This was basically his goodbye to everyone, he passed shortly after. I always felt like that was intentional and he meant for this to be his adios to the world. RIP Johnny Cash.

This is a cover of a song by Nine Inch Nails. Trent Reznor wrote it about drug addiction and a life spiralling down the drain. Cash completely reinterpreted the song at the end of a life with a certain degree of regret. He passed away not long after this. That was the last time he ever closed that piano. Upon hearing it his daughter remarked that it sounded like he was saying goodbye and he said "I am..."

Trent Reznor said after watching this video that this is now Johnny's song...

Ill never trust anyone who doesnt cry to this song.

Welcome to"The Man in Black" rabbit hole. He is a legend. This is a cover of Trent Reznor of Nine inch nails

To quote Bono (U2): Trent Reznor was born to write that song, Johnny Cash was born to sing that song, Mark Romanek was born to make that video.

"This isn't my song anymore but I'm gonna play it anyways." -Trent Reznor introducing Hurt at every show. Can we get you doing "Something I Can Never Have" to give Nine Inch Nails the love they deserve?

Was lucky to meet and work with John. Never met anyone with so many gifts yet so humble.

His wife died shortly after this song was released she is country music royalty, her family was massively popular before anyone had even heard of Johnny.

This song reminds me of the Beatles 'A Day In The Life', with the increasing and intense pounding of the piano getting louder and louder being reminiscent of the escalating crescendo in the Beatles song.

He autographed my arm in 1958. I was 5.

Johnny Cash has recorded quite a few covers throughout his recording career since the 1950's... His choice of covering 'Hurt' by Nine Inch Nails was perfect because it was originally written by NIN mainman Trent Reznor about his struggles w/ substance abuse... a familiar topic, given Johnny Cash spent years struggling w/ drug and alcohol addiction. Johnny Cash was in failing health by 2002 at age 70/ 71 when he recorded and released 'Hurt'... This powerful music video captured his sentiments at the end of his life looking back at his past... His wife June Carter appeared in the clip and it made a huge impact in 2003. Sadly, shortly after the release of the video, June Carter passed away at age 73 from her own health complications... A heartbroken Johnny Cash speculated he would go soon... He passed away 3 months after June Carter in '03.

Trent Reznor (of nine inch nails who wrote the song) said 'this song isn't mine anymore' as he liked this cover so much.

Johnny recorded his rendition in 2002, both him and his wife passed away in 2003.😢

Johnny and his wife June both knew they did not have a lot of time left. He was regretting the end. She died a few months later and within a year he was also gone. He quite literally was saying goodbye.

As a NIN-fan, imagine my surprise when I first listened to this.

i cry every time i hear this

Johnny passed just 7 months after he released this song along with his wife June who was also famous and in the video. I’d also highly recommend the biopic movie I WALK THE LINE which tells Johnny story, which will tell you why this song digs so deep

I cried again. Great performance.

The man had a profound self-awareness, and honesty that so many lack. He was willing to see his mistakes, and the damage caused, and feel genuine remorse about it. All signs of true character.

He covered a Nine Inch Nails song, originally about a young man with a heroin addiction, and remade it into a song about an old man looking back at his life. He actually covered many songs at the end of his life, 5 albums worth. But this is the one everyone reacts to.

He filmed this music video entirely at his home as he was too ill to film it anywhere else. It's a cover version but he made it his own. He was a genius at covering songs and making them his own. His version of Personal Jesus by Depeche Mode was brilliant.

What's so powerful about this is the combination of the song and the video. It's the summation of a man's life from an artist who knew the end was in sight. It's monumental.

A real gut punch. RIP Mr. Cash.......more Ghost please!!!!

This song is such a gut-punch. It was recorded not long before he died. The older lady you keep seeing is his wife June. When she passed, we all knew Johnny wasn't long for the world, and he wasn't. To this day, I haven't and can't listen to his last album in its entirety. Shoot, I get torn up at the thought of losing my wife or vice versa. This is a cover of a NIN song. Trent Reznor actually was kind of dismissive and a bit of a dick when he learned Johnny covered this. Ultimately, he considered this to be THE version of this tune, sort of like how Bob Dylan wrote All along the watchtower, when he heard Hendrix's version, he "gave" the song to him. This one hurts a lot. His catalog is very diverse. His lyric writing is very powerful but can also be hilarious (The One on The Left, Oney, One Piece at a Time, A Boy named Sue). There's a 3 album set that sums his music up. It's called "Love, God, Murder." Keep digging!!!

