REACTION to Nine Inch Nails and Johnny Cash - Hurt (Cover Comparison)

[@recabitejehonadab2654]

No need to apologize for crying, this song really hits the heart. Johnny let all his feelings out before he departed this life.

[@ericksoderquist8612]

The difference is time. I'm 72. I feel every note that johnny hits on that piano. Trent understands pain ... Johnny understands life!

[@rick5781]

Getting older myself both you and I know with time ( age ) comes the pain of family and friends gone, as the sand spills through the hour glass we wonder when will it be our last grain of sand. Live long Sir.

[@lorenrobertson8039]

And Johnny let us feel his pain. His wasted time and hurt to loved ones through his own addiction.

[@allandriver2066]

@@lorenrobertson8039 been there....done that. 💔

[@matthewhicks8140]

As a diehard NIN fan, you nailed it my dude.🤟

[@pinkstarphoenix6182]

I am a 70 year old woman, dying of a combination of cancers. I have a few months if I am lucky. This video resonates with me. My husband of 40 years passed in 2019. My best friend, a man of 30 years old, died in 2021 of cancers. "Everyone I know goes away in the end" hits me hard. Regrets are many but I wouldn't change who I am. I hadn't seen or heard the Nine Inch Nails version until now. Thank you. I still prefer Johnny's.

[@atsz.]

I wish you as many months of quality time as this world can offer you. I will say the nine inch nails version was very relatable to me as a teenager when I had all sorts of depression and isolation going on. But I bet Johnny's version will be more relatable as I get up to those years.

[@DreadPirateRobrt]

Tears came to my eyes at the point where JC picks up the wine glass with a shaking hand and pours it out.

[@davebrokenshire1086]

Don't ever apologise for showing your feelings and laying yourself bare the way you did. There's nobody watching your video who hasn't at the very least shed a tear over this song. If you allow us to see that it broke you the same way it broke us, well that's a gift, and we appreciate it. Truly.

[@swfcocs1]

Trent Reznor from Nine inch Nails had stated that he now regards this as a Johnny Cash song, such is the power of his cover.Never apologize for that reaction, it still does that to me and I've heard it a hundred times...

[@robertheckman8013]

100% agree!

[@PutnmaKE]

​@Tala K Wrong Jerry Rubin who produced the Cash version asked for and received permission When Reznor received an Audio CD, he wasn't impressed A couple of weeks later he got a copy of the video He said that every time he showed it to someone, they justs at there until it was finished The comment about watching someone kiss your girlfriend was after watching the video

[@PutnmaKE]

@Tala K What has listening to either recording have to do with the veracity of your statement?

[@PutnmaKE]

@Tala K So link proof you are correct and I'm wrong Otherwise you are just wasting bandwidth spouting your own opinion that disagrees with everyone else

[@brahby]

@@PutnmaKE Rick Rubin* but other than that absolutely everything you said was accurate. I don't know what this Tala person is talking about but since they called Reznor a donkey they forfeit any credibility or respect.

[@ricko5885]

Yes, the Johnny Cash version hits you like a ton of bricks. The video really contributes to the emotion his version evokes. The Nine Inch Nails version was also strong. I had not seen that video or heard their version. But Johnny Cash just crushes you as you realize the song, even though written by Reznor, was a kind of tapestry of his own life. Very powerful stuff.

[@sithyarael6807]

And Trent said he wrote that song as part of his recovery from addiction and when he say Johnny's video he said that is no longer my song Johnny owns it now. And Johnny suffered thru addiction as well for many many decades. His wife June would find the hidden pills and meth and would flush them. He tried so hard to beat it just because of her. Yet he kept relapsing. Till he finally became clean.

[@alexshtyn6336]

It's hard for me to relate to the original 9 inch nails song. the rage behind the sadness in Johnny's version is more my flavour of darkness than Trent's more weepy vibe.

[@ControversialChristian]

He changed ''crown of sh8t" to crown of thorns. I though he wrote it because his wife passed. But Rezner wrote it about addiction and recovery, which both Cash, and Rezner had been through. As much as I love NIN, like Trent Rezner I love the impact of the Johnny Cash version.

[@cynicalminion]

NIN got you from the heroin angle... JOHNNY got you from the (i think it's an a) repetetive piano... like venus in furs....

