| Heroes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | May 19, 1986 | |||
| Recorded | December 4, 1984–May 23, 1985 | |||
| Studio | Chips Moman's Recording Studio, Nashville, Tennessee | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 30:30 | |||
| Label | Columbia | |||
| Producer | Chips Moman | |||
| Johnny Cash chronology | ||||
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| Waylon Jennings chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Heroes | ||||
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| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
Heroes is a duet studio by Americancountry music singersJohnny Cash (his 72nd overall album release) andWaylon Jennings, released onColumbia Records in 1986 (see1986 in music).
Cash and Jennings first met in the mid sixties. Cash, who had fallen in love withJune Carter but could not move in with her because her divorce was not final, rented a one-bedroom apartment inMadison, Tennessee so he could be close to her (the period is documented in the Cash biopicWalk the Line, with Waylon played by his sonShooter Jennings). "It was like a sitcom; we were the original 'Odd Couple,'" Jennings wrote in his memoir. "I was supposed to clean up, and John was the one doing the cooking. If I'd be in one room polishing, he'd be in the other room making a mess...making himself a mess." Comically, although both men were takingamphetamines by the fistful, each tried to hide it from each other. In 1978, in the midst of Waylon's superstar success as a key figure in theoutlaw country movement, the pair scored a #2 hit duet with "There Ain't No Good Chain Gang." The duo had previously worked withWillie Nelson andKris Kristofferson to form the highly successfulHighwaymen, with whom they would work together again in the early 1990s, butHeroes was their first and only full-length LP.
Heroes was Cash's second-last original release on Columbia, with which he parted ways soon after the record's release (though he later returned to Columbia alongside Jennings forHighwayman 2 in 1990). It was produced byChips Moman, who had helmed the Highwaymen sessions and had produced several Jennings albums, including 1977'sOl' Waylon. Despite the success of the single "Highwayman" and Waylon's chart topping albumWill the Wolf Survive (his first album forMCA after twenty years withRCA Records), their presence on the charts had diminished compared to previous years. "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues," the single fromHeroes, reflected this state of affairs, reaching #35 on the country charts. The song was composed by Cash's son-in-lawRodney Crowell, who also contributes "I'm Never Gonna Roam Again." The duo also included "Love Is the Way," written by Kristofferson.
The tone of the album is bright, congenial, and sober, far removed from the hell raising past that had become a big part of each man's legend. It opens with a tribute to their fans, "Folks Out on the Road." The patriotic ode toDixie, "American by Birth," also courts the country music fan base, augmented with marching band horns. The title track taps a similar vein, celebrating courage and self-sacrifice (this is not the song of the same name that appears on Jennings' 1982 duet albumWWII with Willie Nelson, also produced by Moman). Cash co-wrote one song, "Field of Diamonds," which he would record again fourteen years later forAmerican III: Solitary Man (2000). The last track, "One Too Many Mornings" is a song written byBob Dylan for his albumThe Times They Are a-Changin', and had been recorded, but deemed unusable, by Cash and Dylan in 1969 during the sessions forNashville Skyline. Jennings had recorded Dylan's "Don't Think Twice, It's Alright" during his earliest recording sessions forA&M.
The album got as high as #13 on theBillboard country albums charts. Cash the solo artist would not have another higher charting LP until 2000'sAmerican III: Solitary Man (#11 C&W). Bruce Eder ofAllMusic calls the LP "one of the most obscure records in either artist's output, a fact that's astonishing, given the quality of the music, the singing, and the overall production. Co-produced by Chips Moman, and with Cash and Jennings at the top of their game (and so good at what they do that they make it sound easy), there's not a weak point anywhere here."
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Folks Out on the Road" | Frank J. Myers,Eddy Raven, David Powelson | 2:47 |
| 2. | "I'm Never Gonna Roam Again" | Rodney Crowell | 2:56 |
| 3. | "American by Birth" | Roger Alan Wade | 2:33 |
| 4. | "Field of Diamonds" | Johnny Cash, Jack Wesley Routh | 2:37 |
| 5. | "Heroes" | Jennifer Kimball,Thomas Kimmel | 4:16 |
| 6. | "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues" | Crowell | 3:03 |
| 7. | "Love Is the Way" | Kris Kristofferson | 2:31 |
| 8. | "Ballad of Forty Dollars" | Tom T. Hall | 3:11 |
| 9. | "I'll Always Love You (in My Own Crazy Way)" | Frankie Miller,Troy Seals, Eddie Setser | 3:58 |
| 10. | "One Too Many Mornings" | Bob Dylan | 2:38 |
Album -Billboard (United States)
| Chart (1986) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Top Country Albums | 13 |
Singles -Billboard (United States)
| Year | Single | Peak positions | |
|---|---|---|---|
| US Country | CAN Country | ||
| 1986 | "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues" | 35 | 40 |
| "The Ballad of Forty Dollars" | — | 50 | |
