Recently I was browsing through The Exploration Place's online exhibit 'Settler's Effects' looking for a picture for a history project when it jumped out at me - a photograph of a young Johnny Cash performing in Prince George in 1959.
Wow!
Yes, we get good concerts in Prince George but The Man in Black himself in Prince George in 1959?
Almost every time I start an article on our history I get sidetracked. Early on I thought I would just combine snippets of interesting things from our old newspapers and archives. But then you come across characters like John Houston, publisher of our first newspaper. Or a photo of Johnny Cash, taken three days before his 27th birthday, performing to a crowd of mostly young ladies wearing their cloth winter coats and drinking bottles of coke in the old Prince George Civic Centre.
The building is gone - it was located roughly where the parking lot is now behind Four Seasons Pool. And sadly, so is Johnny - he died in 2003 at age 71, four months after the death of his wife June Carter Cash.
In 1959 Johnny Cash was already touring the U.S., Canada and Europe on the strength of hits like I Walk The Line, Folsom Prison Blues, and Cry! Cry! Cry! from his debut album, released in 1957.
In a story recounted to Bob Campbell, curator at The Exploration Place, Sherri Lee described meeting Johnny Cash. "According to my two older sisters my younger sister and I were tag-a-longs at Prince George Electric (an electronics and record store) as Cash was there to promote his music and sign autographs. Later Cash and his entourage had dinner at the Prince George Cafe where Dad (her father Jack Lee) was the manager."
Some years later Jack Lee operated the Outrigger restaurant, formerly located on the corner of Sixth Avenue and Dominion Street.
Johnny Cash's accomplishments are many.
The discography on his official website fills 17 pages. He sold over 90 million records. There is a Johnny Cash museum in Nashville, Tennessee and a digital radio station that plays Johnny Cash songs 24/7. The Johnny Cash Facebook page has almost 13 million likes. He is a member of both the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
The day after his two sold out shows. the Prince George Citizen carried the photo of him performing and shots of six young people in the audience. Typical of the attitudes of the day, the newspaper caption had a note of cynicism:
"Johnny Cash, often proclaimed teenagers' biggest idol since rock 'n' roll star Elvis Presley was drafted, packed the crowds to Civic Centre's capacity last night for two shows of only B.C. performance. More than 2,500, mainly teenagers, came to see the recording star and his "Tennessee Two". One of most popular numbers of 90-minute show was Cash's imitation of Elvis Presley style hip-swinging. Panel of faces above shows various reactions to Cash's particular style. Reactions range from pure ecstasy to a simple "that's music?"
Jeff Elder is the chair of the Prince George Heritage Commission.
