A Boy Named Sue
"A Boy Named Sue" is a song written by Shel Silverstein and made famous by Johnny Cash. Cash recorded the song live in concert on February 24, 1969, at California's San Quentin State Prison for his At San Quentin album. Cash also performed the song (with comical variations on the original performance) in December 1969 at Madison Square Garden. The live San Quentin version of the song became Cash's biggest hit on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and his only top ten single there, spending three weeks at No. 2 in 1969, held out of the top spot by "Honky Tonk Women" by The Rolling Stones. The track also topped the Billboard Hot Country Songs and Easy Listening charts that same year and was certified Gold on August 14, 1969, by the RIAA.
| "A Boy Named Sue" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Side A of 1969 US single | ||||
| Single by Johnny Cash | ||||
| from the album At San Quentin | ||||
| B-side | "San Quentin" | |||
| Released | July 2, 1969 | |||
| Recorded | February 24, 1969 | |||
| Genre |
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| Length | 3:44 | |||
| Label | Columbia | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Shel Silverstein | |||
| Producer(s) | Bob Johnston | |||
| Johnny Cash singles chronology | ||||
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| Alternative cover | ||||
Artwork for Dutch single | ||||
| "Boy Named Sue" | |
|---|---|
| Promotional single by Shel Silverstein | |
| from the album Boy Named Sue (and His Other Country Songs) | |
| B-side | "Somebody Stole My Rib" |
| Released | 1969 |
| Label | RCA |
| Songwriter(s) | Shel Silverstein |
| Producer(s) | Chet Atkins, Felton Jarvis |
Silverstein's recording was released the same year as "Boy Named Sue", a single on the album Boy Named Sue (and His Other Country Songs), produced by Chet Atkins and Felton Jarvis.