"Its the age when life stops giving, and starts to take away." To paraphrase.

This is one of the saddest songs there is.

This song was made and written by Nine Inch Nails Lead singer Trent Reznor. The leader singer made this song about a middle aged mans life spiraling out of control and losing the ones around him due to death and drugs/ overdoses'. Johnny Cash took the song changed one word and made it about and old man looking back on his life losing those around him due to age and what year to year can do to a friendship. Nine Inch Nails lead singer wasn't happy about this because the song was soooo personal to him. Once he heard the song he said, "this is now cash's song". Cash when he passed, was the ONLY person in the Country Hall of Fame, Rock N' Roll Hall of Fame, AND the Songwriters Hallo of Fame. You could literally write a Harry Potter 10 book story about this man's life and still have chapters left out... During this song his wife passed away. His daughter told him that this song sounds like he is saying goodbye... Johnny replied, "I am saying goodbye; I miss my June (wife June Carter)". Johnny passed away like 4 months after releasing this song.... RIP Legend. For me, at the end of the song, when Johnny closed the piano. It looked like he was saying goodbye to an old friend... 6:05 He sang about his "Empire of dirt" (as he sat in the Johnny Cash Hall of Fame)... I wrote this line before I watched 12:50 and how you said it really stuck with you. I have never forgot that part of the song...

My favorite line in this song is "If I could start again, a million miles away, I would keep my self, I would find a way." It is such a deep line, and for me, I feel they are the moments that make you who you are, good or bad, are necessary to who you are. In my life, there are obviously things I wish I could change. But, If I did, would I be who I am now?

This is born of Rick Rubin’s mental musical mind and it’s up there with his best conceptualist work

Closing the piano said it all, that was the last song he made. Beautiful and sad at the same time. He had lived a hard life despite all his successes. Maybe these successes was what hurt him the most. But seeing this last video, everybody could see and feel that pain. By making this video he probably showed us, that he accepted the pain and was ready for the next step. .

Gets me every time....the visual and voice is absolute perfection. Kudos to Rick Rubin for persuading Johnny to go fer it and also Trent for seeing his song re interpreted and saying "its his now"

Johnny was born to parents who were literally dirt-poor sharecroppers. In the video it shows him going back to boyhood home. After finally breaking into music, first as a pioneer of rock & roll and later country & western music, he gained many riches, but stayed grounded. He may have had his demons with booze and drugs, but he became a born again Christian and did a lot of gospel music. Because of that, this NIN song by Trent Reznor was perfect for him to cover. There's so much more about him it would be difficult to mention it all right now.

So the lady in the background on the stairs was his wife June Carter (She was a musician as well) who would pass away like 3 months after this song was recorded and then Johnny joined her like 6 months later. As others have said this is a cover of a song by Nine Inch Nails and every time Trent Reznor introduces the song he says “It’s not mine anymore but let’s play it anyways”. I hope you react to Folsom Prison Blues, Ring of Fire, etc by Johnny Cash. You are spot on in your analysis of the lyrics, Even though he didn’t write it this song was deeply personal for Johnny Cash cause he felt like it spoke to how his life had gone and it’s why he sings it with such emotion. I see you only do music reactions but I wouldn’t mind if you reacted to Walk The Line. It’s probably the best way to listen to his music and get to know him, June, etc.

Rick Ruben had to talk Johnny Cash into doing this cover. Rick Ruben is the man that saved his career and let him be HIM again. This song hits different knowing that June passed not long after. He was ready and when June passed he knew he wasnt long for this world. He wanted to be with his June.

What a wonderful reaction. This may have been a cover, but Johnny definitely made it his own. When you think about how soon he passed after this was released, it becomes even more powerful. What a legend.

This song means a lot to me and my family. My Grandpa was the heart of our family unit. We grew up on his farm in a trailer. He supported all of us on that land. He passed away suddenly in October 2000 from a heart attack, just a few days before I turned 8. Grandpa was a huge Johnny Cash fan and played the guitar and sung in a Johnny Cash cover band because he sounded very similar to him. The first time I heard this song I heard my Grandpa singing and healing the pain of everyone in my family. To this day this song makes me bawl my eyes out. A song I like to listen to along with this one is “Ain’t no grave.” I do recommend giving that one a listen as well.

