Take Cover: Tommy Ash Band Perform a Rip-Roaring Take On Johnny Cash's "Folsom Prison Blues"

Like The Beatles, Johnny Cash is a risky musician to cover. Do you stay true to the Man In Black's style, or do you put your own twist on his songs? The Tommy Ash Band made the bold choice to put their own spin on "Folsom Prison Blues." The Tommy...

By Melissa Fossum

May 7, 2012

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Like The Beatles, Johnny Cash is a risky musician to cover. Do you stay true to the Man In Black's style, or do you put your own twist on his songs? The Tommy Ash Band made the bold choice to put their own spin on "Folsom Prison Blues." The Tommy Ash band approaches "Folsom Prison Blues" with a soulful female singer and a full electric band that has a rock and contemporary country flair.

"I think either you love it or you hate it. Some people think it's weird, but I love Johnny Cash, so I sing what I like," says singer Tommy Ash.

"A lot of the good feedback that we're getting from people is that they don't expect a girl to sing a Johnny Cash or a Waylon Jennings song. That's the stuff we like, and if people like it, that's good, and if they don't like it, we still like the songs and we're having fun with it," adds guitarist Ben Blanc-Dumont, who plays an intricate guitar solo in the same vein as Reverend Horton Heat's version of the song.

The Tommy Ash Band is scheduled to perform Saturday, May 26 at the Roadrunner Restaurant and Saloon in New River.

If you play in a local band and would like to have a cover featured on our blog, please email us at [email protected].

See our Take Cover archives for more Arizona bands taking on national songs.

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