10 Music Artists Who Released Their Best Album Last
7. American IV: The Man Comes Around - Johnny Cash
Known in recent years for featuring a cover of Nine Inch Nails' Hurt, American IV is the final studio album from Johnny Cash before his death in 2003. Cash's status as a notoriously prickly, but much-loved cult hero in rural America was known to everyone who appreciated his music, and indeed his legacy, and albums like the Native American-inspired Bitter Tears, or even the live At San Quentin release were the reason why.
However, while these are the cornerstone of his identity as a blues icon, it's American IV that is perhaps the most beloved all these years later. From the begrudgingly upbeat titular track, to the utterly tragic cover of Hurt, the 2003 album is draped in sadness.
As the music video for the latter has Cash sitting in the now-closed museum dedicated to him in Nashville, his harrowing words about his 'empire of dirt' hit with an entirely new level of meaning.
Cash recorded a seemingly infinite number of albums during his near 50-year career, and deducing the best offering from such a substantial pool of releases seems like an impossible feat, but the sheer emotional weight of American IV: The Man Comes Around is simply too much to ignore.