I loved how they used "Solitary Man" as pretty much the final good bye in the penultimate episode of Stargate Atlantis.

He performed the song beautifully. It was a classic even when it was released. The video is an absolute gut punch to watch.

The story behind the albums that Johnny Cash recorded at the end of his career have an interesting story. Johnny was abandoned by his record label, believing that nobody really wanted to hear any more from "The Man in Black." Rick Rubin, a famous producer, known more for Rap, certainly not country music, believed that Johnny had more music in him, and he invited him to record in Rick Rubin's living room not even a "real" recording studio. He just wanted Johnny to record whatever he felt like performing, with nothing more that a guitar and microphone. Later on, Rick would add in additional parts to the music, but at the core of those recordings were just Johnny singing with his guitar, playing what he felt. The woman in the video, was his wife, June Carter Cash and Johnny had been in poor health leading up to the video recording, and June died shortly after. Johnny followed her, not long after.

Honestly if this is the way you leave your public life … mad respect for him taking that step.

Closing the piano at the end was like him saying goodbye to his career and his life. The piano has never been opened again and his daughter has vowed that it never will be. It will never play another note. Johnny had a rough life. He started working in the cotton fields when he was 5. He wrote a song about it as a kid. "Five feet high and rising". As a young man, he fought drug addiction and alcoholism. He actually fought that most of his adult life. He was an activist for Native Americans. He had Cherokee lineage. He was also descended from slaves. His last wife, June, died a few months before him. She asked him to keep working and not let it get him down. He did. He completed 60 songs in the last 4 months of his life. He had a degenerative neurological disease (can't remember what) but he died from complications from Diabetes and probably grief. This video was shot in his home because he was too sick to travel anywhere to get it done. He and June both died very shortly after shooting the video.

I played this song along with John Denver at my daughter's funeral. She was 3 she passed away on father's day last year. And this and John Denver song country roads was her absolutely favorite. Ill never be the same because she changed me so much. Her name was Oaklyn Jolee Faye Webster Indiana obituaries if you want to see her. She died in my arms of seizures due to the parainfluenza virus. She had a rare blood condition called Thrombotic Microangiopathy thay caused her white blood cells to attack her organs. We took her tp a hospital thay didnt help up until it was to late. She dies from sepsis caused by it. We tried to get them to tell us if this was okay of her nonverbal behavior but theu said it was normal. Until it got worse was when they got worried and panicked. I'm actually filing a lawsuit against the hospital for malpractice and not seeing the signs sooner..and leaving is for hours just letting her deteriorate.

This is the most impressive song I have heard. When combined with the visuals, it strikes home doubly so. An unbelievable masterpiece. Thank you Stacey.

Kris Kristofferson once said of Johnny Cash-He doesn’t cover your song…he steals it and makes it his own.

-It feels like you're saying goodbye -I am... 😭

I love your format for song reactions by saving most of your analysis for afterward. Some channels pause constantly during the songs, and it kills the momentum and the experience of an organic reaction. Songs like this deserve to breathe without constant interruptions, and you nailed it. I think your process of one or two brief pauses at strategic points and then having a full discussion afterward is perfect. Excellent reaction as always Stacey!

This song/video is the very definition of raw.

Whenever I hear the Johnny Cash version of the song I get the chills

Many people do not know that Johnny Cash was addicted for most of his career. He was addicted to amphetamines and barbiturates,. As a 69-year-old I can relate as you start to question things that you have lived and want to express the regret you are feeling. The musician was suffering from autonomic neuropathy brought on by diabetes and by the time he recorded Hurt, his health was failing. You are beautiful Stacey and incredibly insightful, This is a reaction that is well worth watching, in my opinion.

A beautiful reaction to a beautiful song. A full life review of acceptance, good and bad. ❤

YOU can have it ALL. My empire of DIRT.

The greatest cover of all time. Johnny's requiem.

I remember that on the last day of Johnny Cash, the second biggest German news magazine played the entire music video before the show. That brought a big tear to my eye. 😥

It’s a song for us all, everyone goes in the end. Enjoy it and be kind 🙏

I've yet to see any reviewer not get a bit teary, if not outright cry. I'm old enough to remember Johnny's early work, and his later things, and his life times.