[@channelsandy]

The Director of the video wanted to use the closed museum as a set, only to discover the deep reservoir of symbolism and footage of cash when he was younger. The song without the video is good. The song with the video is a RAW devastating dissection of what matters at the end.

[@GoddessNyx911]

Great heartfelt reaction! Johnny was a broken man who struggled with loss and addiction. The picture was his mom that passed. June, his wife, was standing behind him. She passed 3 shortly after he recorded this, and he passed a few months after her. He did change one word, he changed crown of shit to crown of thorns.

[@OoogaBoog]

NiN Hurt was about succumbing to addiction and trying to overcome it. JC Hurt was about entering the end of life, and living with regret.

[@TomTomson81]

It makes a difference whether someone sings the song who still has life ahead of him or whether someone sings it who stands at the end of life and looks back on it.

[@sketchtherapy1218]

Congradulations kid you got a heart. Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.

[@TheAndersox]

Bless Rick Rubin for bringing this to Cash and convincing him to do it. Imagine what we would have missed out on.

[@akiraakai]

I am not a big fan of Rick Rubin, but I will always love that he kind of pushed Johnny to do this.

[@billgee02]

The tune by Johnny Cash is worthy of emotion - It choked everyone i know that watched it - you saw his mom and wife and his home of years ago - very emotional stuff indeed - I'm pretty sure that Johnny knew his passing was imminent - bravo Daniel

[@joykind4258]

The Johnny Cash version is so so powerful. You want to scoop him up in your arms, hug him tightly and just rock back and forth never letting go.

[@peterramsay4674]

I was a drug and alchohol abuser for much of my life. The line that hit home for me was “ you are someone else, I am still right here.” That is so true. When drugs are running your life, you are stuck in a moment of time. You take these drugs to help you bury your feelings about some tragic event or relationship trauma. At first it works and it feels good and you feel you got it all under control. The thing you don’t count on is that the first couple of years are best it’s going to ever be. After that it starts the inevitable spiral down. And the bottom is much further than you may ever anticipate. This is the critical moment where either you do something about it or…. Bad things could happen. All your relationships disappear. They move on and grow and evolve while you are still right here in that same place. Except now nothing feels good. Johnny went through it. I went through it. He was a very courageous man to put his business out there for all to see. But that was Johnny. He was a flawed person who struggled but was deeply committed to be a truth teller. He’s my favourite musician of all time. RIP

[@sirtodd665]

I have battled with addiction for many years and I would agree with everything you wrote. I think this song resonates with addicts that others don't understand. Johnny Cash has the gift of making the listener feel the words. It's very profound, very intimate and very deep.

[@Brosef19]

I watch the johnny Cash version from time to time, to see if I still feel. Turns out I do , and I can still cry. Thank you for doing this song, that was given to us by three geniuses, justice.

[@itsnotclever]

It's amazing how one song can be true for two people, referring to two different things.

[@dibutler9151]

Cash was also a junkie and an alcoholic who lost it all for quite a while, as well.

[@foxymacadoo]

@@dibutler9151 There was a Autography Cash wrote about his life. The book is called Man in Black (1976) Cash writes about his love for June, his drug and alcohol addictions, His career and more.

[@kimking6036]

I believe this was Johnny Cash saying goodbye to all of us. Short time later after this, his wife, friend and soulmate, passed away on the operating table. He died 3 months later.

[@TheGEOPOLITICIANGUY]

Years ago when i heard this when i came home from prison on a jukebox at our lil quiet bar - i went in the bathroom and cried …… there is something to it man

[@jmpet7134]

The picture on the wall was his mother. The song combined with the video is overwhelming. I've never seen a more power emotional video.

[@wasylowskir]

I have never seen anything more honest in a performance, heartbreaking. And he even lost his adored June Carter, the woman on the stairs, a few months later

[@jeffsherk7056]

Oh how powerful this song is in both versions, but the Johnny Cash cover just tears everyone's heart open. Everybody cries when they see the Johnny Cash video the first time, and even after the first time. Somehow, Johnny put a lifetime of experience into this song.

