Terry Lee Goffee (Ultimate Johnny Cash Experience) Johnny Cash Tribute Act from Wellington, OH

Biography Train of Love - A Tribute to JOHNNY CASH Featuring "TERRY LEE GOFFEE" In the spring of 1955 Johnny Cash walked into the legendary Sun Recording Studios in Memphis, Tennessee. The music world was never the same. Not long afterward, I put my first Johnny Cash record on a turntable and my world was never the same. I have been a fan of Johnny Cash since I was 6 or 7. He and Elvis were my first two musical influences. I always felt Johnny's music got better, after Elvis came out of the Army, Elvis got so caught up doing movies and sound tracks. Johnny appealed to me more. Johnny Cash addressed a lot of issues common to a lot of people, whether it was sensitive social issues or something the average person can relate to. I had knowledge of others who were doing tributes, that is why, I decided to start performing "Train of Love: A Tribute to Johnny Cash." There was a tribute to Patsy Cline that was a huge success down in Nashville. There was another one devoted to Hank Williams. So I thought I would like to do the tribute thing. This one we wanted to make a little different. I decided to make mine a little unique by portraying Johnny Cash in first person, rather than just me standing there doing the music," Goffee said. "I had the vocal range, plus my facial features had become a little craggy over the years I said, 'I think I can do this.'" There was one problem that we faced was, how do you decide what songs from Cash's vast musical catalog? In fact, that was the most difficult decision of all in putting this together. I knew I wanted to include a good part of his early Sun recordings. Then I thought I would just move chronologically, picking up his biggest hits along the way. I also wanted to include some of the new American recordings that he started doing in 1993. I wanted to include those to keep the interest of some of the younger fans. All in all, trying to whittle down 1,500 songs to 34 to fit in two hours was hard. Among the 34 songs included in the show are such Cash classics as: "A Boy Named Sue", "Sunday Morning Coming Down", "I Walk The Line", "Ring Of Fire", "Folsom Prison Blues" and "Hurt". Cash's recent death had an obvious effect on me as a performer. Though I never met the man, I feel like I've lost my mentor. I've been singing his songs and attempting to copy his moves over the last 40 years. I think I'll feel a little awkward in the beginning because he's gone. But then I will have a sense of duty to keep performing this show to keep his music and legacy alive. In June 2003, we took the "Train of Love" tribute to Nashville for a couple of performances. Cash's brother and sister attended the show and came away impressed. Tommy Cash stated, "My Brother would be proud". Joanne Cash Yates commented, "It's a wonderful show, I would recommend it to anyone" and "you don't impersonate my brother, you pay tribute to him with honor" That was the greatest endorsement we could get ... his brother and sister enjoying the show. That was a great boost to our confidence. We came away from Nashville saying, we must have gotten something right. "Train of Love" sprang from my appreciation and love, not only for the music of Johnny Cash, but for the man himself. A champion of the underdog, a voice for those who often have none, an "outlaw" before it became fashionable. If you come away from this presentation with a better understanding of who Johnny Cash is, I will have succeeded in my vision for this endeavor. With the release of the Smash Hit Movie in 2005 - "Walk the Line", the continued success of "Johnny Cash" is more prevalent now than ever…. Enjoy the Ride - Terry Lee Goffee