Country Hitmaker Tommy Cash Passes

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Tommy Cash 

Tommy Cash, noted for his country hit “Six White Horses,” died at home in Gallatin on Friday (Sept. 13) at age 84.

He was the brother of Country Music Hall of Fame icon Johnny Cash (1932-2003) and actively supported downtown Nashville’s Johnny Cash Museum. That attraction’s founder, Bill Miller, described him as, “a very, very dear friend.. I knew him for over 50 years. Tommy Cash was….a very beloved member of our extended family as well as a highly respected member of the music industry.”

Tommy Cash was born in Dyess, Arkansas in 1940. He reportedly took up the guitar at age 16 after watching his brother perform. Following high school, he enlisted in the U.S. Army and worked as a DJ for the Armed Forces Radio Network in 1959-61. In his early days as a musician he played shows with Hank Williams Jr., landing a recording contract with Musicor in 1965 as his first label. Two of his early singles in 1968-69 on United Artists and Epic were written by future star Eddie Rabbitt.

In 1969, Tommy Cash released a song on Epic dedicated to John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. Titled “Six White Horses,” the record became his biggest hit, rising to No. 4 on the country hit parade.

He followed it with two more top 10 hits in 1970. “Rise and Shine” was written by Carl Perkins. “One Song Away” was penned by Don Reid of The Statler Brothers.

The singer placed 19 titles on Billboard’s national country charts between 1968 and 1978. But he only made the top 20 twice more. In 1971, Reid and fellow Statler Lew DeWitt provided Cash with the hit, “So This Is Love.” In 1973, Cash made it to No. 16 with “I Recall a Gypsy Woman.” That song was also a 1981 success for B.J. Thomas and became a country evergreen. More than 45 other versions of “I Recall a Gypsy Woman” have been recorded, including versions by Don Williams, Waylon Jennings, Jim Rooney, Hank Thompson, Doc Watson and J.D. Crowe & The New South.

Cash went on to record for Elektra, 20th Century, Monument, Indigo, Playback and other labels. On later records, he sang with George Jones, Marty Stuart, Tom T. Hall, Johnny Cash, Connie Smith and his son Mark Cash. His distinctive Cash baritone led to ad-jingle work for Pepsi, Burger King, GM, Beechnut, Santa Fe railroad and other entities.

As a songwriter, his works were recorded by Conway Twitty, Jean Shepard, Kitty Wells and Loretta Lynn, as well as his superstar older brother. He often toured overseas. During the 1990s, Tommy Cash became an entertainer in the country-theater tourism center of Branson, Missouri.

In addition to being the youngest brother of Johnny Cash, he was the brother of gospel’s Joanne Cash Yates and of the museum’s Reba Cash Hancock (1934-2006), plus the uncle of Rosanne and John Carter Cash. The names of his immediate survivors have not been issued.

Arrangements for Tommy Cash are entrusted to: Sumner Funeral & Cremation 104 Sanders Ferry Rd. Hendersonville, Tennessee (615) 822-4442. Visitation there is Wednesday, Sep. 18,, from 11:00 a.m to 1:00 p.m. with the funeral service to follow. Interment will be in Hendersonville Memory Gardens.

Robert K Oermann
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