[@snakelite61]

You are someone else. I am still right here. Normally people grow and change. Drug addicts don't. Everyone he knows either moves on because they've outgrown him or he's lied to and disappointed them. I like the cover comparison and hope you do more.

[@jenniferradcliff8910]

I was at the concert where the NIN video was filmed. Mosh bit was over a hockey rink, and people had ripped up the plywood floor over the ice during one of the opening acts, and was throwing it in to the crowd. Very scary experience.

[@chrisester2910]

To me, the line, "you are someone else, I am still right here..." refers to the fact that when a person is in the throws of active addiction they are stagnant, they are not growing or evolving (changing) but the people in their life who are living something close to a normal life are becoming someone different as they grow/evolve.

[@bleysingram7789]

I choke up every time the Cash vid shows June Carter behind him. She passed shortly after filming.

[@fictionjunkie]

The NiN version is deeply personal and feels like an apology filled with regret. Johnny Cash's cover hits different an old man towards the end of his life looking back at everything gives the song more weight.

[@janetdepalma8683]

Trent still closes every show with Hurt. I saw him in 2006. His voice was shredded by laryngitis. That song performed to an audience of long time fans, because we all got older together has a very different vibe. The audience sang beautifully and loudly, “ I would keep myself. I would find a way” and sustained the last word to match the piano. He stepped to the very front of the stage, smiled and thanked us for being there. There was real happiness there. He made it. He found his way. When Johnny Cash performs that song he has run out of time. That breaks one’s heart. I do think that the change in lyric makes Johnny’s version more accessible to an audience that comfortably understands Christian symbols of righteous suffering. When Reznor wrote his profane expression of the crown he wore he felt alone, overwhelmed, unreliable and unworthy. That’s uncomfortable to listen to.Thanks for including them both. Trent Reznor composed a song of incredible vulnerability and power. Johnny Cash chose to sing it and reveal the depth of his regret and frailty

[@crystalpetrosky6188]

Just came across your reaction video to Hurt. Don't ever apologize or feel ashamed of an honest emotional reaction. The song, in both formats, rips your guts out. Having lived through both addiction and crashing down from the top of my world, there's never a time I hear either version that it doesn't touch my soul. It's one of the most personal songs I've ever heard.

[@californiadreaming567]

I love it when you explain the songs and their history as opposed to thers who just pretend and overreact. Everything you do is so heart felt. One video of both together.

[@redhood2088]

The woman in the red dress was his mother, but the woman on the stairs was Juna Carter Cash who passed away 3 weeks after the video was made. Them him soon after..

[@yellowcardinal693]

I’m in my late 50’s and I’ve never listened to nine inch nails, Trent Reznor, or Johnny cash. The more I watch these 2 versions, the more I think I like Trent’s version a bit better. Trent’s is chilling as it helps me understand the deep pit of despair, incredible pain and brokenness that drug addicts must feel. It broke my heart b/c I can’t imagine what addicts go through but he helped me feel it. He really takes you into that world and helps you realize what deception drugs can be - they destroyed his life so badly that even all the wealth and fame he achieved is an like empire of dirt. I think crown of sh*t works well in Trent’s version b/c the life of an addict turns to sh*t and they often deny their addiction - lie to themselves. Despite all his amazing achievements, all he sees is what sh*t his life is. The Johnny Cash’s version is really amazing too - you feel his regrets of looking back on his life where he really hurt himself and others with his drug use, the despair of everyone dying around him and of all the losses.

[@vieella389]

Such a human reaction. That's how I felt the first time I saw the Johnny Cash video. I grew up with Johnny...he will always remind me of my mother.

[@raymattingly8380]

The Lady on the wall was his mother, the lady behind him was his Wife June, he passed away 3 months after she did, his love his life.

[@bjspeck4337]

That's just the way I reacted whenever I hear it. Trent commented on Johnny's version saying "That's Johnny's song now." He had problems in early life, spent time in prison which changed him. He worked hard to try and make life better for the native Americans and people of color in prison. Never forgot them. When he closed the lid on the piano, it was the last time he played it.

[@tyzmar2782]

I have just recently come across this song. I am a grown man and still cry when I see the Johnny Cash video. Thank you for your in depth comparison.

[@leadiususa7394]

Your feeling about Johnny Cash version means you have a true soul... Keep it... learn from it...

