I'm here nearly 20 years later, but this song has really impacted me. Johnny Cash's version does strike a different tone, and while Nick Cave's version is really interesting and emotive, Johnny's cut me to the core. The fact that innocent people are sometimes found guilty and executed is a horrible reality, but I always believed (or hoped) that at the very least they could face their death with dignity knowing that they WERE innocent. The singer in Johnny's song seems to really be innocent, but starts to doubt himself at the moment of death. It's a possibility I hadn't ever considered before, and it seems horrifyingly plausible.
I'm here nearly 20 years later, but this song has really impacted me. Johnny Cash's version does strike a different tone, and while Nick Cave's version is really interesting and emotive, Johnny's cut me to the core. The fact that innocent people are sometimes found guilty and executed is a horrible reality, but I always believed (or hoped) that at the very least they could face their death with dignity knowing that they WERE innocent. The singer in Johnny's song seems to really be innocent, but starts to doubt himself at the moment of death. It's a possibility I hadn't ever considered before, and it seems horrifyingly plausible.