Cavan musician finds some of Cash's studio magic

Tears from the Sky single inspired by Russia's invasion of Ukraine

Cavan songwriter and musician Paul McCann tapped into the heritage of one of his country heroes for his latest single.

'Tears from the Sky' was recorded at Johnny Cash's main residence outside Nashville and comes hot on the heals of McCann's critically acclaimed second album 'Alter Ego'.

The legendary 'Cash Cabin Studio' in Hendersonville, Tennessee had been used by the Man In Black since the late 1970s. The space became his primary recording location in his final years, where much of the 'American Recordings' albums were recorded.

“I really cannot describe the magic that exists in that Cabin," said McCann. "It was honestly a spiritual experience to be standing there, never mind to record music in the same space as so much incredible music has been created.”

McCann worked closely with the Cash Cabin engineer Trey Call on selecting the right song for the project. Several demos were shared in advance of McCann's trip to Nashville, with both sides agreeing on the song 'Tears from the Sky'.

Also performing on the track are Johnny Cash's grandson, Joseph Cash; McCann's wife Blathnaid; and McCann's brother-in-law, Peter Sheridan and his wife Erika (AKA music duo 'Monaco and Alameda').

“Musically, I wanted to use as much of the acoustic essence of the Cabin as possible," McCann said. "A lot of the percussion on the track was accomplished by shouts, stomps, hand claps, similar to percussion techniques used by Johnny Cash and Rick Rubin on the American Recording albums.

"The lyrics for Tears from the Sky were inspired by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which started weeks before my trip to Nashville. It was hard not to be affected by the horrific images and stories of this war.”

McCann's admiration for Cash goes back several years to his highly publicised Tour of Ireland's Prisons with an eight piece band, recreating the prison shows undertaken by Cash in the late 1960's.