Top 104 Quotes & Sayings by John Carter Cash

When my father was, you know, a very big artist in the 1970s and then later up through the '80s. And then I began playing guitar with him in the road in the late '80s until he retired in 1997. So I traveled the world with them for years, you know, and all around the world and got to meet some great people.

Mom was very protective of me. Her hands were gentle, and her touch was soothing. She always talked quite a bit, but she was bright and affectionate.

My father was a great outdoorsman. From when I was about six we would spend countless hours together in the woods or on a lake. He taught me how to skin a rabbit and pluck a wild turkey. He showed me there is much more to nature than we can ever understand.

I think most of my life I have spent trying to gain normalcy, whatever that may be.

He was just Dad. But it's hard to deny who he was when you're brought out on stage, and you're standing beside this great man singing at the end of a show, and the crowd loves him.

My father claimed no political affiliation. He supported Al Gore because he knew him as a human being. He supported Lamar Alexander, who was the governor of Tennessee, who was a Republican. It was based on the individual. He didn't believe in politics. He based his support for someone on their heart and their integrity.

My father and mother were together because of their faith.

I listen to all types of music.

He gave me a picture of himself when I was 14 and it said, 'To John Carter: My Best friend, Dad.' That meant so much to me. We were best friends, but we struggled.

Dad had a way of defining himself. He couldn't put his finger on whether it was rock 'n' roll or country.

To me, those are the greatest treasures - the personal letters between my parents.

The Carter family history means a lot to me.

Within the first six years of my life, if asked what Dad was to me I would have emphatically responded: 'Dad is fun!' This was my simple foundation for my enduring relationship with my father.

We do not let slip from our understanding that America was founded on a bonding of many people, from many places and of various color and religion.

I knew 'Hurt' way before Dad recorded it. In 1992, 'Downward Spiral' was one of my favorite albums.

In some ways I've gone to Cash and Carter graduate school.

My father was an entertainer. This is, of course, one of the most marked and enduring manifestations.

My father had a way of exposing himself, of showing weakness and still retaining his dignity.

Well, my parents were sort of packrats. They never threw anything away and, all through their time together, they stored away various things in a vault.

I was getting up on stage and taking a bow as soon as I could stand.

Sometimes, you find peace through misery.

My parents' love for each other lasted throughout their whole life. They didn't give up... They accepted each other totally unconditionally.

Some folks expect my music to sound like my dad's.

My mom, dad and me were a compact group. They instilled in me a love for the outdoors. On school breaks, we'd go fishing for a week in the wilds of Alaska or Canada. The land was always in their souls.

I never felt like I had to sound like my dad. I wanted my music to be creative expression with no expectations.

It was hard to say no to Johnny Cash.

Voice of the Spirit' was a project I'd been talking about for a long time. It began as an Appalachian record. But it's a record of all pure Southern gospel.

In some ways, Cash and Carter is a family business that's been handed to me.

I'm always writing my own music, recording my own music, even if I am 9/10 of the time recording stuff for other people. I'm still working on my own creative endeavors.

I have a novel out, 'Lupus Rex,' that I wrote and am excited about that.

I love to cook, man, I'm the short-order cook of the house. It's also my creativity. The kitchen is my space. I'm always cooking, I'm always making something.

I was born on March 3, 1970, as Mom and Dad's stardom was nearing its peak, while The Johnny Cash Show, was airing regularly on network TV.

There are thousands upon thousands of new Johnny Cash fans every year, inspired by the music, talent, and - I believe hugely - by the mystery of the man.

My parents were real people. They didn't put on airs or false faces. They were what they were.

My parents kept me close to them. I even slept in the same room with them throughout my younger years.

This is my home; I've made it my home for my whole life. I'm an old Nashville veteran.

I've found that I really don't want to go out on the road anymore. I love my home.

My father was always respectful to my grandfather. I really wanted that to be known because I never saw him disrespect my grandfather, and I never saw them have a cross word.

I was 33 when my father passed away.

There's something magical that happens to every three-year-old that hears 'Ring of Fire.' That's usually where it starts for most people. They immediately want to put on a black shirt, grab a guitar and sing 'Ring of Fire.'

People come to Nashville where I live and they say, 'What's a great Southern restaurant?' Well, you got to know the right grandmother, because there's a lot of magic to good Southern cooking.

God probably shook his head and said 'Oh, my goodness' many times in dealing with my father. But what God saw in my father was that he was a rock, a foundation in a lot of ways - someone people could relate to who could shine strong and was not afraid to reveal himself. I think he was a great role model to many people in that way.

My mother did a fried vegetable dish called 'stuff.' It's fried potatoes and carrots. Then you add bell peppers, mushrooms and other softer vegetables. At the end you add onion. Then, you steam the dish with hot pepper cheese on the top and it melts down through the dish. It's delicious. It's wonderful.

My father was a unique man, but he had a shyness about him.

I saw my parents go through tough times between 1979 and 1983. They almost split up.

My parents were on the road a lot in the 1970s. Winifred Kelly, a nurse from the hospital where I was born, was hired to care for me. Her love and discipline had a big influence on my upbringing.

I was introduced to the church through my parents but I had to struggle and find it on my own. In the end I learned much of my faith and found much of my strength through watching my father's and mother's journeys.

My dad was a poet. He saw the world through unique glasses, with simplicity, spirituality, and humor.

In the end, the best music will always rise to the top.

I did a lot of struggling with my identity trying to figure out who the heck I was. I had to face my demons.

Personally (and I believe I can speak for my sisters on this), I am against any organization or individual who believes they are superior to and/or may wish harm upon another because of race, ethnic background, religion, or sexual orientation. We also believe in the potential unification of humanity as a whole.

Dad never really got over Jack's death and was deeply inspired by his brother throughout his life to delve deeper into his own faith.

My father was a wildfire. Really. Nobody could save him from anything. His family turned away from him, and he broke up with his first wife. It just happened to be that when he was going to get back up on his feet, my mother was there.

I don't think anyone in the world could play my father, look just like him, act just like him, and make you believe he's Johnny Cash. Joaquin Phoenix gets as close as anybody I think ever could.

So many use dad's name, saying 'Johnny Cash would not like this' or 'Johnny Cash would do this' or 'Johnny Cash would vote for... ' Please, let his actions speak for who he was: A simple, loving man who never supported hate or bigotry. He was non-political, and a patriot with no public political party affiliation.

Seeing my father's handwriting puts me in contact with the man he was at each stage of his life.

My mother's death was very painful as it occurred over a period of a week. Watching her die was the hardest thing my dad ever went through.

Words are powerful, but action rules.

My first memories of my mother are of a delicate lady with a kind voice.

I like so many kinds of music, and I work with so many kinds of music as a producer. When you work in 14 different genres, I find myself writing in those genres.