"American Remains" is a song written by Rivers Rutherford and originally recorded by the Highwaymen (Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Kris Kristofferson, and Willie Nelson)[1] for their 1990 album Highwaymen 2. The song follows the stories of 4 historically fictional men (a shotgun rider for the fictional "San Jacinto Line", a card shark, a Midwest farmer, and a Cherokee American Indian) in a similar vein to their cover of "Highwayman".[2] Unlike in Highwayman, however, none of the characters are implied dead; their legacies are instead emphasized.
| "American Remains" | |
|---|---|
 1990 single cover, b/w 'Texas' | |
| Single by The Highwaymen | |
| from the album Highwayman 2 | |
| A-side | "Silver Stallion", "Texas" |
| Released | 1990 |
| Genre | Country |
| Length | 4:06 |
| Label | Columbia 38-73233, 38-73572 |
| Songwriter(s) | R. Rutherford |
| Producer(s) | Chips Moman |
| Music video | |
| "American Remains" on YouTube | |
The song was chosen as the fifth track of the album[3] and as a flip side to the lead single from it ("Silver Stallion" / "American Remains", Columbia 38-73233).[4] In October of the same year, it was again released as a single, this time coupled with "Texas".[5]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Silver Stallion" | L. Clayton | 3:12 |
| 2. | "American Remains" | R. Rutherford | 4:06 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "American Remains" | 4:07 |
| 2. | "Texas" | 2:42 |
References
edit- ^ Dunkerley, Beville (July 7, 2014). "Songwriter Spotlight: Rivers Rutherford". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 5, 2022.
- ^ The Highwaymen (September 22, 2014). "American Remains". YouTube. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
- ^ "Highwayman 2". Johnny Cash official site. Retrieved 2022-05-12.
- ^ a b "Silver Stallion / American Remains". Discogs. Retrieved 2022-05-12.
WAYLON JENNINGS, WILLIE NELSON, JOHNNY CASH, KRIS KRISTOFFERSON SILVER STALLION -L. Clayton- Produced by Chips Moman, Taken from the forthcoming Columbia Lp: "HIGHWAYMAN II" 45240. // WAYLON JENNINGS, WILLIE NELSON, JOHNNY CASH, KRIS KRISTOFFERSON AMERICAN REMAINS -R. Rutherford- Produced by Chips Moman, Taken from the forthcoming Columbia Lp: "HIGHWAYMAN II" 45240.
- ^ a b "Waylon Jennings / Willie Nelson / Johnny Cash / Kris Kristofferson - American Remains". lescharts.com. Retrieved 2022-05-12.
- ^ "lescharts.com - Waylon Jennings / Willie Nelson / Johnny Cash / Kris Kristofferson - Silver Stallion". lescharts.com. Retrieved 2022-05-12.