[@xsubdude99]

I really, REALLY liked your reaction video and yes, I stayed until the end. Johnny Cash owned this song regardless of the fact he didn't write it. Keep doing what you're doing and I'll keep watching till the end.

[@amariekohls1896]

I have so much respect for your heartfelt reaction. This was first time i wattched your channel. Mad respect. Whistle was train. He wrote alot of songs about them.

[@bjspeck4337]

I like it the way you had it this way. You picked up a subscriber today. I'm 71, lost my husband of 48 yrs to cancer 6 yrs ago. Life has changed and while I'd listened to a lot of good Johnny Cash's music but this one stopped me in my tracks. The video was of his life though he didn't write this. God it is good.

[@MisterWondrous]

So glad they released this, for a host of reasons. Trent's show is atomic, and Cash's so intimate and raw...and powerful, as it rose to climax just as the original had so powerfully done. Whomever is not overcome by Johnny's lamentation is lacking in many places. That you sing some of his work ties you to him, in special ways only musicians can know. That he died right after this was produced makes it all the more poignant and heartbreaking. He and June are probably smiling down upon you with care in their hearts. I'm sure many are.

[@stephenryan1912]

I was at that concert. It was phenomenal. I also saw him play with David Bowie. Again phenomenal.

[@Quincysof]

Grew up listening to Johnny Cash. My dad played his music on guitar and his music reminds me of him.He passed in 2003. The lady in the video was his wife June who passed a few months before him. I did not connect with the NIN version. Loved your reaction ❤❤❤

[@alexshelton7229]

Don't ever apologize for getting emotional!! It is an emotional song!

[@jimhaggard7436]

For context, the woman in the photograph is Johnny’s mom, Carrie Cash, who passed away in 1991 at 86. The woman in the video is June Carter Cash, Johnny’s second wife and mother of their son, John Carter Cash. Between them, Johnny and June had six daughters from their previous marriage. June is obviously worried about Johnny’s health from the pensive looks she gives him. He was 71 at the time the video was shot. Tragically, June died first, unexpectedly, from complications of heart surgery on May 15, 2003, just two and a half months after the video was completed. She was 73. Johnny followed her to his grave four months later.

[@amandaculler5444]

It is refreshing to see someone who is young and is truly appreciating quality music and is taking it in.

[@deepbluehue3]

I feel confident someone in comments mentioned the lyric change ... It was " I wear this crown of SHI T / to " I wear this crown of THORNS " I was in my age 20's in the 90's and always felt the nin version was a bit whiny and self absorbed ( as an addict is ; which was what the song was about originally ) As below states ..." TON OF BRICKS " Johnny made it his own ( as Trent stated " I realized it was no longer MY song " ) And equally , the video editing was spot on as well . //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// I see you haven't focused on making videos lately ... I've enjoyed what I've seen .... and i know there are MANY factors in WHY , HOW , and all the hoops to making a channel worthwhile on youtube .... ( I watched your second to last made video ) Keep in mind for as long as the videos are here ... people will be stopping by .. Skipping through or watching in full for years to come ... We're all connected in one way or another ... Inspiration and insight often comes unexpected .

[@reactionswitherin5504]

Johnny Cash’s version is like a kick in the stomach. It’s so good though!

[@barefootalien]

Yeah, the woman in the photo was his mother. The woman behind him was his wife, who died three months after the recording. He died four months after her. Johnny didn't play any of the instruments in this cover. You can see that he can barely move his fingers to mime playing the guitar. The guitars were played by Mike Campbell of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, along with Smokey Hormel (legendary session guitarist who played on all tracks on the album). Piano, organ, and mellotron (the whistly noises) were Benmont Tench, also of the Heartbreakers. If you listen carefully, there are actually two different guitar lines, one panned hard left, one hard right, on guitars with very different tones (one dark and rich, one bright and pingy). They played with imperfections... fret buzz, string noises and the like, that very much blended with Cash's own imperfect but still very moving voice. It's an excellent arrangement! The director was Mark Romanek, who also did the video for NIN's "Closer", RHCP's "Can't Stop", and a ton of other high-end music videos from the likes of Madonna, Michael Jackson, Taylor Swift, and Beyonce. The producer, of course, was Rick Rubin. The house and museum where it was filmed was destroyed in a fire four years later, in 2007.

