Australian music icon Tex Perkins has announced he will play a second show at Maitland Gaol honouring the man in black’s prison yard performances.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
Last month Fairfax Media announced Perkins would team up with the Tennessee Four with Rachel Tidd for the Far From Folsom tour.
The show will see Perkins and his band perform the songs of Johnny Cash in some of Australia’s most well-known prisons.
Along with Old Adelaide Gaol, Cockatoo Island and Old Melbourne Gaol, Perkins, Tidd and the band will now play Maitland Gaol on October 12 and 13.
Far From Folsom embodies Johnny Cash’s legendary performances recorded at Folsom and San Quentin prisons in the late 1960s.
The idea for the show came about after Perkins played a gig in The Old Parramatta Gaol a few years ago, which he said was “an incredible place to have a concert.”
From what was planned as one show, they ended up selling out three nights in a row with more than 7000 tickets bought within hours of going on sale.
It was the first time the prison had been used in that way, so taking his Far From Folsom on the road was a natural progression.
Perkins was pleased to hear that Maitland had already figured to use the prison here for entertainment and live music.
“I’m glad to hear you guys know what you’re doing,” he said with a laugh.
Johnny Cash’s concerts in Folsom and San Quentin prisons are nothing short of legendary, and make a big part of the life story of the incredible musician.
His humour, humanity and grit instantly built a bridge between music genres, between prisoners, preachers and presidents alike, and earned him the love and loyalty of generations of fans.
“[Cash] had a nice mix of humour, especially in those prison shows,” Perkins said.
“He makes something so tragic and serious (being in prison) into something humerous.”
But it won’t be a straight out Johnny Cash impersonation.
“We’ll bring the right vibe,” Perkins said. “We’ll do it out way, that allows us to be more truthful.”
Well-known for his impressive embodiment of Cash’s work, there are few artists within Australia who can translate the work of ‘the man in black’ and bring it to modern day.
Tickets went on sale through Ticketmaster on July 11.
