A Boy Named Sue Introduction
In a Nutshell
There may be worse things in life than getting a terrible name, but that's probably not much of a comfort to people with unfortunate appellations.We were lucky and got "Shmoop" (phew!), but the poor little boy in this song gets "Sue." And has to live with the consequences.
Written by Shel Silverstein of Where the Sidewalk Ends fame, this song provides healthy doses of humor, action, family drama, and life-lesson learning. Johnny Cash performed it for the first time at a prison in 1969, to a whole lot of enthusiastic laughter and cheering from his inmate audience.
We have to agree with the prisoners on this one. What with Cash's famous gravelly voice and the zany plot, this song's a keeper. (Even if the name of the title character isn't.)
About the Song
| Artist | Johnny Cash | Musician(s) | Johnny Cash |
| Album | At San Quentin | ||
| Year | 1969 | ||
| Label | Columbia Records | ||
| Writer(s) | Shel Silverstein | ||
| Producer(s) | Bob Johnston | ||
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Learn to play: Chords Buy this song: Amazon iTunes |
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Shmoop Connections
Maybe Johnny Cash isn't the first person who comes to mind when you think of the 1960s, but the Beatles and Stones weren't the only musicians gaining worldwide acclaim during the decade.The late 1960s marked the height of Cash's career, and his popularity really was huge. Since then, he's gone down as a country music legend. Or a rock and roll legend, or a blues music legend, depending on who you ask. Any way you slice it, Johnny Cash is one of the most important American musicians, ever.
On the Charts
"A Boy Named Sue" hung out at #2 on the Billboard Top 100 for three weeks.The track topped the Country and the Adult Contemporary charts in 1969.
"A Boy Named Sue" was Johnny Cash's biggest hit, being the one that spent the longest time at the top of the Billboard chart.