[@FranconiaFriend]

Best analysis of this I've seen - great that you did both. What powerful lyrics Reznor wrote.

[@Bludngutz]

You are wise enough to know how much wiser you can be. You give me a glimmer of hope that my country is in good hands. ...(still enough years ahead of me to watch a human landing on Mars).

[@chy78]

He's near death he's remembering his life, he had problems but he got through some with June Carter later. Watch the video, June is worried about what will happen to him without her. I think he died about 4 months after her. There's a movie out there from years ago you could watch about some of their life. 1 of his sons and maybe his daughter were part of the making.

[@IllumeEltanin]

I too am glad this was unblocked. I know your reactions are always genuine, but this felt special. Thank you for sharing it with us.

[@geneaikenii1092]

Don't lose your tender heart, Dan. Do not ever change, brother. Time has a way of changing you. And like me become jaded.

[@gregjones861]

Daniel: Thanks so much for doing this comparison video. I have a thought about why the Johnny Cash version hits you so hard. He achieved some of the things you hope to in life, and he's looking back and saying it's worthless, an empire of dirt, pouring his glass of wine over it and saying you can have it all. I think seeing the end from this early is hard not to be sobered by. Does that mean don't pursue your dreams? No. Just always remember that the wisest man who ever lived, King Solomon, said none of it will make you satisfied. "All things are full of weariness; a man cannot utter it. The eye is not satisfied with seeing nor the ear filled by earing" (Ecclesiastes 1:8). After listing so many great accomplishments in the book, he ends by declaring the true meaning of life: "The end of the matter, all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man." (Ecclesiastes 12:13) And if we connect to Jesus as branches to a vine, He says in John 15:11 "These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full." Just as King David said "You show me the path of life, in your presence there is fullness of joy, in your right hand are pleasures forevermore. " (Psalm 16:11) Fantastic reaction.

[@alopez795]

The lady in the picture was his mother.. the lady standing be hind him was his wife - she died after the video- Johnny cash passed 4mo later some say of a broken heart after he lost June

[@cjvan713]

It is not a comparison or competition. It is a completion.

[@akiraakai]

What I truly love about all these reaction videos to this song (not putting anyone down at all) is how completely unprepared they are to what they are about to see.

[@MejseLund]

This song always makes me cry. It's hits you right in the heart. You can feel the pain, all the ways in your soul.

[@paulschindler7390]

He never played that guitar or piano again!! They say he died of complications due to diabetes but as his wife June died 4 months before Johnny I believe he Died of a broken heart!! The video was shot at his museum and home which have both been destroyed by flood n fire, what a man!! What a man in black! Legends never die, let's hope this man has finally found some peace!!! Rip legend 🙏 😢 💔 😪

[@beckysmith1178]

I really enjoyed your reaction to the difference in context and emotions to each rendition of the song Hurt. I loved that you read the literature written about the original artist and his thoughts and the behind the scene look at the making of the Johnny Cash version. It really added to the relevance to their lives. And the awards given in people’s response to this powerful song! I think it speaks to people not only about not giving your life to drugs but also to not wasting this God given gift of life and the impact we leave on others in our choices that we make and in just how we live it.

[@thomassblaquelourde4389]

Me too man, a strong man cries. I congratulate you. I have tears too, how anyone could watch that without tears is inhuman great review. Johnny Cash covers your song and makes it his own.

[@terithompson6623]

This song is so deep it really makes you think. I absolutely loved this comparison/reaction you are such a deep thinker.

[@daveking9393]

Looking forward to the ride. Great way to spend 40 minutes. Never heard the original. But know Johnny's very well. I liked the original and your reaction. Maybe even a bit more knowing what you were in for... Great job with the cover. This should get a lot of views. VERY authentic and enjoyable. Thanks again.

[@bettybaby63]

Oh damn, I’m bawling with you. Glad I saw your update that this became available!

[@SBQDawn]

all I can say is you can see it in your reaction... Cash made you connect to the song all it's possible meanings YOU Connected, Trent's original you were an Observer. The Real Deal is making that connection. No matter your perspective, walk of life, personal experiences, age, all the stuff that keeps us as human beings separated do not matter, in the end it's the Connection !

