"The Ballad of Boot Hill" is a 1959 song written by Carl Perkins which was recorded by Johnny Cash on Columbia Records.

Background

The song was originally released in 1959 in the U.S. on a Columbia EP by Johnny Cash entitled ''Johnny Cash Sings 'The Rebel --- Johnny Yuma. The song was also released on his 1965 LP album ''

Sings the Ballads of the True West ''Johnny Cash Sings the Ballads of the True West'' is a concept double album and the 22nd overall album released by country singer Johnny Cash, released on Columbia Records in 1965 (see 1965 in music). Covering twenty individual songs, the al ...

''. The song is about the 1881

Gunfight at the O.K. Corral The gunfight at the O.K. Corral was a thirty-second shootout between law enforcement officer, lawmen led by Virgil Earp and members of a loosely organized group of outlaws called the Cochise County Cowboys, Cowboys that occurred at about 3: ...

when three gunmen were killed by Doc Holliday. "The Ballad of Boot Hill" appeared on the 1992 Columbia collection '' The Essential Johnny Cash 1955-1983'', a career retrospective of Johnny Cash's most important releases. The song was also released on an EP in Canada in 1959, Australia in 1960 and 1963, and in Germany in 1967. Johnny Cash performed the song live at the

London Palladium The London Palladium () is a Grade II* West End theatre located on Argyll Street, London, in the famous area of Soho. The theatre holds 2,286 seats. Of the roster of stars who have played there, many have televised performances. Between 1955 a ...

on October 27, 1968 in concert with Carl Perkins.

Cover versions

"The Ballad of Boot Hill" was recorded in 1984 by country and western singer

Johnny Western Johnny Western (born October 28, 1934) is an American country singer-songwriter, musician, actor, and radio show host. He is a member of the Western Music Association Hall of Fame and the Country Music Disc Jockey Hall of Fame. Early life Jo ...

which appeared on his 1989 album ''Gunfight at the O.K. Corral'' on Bear Family Records. In 2008, Mark van den Berg recorded the song for his collection ''Mark van den Berg Sings the Hits of Johnny Cash'' on the Continental Record Services label. Billy McFarland recorded the song on his 2013 album ''Golden Guitar''. Giuseppe Grasso, Jaromir Hauptman, Gabi Schaetz, Peter Medwed, Rainer Jantz, Thommy Kletsch, and Jeff Johnson have also performed the song.

Album appearances

"The Ballad of Boot Hill" appears on the following Johnny Cash albums: *''

'' (1965), Columbia Records *''Mean as Hell!'' (1966), Columbia *'' Heart of Cash'' (1968), Columbia *''Walls of a Prison'' (1970), Harmony *'' Come Along and Ride This Train'' (1991), Bear Family Records *''

The Essential Johnny Cash 1955–1983 ''The Essential Johnny Cash 1955–1983'' is a three-disc compilation album containing Johnny Cash's material from 1955-1983. Track listing Certifications References 1992 compilation albums Johnny Cash compilation albums ...

'' (1992), Sony, 1992 *''Sings the Ballads of the True West/Life'', Sony BMG/Sony Music Distribution, 2006 *''The Music of Johnny Cash'', Columbia/Legacy/Sony Music Distribution, 2009 *''The Complete Columbia Album Collection Columbia/Legacy/Sony Music Distribution, 2012 *''Johnny Cash: The Box Set Series'', Columbia/Legacy, 2014

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ballad Of Boot Hill Songs written by Carl Perkins Johnny Cash songs 1959 songs