Some time ago, Johnny Cash and June Carter made their way to a venue near my home town, and the memory continues to bring joy and a sense of good fortune to me.
Back in the ’70s, the number of music venues near my home in Maryland, there were few and far between. I tended to go to spots where crowds were shoulder to shoulder and decibel levels wouldn’t puncture an ear drum. Mostly, I would seek out performers that I would have loved to have enjoyed sitting on my front porch with a cool drink in my hand.
Johnny Cash circa 1977 – Photo credit: Walter League
In the fall of 1977, that was nearly impossible. But, in September of that year I managed to find my way to one of the better places to see great music, Painters Mill Star Theater, in Owings Mill, Maryland. It had started out in 1960 as a big tent spot, but eventually would mature into a building that featured performers with names like, Dylan, Springsteen, The Grateful Dead, and on the day I hung out, the “Man in Black”, Johnny Cash.
It was a theater in the round, and there were no bad seats, and I had a wonderful vantage point, a third row seat!
Johnny Cash & Band – Photo credit: Walter League
The music was classic country. Straightforward, heartfelt and as profound as it was intimate and storied. And fortunately, I had my camera on hand to get some close-up images of the legends on stage, all the while being mesmerized by that deep grizzled voice that the world recognizes and the gravitas of the man standing center stage.
Joining Johnny Cash was his lovely and talented wife June Carter Cash of the legendary Carter Family, and who wrote “Ring of Fire” that her husband sang into the hearts of America. Both Anita and Helen Carter, June’s sister’s shared the stage, building the Cash show into a robust family affair.
Sadly, both Johnny and June have passed on, as has Painters Mill. In 1991, a fire burned the venue to the ground, caused by an acetylene torch used by some no counts burgling the manager’s office safe.
GALLERY – Photos by W. League