[@SheDreamtSheWas]

I interpert the protgonist reaching out to his "sweetest friend" as their last connection to humanity. As in the last person they have a connection with.

[@Gregory......]

Hmmmmm.........ok. I first want to say I think your review of the videos was spot on, good job Daniel. I would also like to say, I didn't really care much for NIN version, the song seemed pushed and not felt. Johnny Cash, what can you say ? The man was and still is a Legend ! I think he could make Fart sounds and it would inspired. He is sooooo good, there should be a law against it. The song is very powerful, but with him singing it, wow, he just knocks it out of the park !! Great reaction Daniel, I don't think you were expecting the power of the song. But I believe you got the message. again good job as always !

[@darcysalas3042]

I love this song because I think more people go through the pain then emitt.

[@1705louloutte]

His last song. He was doing covers and was offered this one several times. I think he waited for it to be his last one. He definitely nailed it.

[@rayvanhorn1534]

I'm late to this party, but still have to comment. Very much appreciated your review, commentary, & sincere thoughts over this song. Just marvelous how music, how this one song affects so many. The unique way 9IN & Cash approached it, the delivery...the emotional rawness, are simply stunning. If there's a person not hit in the gut by either one, I dunno...kinda worried about them. Johnny's version gets me every single time. I hope I never stop tearing up hearing it. Perhaps its knowing his story, or the way June looks at him, or the hear-wrenching grit of his voice...or all of the above. All I know is this is a masterpiece. (Not sure what other comparison covers you have done, but I'd like to suggest "Voodoo Child" by Hendrix & SRV...I'm partial to Stevie Ray, but they're both fantastic. ) Thank you for your analysis btw, some of the very best content out there...God bless.

[@gregoryjacobson1645]

Cash’s table gives me a ‘Last Supper’ vibe.

[@kevinhaen2763]

Thank you for reviewing and honestly commenting. Many of the previous reviews were inciteful and accurate. Keep the emotion - nice authenticity.

[@PaulGaither]

I just want to share that this song has been a part of my life in one form or another since I was young. It was released in 1994 when I was 10, but I did not discover it until I was about 14. It was an interesting cautionary tale, and the Cash cover was equally amazing. I do not suffer drug or alcohol addiction, but I do suffer an eating disorder and food addiction. I have gained and lost weight in cycles through my life in my struggle, and many of the lyrics resonate with me at different levels. "I hurt myself today" - I feel that when i make a bad food choice, almost like I have two personalities in my head, one which wants to be good and healthy while the other has deep cravings. When the darker side wins, this is how I feel. "The needle tears a hole The old familiar sting" - I have to have pre-diabetes controls and other examinations 4+ times a year, and each time it is a three hour process where they take multiple blood samples. Each time I am reminded of this song, as that sting is so familiar. "Try to kill it all away But I remember everything" - I feel that my emotions play a role in my eating disorder and my times of weakness. I know that I turn to food to kill away pain and indulge myself for that chemical release. While not a direct drug, I still find myself turning to a destructive behavior. "What have I become?" Each time I go through a cycle of weight gain... each time I find myself turning to food for comfort, I ask myself this ironically. “You could have it all My empire of dirt” - This hits a very different place in my life than my eating disorder and is more related to possessions and commercialism and consumerism and how I also find myself in a cycle of not hoarding or collecting useless crap, yet the allure can also grab me. I sometimes find myself with too much useless junk and sell thing off to make space and feel better letting go of things, only to later find myself filling a false void with new useless crap. All of it an empire of dirt. “I will let you down I will make you hurt” - I am not even ready to write about this. “I wear this crown of shit Upon my liar's chair Full of broken thoughts I cannot repair” - I too find myself in my chair at home in front of the laptop or my TV & game console or in front of a book and going through these thoughts and feelings. “Beneath the stains of time The feelings disappear You are someone else I am still right here” - I am again not even emotionally ready to write about my connection with this. “If I could start again A million miles away I would keep myself I would find a way” - I think many of us can relate to this. This is part of the double sided coin of “be yourself” Like, I couldn’t stop being myself if I tried, and by god do I try. I wish I could stop being myself sometimes. I try to be better, and sometimes it works, and other times I fail miserably. I moved away from the USA over a decade ago and found myself a new life in a different part of the world, and I found a way to keep myself. This song hits on so many layers, that I wasn’t even ready to finish writing this.

