Johnny Cash in the Holy Land

Stand for Israel  |  October 25, 2021

Many of us who stand for Israel love the music of yesteryear. And perhaps no musician is as close to our hearts as country star Johnny Cash. But did you know that the beloved singer also stood for Israel? Writing at The Times of Israel, Shai Ben-Ari tells how a newly discovered trove of photos in the Holy Land unearthed Johnny Cash’s lifelong love of Israel:

The pictures had escaped our notice until recently, when our social media manager, who was actually looking for a photo of Israeli pop star Svika Pick, found an image of the local singer showing up to a party being thrown for international superstar Johnny Cash in Jerusalem.

But what was Cash — an iconic American singer and musician in the midst of a triumphant professional comeback — doing in Israel in 1971?

It turns out this was actually his third visit. He first came in 1966, for a religious pilgrimage, visiting Christian sites across the country. Cash was so impressed that in 1968 he returned, accompanied by his new wife, June Carter Cash. This second trip inspired an entire album, “The Holy Land,” released the next year. The record featured songs with such titles as “Land of Israel,” “The Ten Commandments,” and “Come to the Wailing Wall”…