Dont care who wrote it .Johnny owned it & brought it to the world,imo

I'am 60 year old bloke, and i well up every time I hear this track. " A boy named Sue" is perhaps his biggest hit (hear in the UK) and is a bit more upbeat and fun from the early 70s. 👍👍

Hello Stacey 😊oh Johnny Cash that's a great choice 💪😊

Back in the day, whenever I'd listen to the Nine Inch Nails album this song was originally on, my heart would always drop down into my stomach during this song, because it's so stunning (as the whole album is, and anything Trent does), but this...watching Johnny interpret it in a totally different way and essentially say 'goodbye' in such a public way is so heartbreaking and breathtaking. It still makes me cry.

Those damn onions. Every time.

A song written by a younger man, at the bottom of a downward spiral, looking up at a distant light he doesn't know if he can reach, but is just bloodyminded enough to try to drag himself toward it. Then, covered and arguably perfected by an older man, with the mileage and the weight of regret and experience to make those words have new meaning. A true masterpiece, in either case. Speaking as someone with a year clean, to those out there who need to hear it most: no matter how far down the spiral you seem to be, do not give in to despair. There is always a way out besides self-destruction. Keep yourself. Find away.

A legend in every sense of the word. Johnny Cash had a long career before this, having come up around the time of Elvis and Jerry Lee Lewis. you should react to his own songs. this was a cover of a band called Nine Inch Nails, the song was written by the lead singer Trent Reznor. He said after the cover was released the song belonged to Johnny Cash now.

Lyrically, very deep and evocative.. A deep understanding of his life is required here :)

This cover gets me every time. 😢

You get it I am in my 70s and I remember everything Great reaction

Dont even like country music , but i loved this man . His Masterpiece . .i cried .

I know Trent Reznor wrote the song about drug addiction, but Johnny Cash had his own battles with drugs and alcohol in his younger years. I'm sure the lyrics hit him personally and that came through in his performance. Added to that, he had been given 18 months to live after being diagnosed with autonomic dysfunction, where his entire system was shutting down. Rick Rubin did a masterful job recording this album in the later stages of Johnny's life, where he was sometimes singing from a wheelchair.

A must listen Coming back to life Pulse live A MISERALIZING beginning , middle solo and end solo and his voice this song will bring u too tears and trust me your soul will also cry SUCH A BEAUTIFUL PINK FLOYD SONG!!!!!!!!!!! I was there a concert i will never forget Pink Floyd isnt just a concert its a total EXPERIENCE AND LIFE CHANGING 💖💖💖💖

I feel the need to point out that the only reason Johnny covered this song is the producer, Rick Ruben. He got Johnny to do 5 albums worth of incredible songs right at the end of his life. They are all worth a listen but the cover of Soundgarden's Rusty Cage is second only to this song.

Johnny Cash songs are pure classic country/ rockabilly... songs include - 'Ring of fire' ... 'Cry cry cry' ... 'Jackson' (feat. June Carter)... 'I walk the line' ... 'A boy named Sue' ... 'Ballad of a teenage queen'... 🔥🔥

Awww your kitty could tell mom was getting sad❤

I really love this Johnny Cash album. I am glad you finally got to this song. Have a wonderful day Stacey. :)

He had a hard life but fought through it to do what he was born to.

So glad you got to experience this Song. Great reaction. Unlike others you watched to the end ( piano closing). Johnny Cash is a legend. Johnnys daughter said to him about the song “ it’s like your saying goodbye “ he said “ I am”. Johnny comes across as a rough guy but when inquired , his daughters said he was a loving fun father that liked to make them laugh. This was the first Cash song I learned on guitar. Other songs you may check out. The band The Warnings song Choke, the song by Stevie Nicks Rhiannon Midnight Special Live, and Ghosts song Dance Macabre 😊.

I absolutely adore the juxtaposition of the banquet. Everything in the banquet seems to be professionally made, luxurious and opulent. But nothing looks good, nothing looks appetizing. Just like Johnny’s life. The phantasm we have in our minds about a celebrity’s life tends to evoke carefreeness, luxury and happiness. But his life was plagued by death and drug addiction. With like a Midas curse on him, it’s almost like the banquet is saying “look at all the things I have and all that my life represents. But I could change it for simplicity and happiness if I could.” A crown of shit.

I have never met anyone who doesn't tear up from this song.