[@gapeachforever2327]

Ok. I started watching reactions to this song and yours was the first one. No kidding, but I’ve easily watched 50. I keep coming back to yours because you articulate exactly what my heart is feels. I can tell your emotions are genuine and that hits my heart too. Thank you for such a great reaction. ❤

[@sharonm6262]

Thanks for doing this - so glad it was unblocked. What a touching and heartfelt reaction!

[@dailyrip]

Little late to this party, but never sweat on crying - it's when you can't cry that there's a problem. Great analysis and video!

[@zavain]

I like the way you reacted to the music when you compaired them. it was not to long and I was brought into the story because of your reactions to the songs. I am not sure if this was your first time doing it this way but I liked it more than the way others do rections of cover songs. Usually they just set and go this band did this better the cover sucks. but to each their own. One thing I liked about your reaction to both videos is you emotionally reaction. the way you reacted to Nine inch Nails verson and then the Johny Cash version you were able to stop the Nine Inch Nails version but when you got to the Johny Cash version you went ok I will wait till the end to react. The man who wrote this song even said it stopped being a Nine Inch Nails song when Johny did the song and became Johny Cashes song. That to me says it all.

[@adifferentangle7064]

You get emotional because so much is going on you can't verbally express what you're feeling. When JC sings it, it has the same meaning as the original. But it also has another layer. And another layer. In the original, Trent is talking about how a drug abuser can't maintain friendships and hurts those around them. That context is still there with Johnny, but he's also speaking specifically to his wife, who he had hurt many times over the years and they had a rocky relationship particularly in the early years. And when Johnny says no one's left in the end, he's not just saying that he's been abandoned by people or lost friends who OD'd. He's literally lost everyone from cancer and heart attack and at the time he chose to take on the song, he and his wife were literally running out of friends. When I owned a cafe I saw this phenomenon a lot, and it's something he's clearly conveying that we won't understand till we're 75. His empire of dirt is not just meaningless, its contemplatively acknowledging the impermanence of this reality. Ultimately it hits so hard because he was actually once where the original songwriter was when he wrote it, but then had fifty years to contemplate it.

[@trujon0310]

What grips everyone so much about this song I think is how true it is for us all. If you put too much stock in material things, and or your heroes like Celebrities or even your parents. We are all human and one day nothing that we do in this life will matter. Nothing we have nothing we've done, who ever you are. You could be the most talented, richest and most beloved, but like the song says everyone goes away in the end. To me the songs speaks to us about getting our priorities in line, and hang on to what really matters!

[@leslieryan703]

I fell in love with you. Those facial expressions showed such a beautiful person you are. You rarely see guys showing their feelings. Thankyou

[@darrenbrignell8482]

This production ticks all the boxes for its intention. The song and video portrays death very equally and moves you without the use of any lead solo's which is great because it proves that feeling is so much more affective with its build up. This guy is a tortured sole, very moving. I also agree that drugs have been compared with the hurt of war and loss and yes he's written this to himself. Jonny Cashe"s version is also heart felt. Your análisis of the lyrics is very comprehensive and helpful towards this riddle. Many thanks for your contribution.

[@Peter-oh3hc]

One time Cash got clean of drugs then had an operation and got addicted again when given pain killers. Got clean again and had another operation but refused the pain killers so he wouldn't get addicted again. One tough S.O.B.

[@massivereader]

I'm not entirely sure about this but the black and white footage of Johnny Cash walking around a small rural house and then the very short clip of water rising on that same house somehwat later in the video. I vaguely remember this being from a televison special I saw in my childhood. The sharecropper house was a place Johnny or his family had lived (perhaps where he had grown up) that was in an area destined to become a reseviour that was part of the TVA rural electrification program back in the sixties. I didn't catch from the visuals that the 'House of Cash' museum had been flood damaged in the dark color footage shown, but it's a strikingly powerful repeated metaphor at how easily addiction can repeatedly wash everything in your life away.

