have been recorded by artists such as Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash, George Strait, and George Jones....
) – 2:54 - "Blue Suede ShoesBlue Suede Shoes"Blue Suede Shoes" is a rock and roll standard written and first recorded by Carl Perkins in 1955 and is considered one of the first rockabilly records and incorporated elements of blues, country and pop music of the time...
" (Perkins) – 3:07 - "Peace in the Valley" (Thomas A. DorseyThomas A. DorseyThomas Andrew Dorsey was known as "the father of black gospel music" and was at one time so closely associated with the field that songs written in the new style were sometimes known as "dorseys." Earlier in his life he was a leading blues pianist known as Georgia Tom.As formulated by Dorsey,...
) – 4:51 - "Will the Circle Be UnbrokenCan the Circle Be Unbroken (By and By)"Can the Circle Be Unbroken " is the title of a country/folk song reworked by A. P. Carter from the hymn "Will the Circle Be Unbroken?" by Ada R. Habershon and Charles H. Gabriel. The song's lyrics concern the death, funeral, and mourning of the narrator's mother.The song first gained attention due...
" (A.P. Carter) – 4:36 - "I Saw the Light" (Hank Williams) – 3:25
Personnel
- Johnny Cash - Vocals, Arranger, Liner Notes
- Jerry Lee LewisJerry Lee LewisJerry Lee Lewis is an American rock and roll and country music singer-songwriter and pianist. An early pioneer of rock and roll music, Lewis's career faltered after he married his young cousin, and he afterwards made a career extension to country and western music. He is known by the nickname 'The...
- Vocals - Carl PerkinsCarl PerkinsCarl Lee Perkins was an American rockabilly musician who recorded most notably at Sun Records Studio in Memphis, Tennessee, beginning during 1954...
- Vocals - Jerry Hensley, Kenneth Lovelace, Bob WoottonBob WoottonBob Wootton is an American guitarist. He joined Johnny Cash's backing band, the Tennessee Three, after original lead guitarist, Luther Perkins, died in a house fire.- Biography :...
- Electric Guitar - Marty StuartMarty StuartJohn Martin "Marty" Stuart is an American country music singer-songwriter, known for both his traditional style, and eclectic merging of rockabilly, honky tonk, and traditional country music...
- Guitar, Mandolin - Earl Ball - Piano
- Jack Hale Jr., Bob Lewin - Trumpet, French Horn
- W.S. Holland - Drums
- Henry Strzelecki - Bass
Additional personnel
- Lou Robin - Executive producer
- Rodney CrowellRodney CrowellRodney Crowell is a Grammy Award-winning musician, known primarily for his work as a singer and songwriter in country music....
- Producer, Mixing - Bradley Hartman, Ron Treat - Mixing
- Steve Hoffman - Mastering
- Bill Johnson - Art director
- Kevin Gray - CD preparation
- Murray Brenman - Reissue design
Chart performance
| Chart (1982) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Top Country Albums | 21 |