Anchored in Love: A Tribute To June Carter Cash [Audio CD] Various

Product Description This all-star tribute album was conceived and produced by John Carter Cash, the only child of Johnny and June, and features songs written by or associated with the beloved singer, and performed by an eclectic collection of family and friends such as Elvis Costello, Billy Bob Thornton, Sheryl Crow, Willie Nelson, Emmylou Harris, Loretta Lynn, and more. This release will coincide with the publication of John's book, "Anchored In Love: An Intimate Portrait Of June Carter Cash". The only biography of June available, it chronicles her life from childhood to the early days of touring with the Carter Family band, her marriages before Johnny Cash, her early fame, her romance with Johnny, and the ups and downs that followed. It paints a dramatic, never-before-told portrait of struggle and success, and how the power of true love eventually overcomes all obstacles. Because family values and devotion were so fundamental to June Carter Cash, it was inevitable that this tribute album--produced by her son, John Carter Cash--would encompass the legacy of the Carter Family and her marriage to (and musical partnership with) Johnny Cash. The pairings that revive the June-and-Johnny duets are a mixed bag, as Willie Nelson never really meshes with Sheryl Crow on "If I Were a Carpenter," but daughter Carlene Carter and Ronnie (of Brooks and) Dunn absolutely nail "Jackson" with their rambunctious interplay. Among the other highlights, stepdaughter Rosanne Cash gives a luminous spirituality to "Wings of an Angel," while Emmylou Harris will bring a lump to every throat with the closing "Song to John," a testament to eternal love and the afterlife. As June's signature instrument, the autoharp figures prominently in many of the arrangements, including Elvis Costello's rendition of "Ring of Fire." As for June's legendary lineage, Ralph Stanley's "Will the Circle Be Unbroken," Loretta Lynn's "Wildwood Flower," and Brad Paisley's "Keep on the Sunny Side" all attest to the Carter Family's seminal influence not only on daughter June, but on country music as a whole. --Don McLeese