Bootleg, Vol. 2: From Memphis to Hollywood
by Johnny Cash
  • Record Label: Columbia
  • Release Date: Feb 22, 2011
Metascore
74

Generally favorable reviews - based on 10 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6 out of 10
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 10
  3. Negative: 0 out of 10
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  1. Entertainment Weekly
    Apr 8, 2011
    91
    The more polished second disc isn't quite as transcendent, but who could resist Johnny Cash's rejected Thunderball Bond theme? [4 Mar 2011, p.75]
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  2. Rolling Stone
    Mar 11, 2011
    90
    There are jailhouse weepers, lullabies and gallows humor like "Five Minutes to Live" – a jaw-dropping testament to the depth of the man's songbook.
  3. The Independent on Sunday (UK)
    Mar 14, 2011
    80
    The most rewarding part of this double-disc is the first quarter. Not that the hissy old demos and rarities on the rest of the collection are without their charms. But it's the opening section which really whisks you back to another age.
  5. BBC Music
    Mar 11, 2011
    80
    There's a kitsch appeal, but this stuff [from disc two] belongs in a different world from the marvellous early disc.
  6. AllMusic
    Mar 11, 2011
    70
    Like its predecessor, Bootleg, Vol. 2: From Memphis to Hollywood is essential for Cash collectors and hardcore fans, adding even more depth and weight to his enormous stature in American popular music.
  7. Pitchfork
    Mar 11, 2011
    67
    With a sense of organizational purpose and of local music history, the first disc depicts Cash an artist hungry for success and willing to sell venetian blinds to get there....The portrait of Cash on this second disc is, unfortunately, fuzzy and poorly defined. It showcases everything we know about him and very little we don't know.
  8. Mojo
    May 31, 2011
    60
    Unsurprisingly, these aren't in the same league as the Sun stdio classics, but these alternate and usually starker versions do allow us intimate seats at the creation of standards. [Jun 2011, p.114]
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  9. PopMatters
    May 19, 2011
    60
    For all the inevitable flaws, the release of From Memphis in Hollywood is more than welcome, well worth the two discs.
  10. The Telegraph (UK)
    Mar 21, 2011
    60
    It's all an interesting time capsule and what makes it worthwhile for Cash fans is that there are 26 previously unreleased tracks. Disc 2 sounds a tad more produced but a song about dismissing a former lover--Wide Open Road--and the jaunty Five Minutes To Live are treats.
  11. The Independent (UK)
    Mar 11, 2011
    60
    This 2CD set features one disc of early rarities, and one of sundry items from Cash's Columbia catalogue--not the most comfortable combination, but not without interest.

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