American IV: The Man Comes Around Image
  • Summary: Johnny Cash, still going strong at age 70, returns for a fourth album with producer Rick Rubin. Like the previous three pairings, this disc mixes Cash originals with unlikely covers, which this time out include Depeche Mode's "Personal Jesus," Nine Inch Nails' "Hurt," and Simon & Garfunkel's "Bridge Over Troubled Water." Fiona Apple, Nick Cave, and Don Henley are among the guests. Expand
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 11 out of 17
  2. Negative: 0 out of 17
  1. The selection here is at once so obvious and so inappropriate it feels redemptive.
  2. Cash has once again seen that white light--yet resisted its allure--and written an apocalyptic title track and put his stamp on an eclectic batch of material. [8 Nov 2002, p.106]
  3. 60
    His blunt, hauntingly direct performances open up new perspectives on a song. [#11, p.133]

See all 17 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 22 out of 23
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 23
  3. Negative: 1 out of 23
  1. DylanB.
    10
    Beautiful. One of the best albums I have ever bought.
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  2. DeeC
    10
    It moves me...it touches my heart like poetry...Although a fan of his Sun Record material, this in some ways seems a more important work. Thanks to Rick Rubin for taking a chance him. Expand
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  3. CurtH
    0
    This album makes my skin crawl! Our local public radio station, WDET, played it from start to finish. I listened in utter amazement that something so horrible would be played on such a normally intuitive radio station. I see, I am in the minority here, but listen to the album! I subject my wife to a lot of hard-to-warm-up-to musicians, Dylan, Chris Smither, Lead Belly, Tom Waits, etc, but even I cannot swallow this! Ugh! Expand
    • 0 of 1 users said yes

See all 23 User Reviews

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