Sad day

J's World, by Jeremiah Bartz

Today I am going to step away from my usual dosage of sports and sarcasm.

I thought about ranting about my pitiful fantasy football team or the fact that Casey Ressler is out fishing and I am stuck at work.

But that just does not seem important right now.

This morning I was woken with horrible news-- Johnny Cash, dead at 71.

I literally went from being fast asleep to wide awake in a matter of seconds. Just after the alarm went off and the radio went on, the morning disc jockey announced that the world had lost Johnny Cash.

It is one of those times when you hope you were just dreaming. One of those times you wish you could just fall back to sleep and return back to normal.

I know that many people are probably thinking this is not as big of a deal as I am making it out to be, I am just being melodramatic. It is not like I am related to Johnny Cash, or I lost my father.

While that is not the case, it almost feels like the loss of a family member. For those who do not know me personally, Johnny Cash has long been a hero of mine. Cash has influenced me in many ways musically and in character. The man in black is not just a country music legend, but a icon in music, an icon in society.

I am not a person to idolize others. I strive to be an individual. I have been that way all my life. Those that have generally influenced me have played a direct role in my life-- family member, friend, coach or co-worker, etc.

I am influenced by public figures in some cases, but for the most part I would not say that I idolize a pop culture figure or call a public figure a hero.

This is because most public figures are corrupt, a talking head and are not how they present themselves.

Cash is just how he presents himself.

He influenced multiple generations. Not only did he influence the baby boomers, he influenced my generation-- the 'why bother' generation.

He influenced multiple genres in music. Not only is he arguably the best male singer in the history of country music, but he has influenced every facet of rock and roll from southern rock to hard-core punk.

Cash has covered hits from bands such as Nine Inch Nails, Danzig, Tom Petty and U2.

Bands such as Social Distortion, Reverend Horton Heat, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Dave Matthews Band and Bob Dylan have recorded his songs.

I have been very much into music all of my life. I may have not always had my stereo in my truck tuned to the country station, but I have always had a spot in my CD case for my vast Johnny Cash collection. Ever since I had the opportunity to see Johnny Cash live at the Greeley Independence Stampede in Greeley, Colo., when I was 12 years old, I have been a fan of the man in black.

My admiration of Cash and his music survived through my entire evolution of musical taste-- through the flannel and jeans era of the Seattle sound, I listened to just as much Cash as Nirvana or Pearl Jam.

Even during the two and a half years I was a DJ of a heavy metal radio show on KSUA in Fairbanks, I still wanted to slip a Cash song onto the playlist.

Johnny Cash is one of the reasons that drove me to pick up a guitar. Even though I sound more like a retarded Johnny Ramone, than Johnny Cash when I am busting out a version of "Folsom Prison Blues," I still try to copy the musical style of the man in black.

In addition to just being a fan of his music, Cash had many qualities that are easy to admire.

Cash appeals to the average person, and represents the average man. His bass-baritone voice is the soundtrack for blue collar America.

Cash was a product of a large, poverty stricken family in the Depression Era. Before signing with Sam Phillips of Sun Records, the man who also found Elvis and Carl Perkins, Cash worked on the farm, in the steel mills and served in the military.

He also survived an addiction to amphetamines, proving that there is life after addiction, and influencing another group in the process.

Cash was also an influence with his faith, especially in times where faith is easy to question.

And if there is a heaven, Johnny Cash is probably up there right now reunited with his wife June Carter, who died in May.

And to quote Merle Kilgore who co-wrote "Ring of Fire" with Cash, "It's a sad day in Tennessee, but a great day in heaven."

It's a sad day every, but a great day in heaven.

Rest in peace, Johnny Cash.

Jeremiah Bartz is the sports editor for the Frontiersman. Bartz will return next week with his usual sarcasm-filled column.