'Walk the line' to The Palace in Greensburg for Johnny Cash tribute
He wears the clothes and he sings the songs, but James Tamelcoff isn’t trying to be the Man in Black.
He just fronts Cash Unchained: The Ultimate Johnny Cash Experience, coming to The Palace Theatre in Greensburg at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 22.
“I’m not going to get up onstage and say, ‘I’m Johnny Cash.’ We’re not impersonators. We’re ambassadors for the music,” Tamelcoff said. “No one is ever going to see Johnny Cash perform again, so we’re all just keeping the music alive.”
The Virginia-based band covers the entire Cash oeuvre, from the 1950s recordings for Sun Records to “Hurt,” the Nine Inch Nails song Cash recorded in 2002, a year before his death.
“The show captures everything from start to finish. It tells the Johnny Cash story in 90 minutes,” Tamelcoff said.
Cash was just one of the country, rockabilly and classic rock musicians that Tamelcoff, now 23, grew up listening to in central Virginia.
He started taking guitar lessons at age 7 and played in a number of bands throughout his teen years. It was during one of those gigs that an audience member heard echoes of Cash in Tamelcoff’s baritone voice.
“He came up and said, ‘Hey, you kind of sound like Johnny Cash,’ ” Tamelcoff said.
That sparked an idea.
Tamelcoff and his bandmates approached the management of The State Theatre in Culpeper, Va., about putting together a one-night Johnny Cash tribute show.
“I thought it would be one-and-done, but the people really liked it,” Tamelcoff said. “I realized how big a market there is for Johnny Cash.”
‘Very blessed’
Cash Unchained has been together for six years. They have played and recorded in Memphis, Tenn., and in hallowed music venues across the country such as House of Blues and The Fillmore.
“One thing kind of led to another,” Tamelcoff said. “We’re a younger band, so we’ve been very blessed to have the success we’ve had and to be able to tour the country with the show.”
Tamelcoff is the lead singer and guitarist. His longtime friend, Mike Hott, plays upright bass. The drummer is Hott’s cousin, Noah Smith. Ronnie Lambrich plays rhythm guitar and keyboards.
“Mike and I have been playing since I was 14, or younger than that,” Tamelcoff said.
While there is a Johnny Cash album called “Unchained,” Tamelcoff said the band isn’t named specifically for that record.
“We were just sitting around trying to think of names, throwing names out, and ‘Cash Unchained’ sounded like a good name,” he said.
As Cash Unchained continues to tour, Tamelcoff hopes it will lead to opportunities for him to play original music, too.
Playing in Greensburg will give Tamelcoff an opportunity to catch up with relatives who live in the New Castle and Beaver Falls area.
The band will be joined at The Palace by local singer Cathi Rhodes, who performs a Patsy Cline tribute.
“We’ve worked with her on a few shows, and she does a great job,” Tamelcoff said.
Tickets for Cash Unchained are $20-$40 and can be purchased at 724-836-8000 or thepalacetheatre.org.
Shirley McMarlin is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Shirley by email at smcmarlin@triblive.com or via Twitter .
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