Over the weekend, I attended the latest Studio Tenn production of The Cash Legacy.  Yes, I was out on Friday night, but  we were all a little stir crazy after the week of ice/snow  and being house bound.  Disclaimer:  I am not recommending traveling during a treacherous  weather event but the show was happening whether I came out or not.  On the heels of  The  Hank Williams  Legacy  2013,  if you were lucky enough to catch  that production, you can understand why I wanted to see  The Cash Legacy.
In the words of Matt Logan, Artistic Director, Â this is a “theatrical concert” which means there are no spoken words or dialog or even a narrative. Â Leading up to the show, The Cash Legacy cast prepared by taking a trip to Cash’s childhood home. Â Jake Speck, Managing Director of Studio Tenn, told us,”While there is no narrative, we felt it incredibly important that all the artists in the cast embody Johnny and in order to do that they needed to see and experience where he came from. It GREATLY affected the cast. It was almost a sacred experience.”
You will find the show broken down into segments  of songs about  Family, Rockabilly, Prison and Gospel.  In addition, there are  cast members that you will recognize  from the Hank Legacy show.  Carrie Tillis (Mel Tillis’s daughter), Patrick Thomas (Semi-finalist ” The Voice” Season One),  Jared Manzo (Upright Bass/Bass Guitar), Garrett Beull (Drums), Jake Bradley (Guitar), Carrie Tillis( daughter of country legend Mel Tillis), and Matt Haeck( recently released album Late Bloomer).
Laura Matula(Studio Tenn Veteran), Griffin House, Jake Bradley(Guitar), and Sara Jean Kelley, Caitlin Nicol-Thomas(fiddle) completes the cast for the The Cash Legacy.
The audience at the Friday night show was more of an intimate one, they took the encouragement of Matt Logan before the show to “hoot, holler, clap” and even went so far as to  giving a couple of standing ovations.
Some of the most memorable moments from the show are when Laura Matula sings, “Cry, Cry, Cry” and Sara Jean Kelley’s take on “Sunday Morning Coming Down.”
Griffin House performs some Cash classics that had audience members singing along  “Folsom Prison Blues,” “A Boy Named Sue” and “Cocaine Blues.”  A few got out of their seat for House’s duet with Matula when they sang”Ring of Fire.”
Patrick Thomas’s  “Man in Black” and “I Walk the Line” showed us his incredible range.  But the moment that brought the entire house to a point where you could hear a pin drop  was when  Matt Haek gave us his rendition  of “Hurt.”
Closing out the show with the Gospel section, Carrie Tillis  gives a moving performance of “Into the Garden” followed by the  entire cast singing “May the Circle Be Unbroken.”
Don’t miss your opportunity  to see The Cash Legacy running now thru  March 6th at the Factory in Franklin. Purchase tickets here.  And be sure to check out all of the Cash memorabilia  on set with photos and books completing the experience.  It’s as  if you have been invited to the Cash living room for a home concert, a concert you won’t want to miss!
photo credit: Studio Tenn Facebook
