Get Rhythm - Johnny Cash Tribute. Sung by Joaquin Phoenix in the movie “Walk The Line”
Get Rhythm is a catchy rockabilly tune that was inspired by Johnny observing the hard-working boys toiling to make a living shoe shining in the dusty Memphis downtown streets. It was a quick scene in the biographical motion picture, Walk the Line.
Info taken from stevenmenke.com:
SUN LP-1220 1957 First release
Not Recorded In Stereo
Newly Released On CD
Side #1
1. The Rock Island Line
2. I Heard That Lonesome Whistle
3. Country Boy
4. If The Good Lord's Willing
5. Cry Cry Cry ( #14 Pos.- On charts 1 week ) 11/26/55
6. Remember Me ( Written By Stuart Hamblen )
Side #2
1. So Doggone Lonesome ( # 4 Pos.-On Charts 23 wks. ) 2/4/56
2. I Was There When It Happened
3. I Walk the Line ( #1 Pos On charts 43 weeks ) 6/9/56
4. The Wreck of Old '97
5. Folsom Prison Blues ( # 4 Pos.- On charts 23 Weeks ) 2/11/56
6. Doing My Time
Bonus tracks
1. Hey Porter
2. Get Rhythm
3. I Was There When It Happened Unreleased alternate Version
4. Folsom Prison Blues Unreleased alternate Version
5. I Walk The Line Unreleased alternate Version
I love how uplifting Johnny Cash made the tune. In his early career, he looked at his life and wrote about his surroundings as the glass half-full, instead of his usual repentent half-empty outlook. Until the Walk the Line motion picture came out in 2006, this song, although it was his career jump starting song, wasn’t remembered by many die-hard Cash fans. And people have forgotten that he was once the man in white.. not black. Back then, he only wore black whenever he felt uneasy or when things weren’t going right. He was literrally wearing his emotions on his sleeve.
Please take some time to view this amazing youtube clip of the original recording, and then look at the clip afterwards, taken from the movie. I think Jaoquin does a great job expressing the energy of this magnificent showman, and his inflections in the lyrics are true to the original recording.
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In both videos, please take note of Johnny’s bass and guitar picker. The bass guy is really enjoying himself and the guitar picker is this stone square dud. The motion picture captured that detail as well. That guitar picker doesn’t look like he’s enjoying himself. Makes me laugh.
The original version:
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This is the movie version. I really enjoyed Joaquin Phoenix’s twist to the song. He does pay good homage to Johnny’s legacy. Joaquin was not able to hit the low notes in the line “you’re a mighty little boy to be-a workin’ that way” and that yelp was downplayed. But anyways.. a 10 for effort!
Please enjoy:
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Here are the Lyrics (source from azlyrics.com :
Hey, get rhythm when you get the blues
Come on, get rhythm when you get the blues
Get a rock ‘n’ roll feelin’ in your bones
Put taps on your toes and get gone
Get rhythm when you get the blues
A Little shoeshine boy never gets low down
But he’s got the dirtiest job in town
Bendin’ low at the peoples’ feet
On the windy corner of the dirty street
Well, I asked him while he shined my shoes
How’d he keep from gettin’ the blues
He grinned as he raised his little head
Popped a shoeshine rag and then he said
Get rhythm when you get the blues
Come on, get rhythm when you get the blues
A jumpy rhythm makes you feel so fine
It’ll shake all the trouble from your worried mind
Get rhythm when you get the blues
Get rhythm when you get the blues
Come on , get rhythm when you get the blues
Get a rock ‘n’ roll feelin’ in your bones
Put taps on your toes and get gone
Get rhythm when you get the blues
Well, I sat down to listen to the shoeshine boy
And I thought I was gonna jump for joy
Slapped on the shoe polish left and right
He took a shoeshine rag and he held it tight
He stopped once to wipe the sweat away
I said you’re a mighty little boy to be-a workin’ that way
He said I like it with a big wide grin
Kept on a poppin’ and he said again
Get rhythm when you get the blues
Come on, get rhythm when you get the blues
It only costs a dime, just a nickel a shoe
Does a million dollars worth of good for you
Get rhythm when you get the blues
[Thanks to ktorpy@epix.net for correcting these lyrics]
Off-topic:
There is some talk on WikiPedia that it is debatable whether this song falls in the rock-and-roll vs. the rockabilly vs. the country and Western category. I think it falls in the rockabilly section because rock-and-roll evolved over time, and rockabilly still stayed the same.
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