[@sithyarael6807]

Funny everyone seems to bounce their head when the music gets going without even realizing it. And most that see this video for the first time always tear up. I remember when it came out and it is an emotional song for sure. One of his daughters when she heard it said it sounds like you are saying goodbye. He said that is cause I am. His wife June Carter was in the video by accident just checking up on him as it was filmed where he lived at the time. She sadly passed 3 months later than then even sadder he passed 4 months after she did.

[@Jive33]

Best reaction I’ve ever seen. Love your in-depth analysis and emotion. You are amazing.

[@TryMyMartini]

I got to see NIN for The Downward Spiral tour. I still don't have words. I was never the same after. I listen to the entire album about three times a year to this day, and it's been about 30 years. That night is burned in my brain.

[@TryMyMartini]

But the Johnny Cash version breaks my heart.

[@anthonybrancaleone9816]

Nice job. Hope you continue your work here on KZbin. Reznor expressed his pain at his time of life through his form of art. His audience responded. Rubin related. Cash expressed his regret and passing at his time of life through his form of music. The music world related and responded - together the versions are bookends for our lives. Show those you love that you care about them - be good to yourself and others. But, it’s quite often the difficulties in life that produce the most emotional forms of communication.

[@annedunne4526]

I had never heard the nine inch nails original until now. I liked it but I've always loved the Johnny cash version. You can hear his pain and regret. I love their daughter Roseanne too. She's a singer/ songwriter in her own right.

[@thesound-chameleonman3580]

Masterpiece by Johnny Cash. Emotional vibes. No fakery here. It got me too dude! C.

[@MACtube7299999]

The picture was his mom and he played guitar and piano . Another fun fact, Johnny owned a plantation house in Jamaica in addition to that House of Cash and fancy house in Hendersonville he filmed in . That video is like two ghosts visiting everyone that's probably what the goose bumps is about everyone is getting .

[@Jeremy74941]

Really enjoyed your review of this song by these two artists. Both of them are artists I really enjoy listening to and respect. I would definitely like to see more reviews like this. You wanted to know my thoughts of the two versions. Nine Inch Nails version seemed like a younger person whose life is spinning out of control, and Cash’s version felt like an older person looking back with regret at the past he couldn’t change. Listening to both songs definitely sends you on an emotional roller coaster.

[@chadheckman2693]

It brought a tear to my eye too. This does not happen often...

[@dhLotan]

You can see the emotional progression as the song plays and you're reacting. It's an incredible cover. Incredibly sad. Loved the video!

[@jracee1]

NGL, the length of the video discouraged me from watching it, but once I did, I watched it all. We didn't agree on everything, and despite having been listening to and thinking about this song for over 20 years, you pointed out some new things to me. Really excellent analysis. 💯👏👍🤘

[@eldoriath1]

Just wanna say I love your honest and emotional reactions, shows how you let yourself being drawn in by the song and visuals. Don't think this video was too long, it's a very complex song with a lot of importance, meaning and nuances depending on who performs it. I like the description I've read on the differences between the two songs: NIN's song is about a man who has lived a fast life full of regrets but still young and in it, Johnny Cash's version is an old man who is at the end of a life full of regrets.

[@gabrieleflannery6504]

Great to hear these back to back. NIN version feels extremely foreboding, the JC version is the epitomy of pure regret.

[@invidioustrend1]

Welcome to music. Good to have you! Keep digging.

[@nicolejclarke]

Because we are ALL going to Die one day. And we cannot take anything from earth with us. Such a SOBERING reminder we are frail. Also really makes us question what comes after?????

[@farvista]

He's in the country, rock-n-roll AND gospel music halls of fame, but when all's said and done....so what? What treasure goes with you? Only love. The "whistle" you mentioned, the sort of discordant, uncomfortable theramin sound, accompanied by the bass pulse that grows and swells, speeding, flying along, contributes to a sense of anxiety, of urgency, of reaching for something...and then, it just bursts out over the cliff ....... and sends you out in quiet freefall over an emotional abyss.

[@StanJamrog]

You are someone else, I am still right here. Deep. Only understood through experience and pain. The one you love is gone, and now is someone else (reborn), and it is tough to still be here without them. Hits hard for me. I have lost two wives, but I remain. All my friends, all my loves are gone. Here I remain, and no idea why.