My parents knew both Johnny and His wife June Carter cash, they used to stop in my parents antique shop in nj when they were near multiple times, i was only about 8-10 yrs old, but i do remember both of them, they always gave us tickets to his shows and I remember being there and it was an awesome show; I think he wrote this because his wife passed away 4 months before him in 2003....😢 they were humble great down to earth people rest in peace my friends ❤

His wife died shortly after this video , and they both gave the maker of the video permission to film her as she came down the stairs as they were recording , Johnny died a few months after his wife some say of a broken heart .

It's not something you can react to but as a music lover you should sit and be mesmerised by the Oscar winning documentary movie "Searching For Sugarman". Don't read up on the story or investigate it, just find it and sit down with a glass of wine and listen to Sixto Rodriguez. I promise you won't be disappointed.

Cash took a song and completely changed the meaning without changing the lyrics. That's unimaginably talented. The message is simple ; all of the accomplishment, all of the fame, all the gold, it meant nothing in the end. What all he ruined, the things you can't buy , the moments that are free, he missed or laid waste too... this is a song to you, to me, to everyone, in the end it's an empire of dirt worth nothing, and all that was worth anything isn't worth the cost of ruining for dirt... Love your people, your friends , family..make time for them, and cherish them because, in the end , that's the only thing thats really valuable. This song can essentially be summed up into the quote: "what good is a man that gains the whole world but loses his soul"

Johnny Cash to Trent: "I'll show you pain son...Hold my beer."

Trent Reznor singer of Nine Inch Nails who wrote this song said that this song now belongs to Johnny after this cover was made. Shortly after this video was shot June, his wife passed away and Johnny followed a few months after. RIP Man in Black

Legends always have a way of saying goodbye. Johnny Cash with Hurt. Johnny Paycheck with Old Violin. An so on.

One of the rare times that a cover of a song is better than the original.

Stacey This version of Hurt gets me very emotional because he was same age as my father month before my father's birthday. In 2003, he was 71 when video recording. He born same day as my birthday. Luckily, my father is still living at the age of 92. His wife, June on the stairs looked concerned as he is singing this song. Song was recorded in February of 2003. Then May of 2003, June died. Few months later in Sept of 2003, Johnny died from health issues and broken heart after loss of his love.

The Man in Black has had an amazing life and career. Not easy by any means but you can see it on his face. He and his wife died less than a year after this was filmed. His discography is worth exploring. Nice reaction to a song you will appreciate more over the years.

Hi there. New subscriber. The song was originally written and performed by the band Nine Inch Nails but considering Johnny Cash‘s past history this song I’m positive was written for him. Sadly his wife June (the lady standing on the stairs) passed away three months after this song was released and Johnny passed away six months afterwards. Just listening to him sing this songand knowing his past is just so fitting. Absolutely fantastic video from you thank you so much for doing it. Please take care and blessings to you from the UK.

Consider this is a Cover - the original by Nine Inch Nails is also worth listening - even though it is the same song the approach is different. But Johnny was able to take over message to "his world" which is realy greate

I heard that when brother Johnny closed his piano at the end of this video, he never opened it again. This song hits different now that my heath is failing, then when I first heard it.

Definitely check out the original. Trent Reznor is a genius.

Walk the line with Jaq Phoenix and Reece W is the story of his life, ups and downs. Great film because it shows fame has it's price.

Johnny was saying goodbye. This was the last song he would record, and he knew it. He was a man who'd lived an amazing life. He'd brought joy to millions with his music, but also hurt to many of the people he loved though his own actions. He sinned, like all of us, but found redemption through his faith and repentance. I was in college when Johnny Cash passed away, and I picked the album that this song came out on after I heard the news. I still have the CD, and it hits very differently now that I'm over two decades older.

This song was created by Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails. It’s a cover song, but after Trent side Johnny’s version, he said he owned it.

RIP Johnny Cash . 🎶🎶✨

Cash obviously identified with Reznors song. So much he did it his way. Now you know why he wore black

This is known as one of the truly exceptional and poignant artist swansongs. It being released shortly before his death. David Bowie's Lazarus is another iconic example and one I’d love to see you cover!

I think he was 92 when this was filmed, he passed away at 93.

You don't have to imagine how a younger Johnny Cash sounded, there are plenty of recordings he left us.

Getting old SUCKS! Enjoy your young life NOW young lady. Time goes so fast. You might not think it but it truly does. It flies by and before you know it your old and closer to the end than you would like.