Number one’s aren’t everything, in fact there’s a strong argument that they don’t really matter at all given the types of songs and artists that find themselves at the top of the country music charts all too often. When I took a look through Johnny Cash’s discography and saw how many of his best songs (at least in my opinion) never went number one, it took me by surprise.
The Man In Black is maybe the most universally recognized figure in all of country music. Over the course of 5+ decades, Cash released a near incalculable number of songs, some of which would go on to form critical pieces of the American canon, such as “Folsom Prison Blues” and “I Walk The Line”.
In all, Cash put only 10 singles on top of Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart (and it’s prior equivalents). That means he had a ton of great songs that never became the biggest in the genre.
Listed in chronological order, here’s 10 Johnny Cash hits that never went number one.
“Hey, Porter” – With His Hot and Blue Guitar (1955) – Peak Position: #14
“Big River” – Sings the Songs That Made Him Famous (1958) – Peak Position: #4
“Five Feet High and Rising” – Songs of Our Soil (1959) – Peak Position: #14
This song was written about a real disaster that struck the Cash family back in 1937. You can read the entire story of the Ohio River Flood here.
“Orange Blossom Special” – Orange Blossom Special (1965) – Peak Position: #3
“What Is Truth?” – What Is Truth (1970) – Peak Position: #3
In a moment that can define the character of Johnny Cash, he sang this song at the White House in front of Richard Nixon, despite the President requesting other songs, to directly question US involvement in the Vietnam War. You can read all about that performance here.
“Man in Black” – Man in Black (1971) – Peak Position: #3
“Ragged Old Flag” – Ragged Old Flag (1974) – Peak Position: #31
“(Ghost) Riders in the Sky” – Silver (1979) – Peak Position: #2
“Cocaine Blues” – Silver (1979) – Peak Position: #42
Cash did play this song during his now iconic 1968 Folsom Prison concert but it didn’t find a home on an album until 1979, unless you count “Transfusion Blues”, which is a remake of the song that he released on his 1960 album Now, There Was A Song!
“Hurt” – American IV: The Man Comes Around (2003) – Peak Position: #56
