Dyess, AR – (JonesboroRightNow.com) – September 14, 2024 – The brother of country music legend Johnny Cash has passed away. Tommy Cash died at the age of 84 according to representatives for the musician. The cause of death has not been released.
Tommy and his sister, Joanne Cash, have been strong supporters of the restoration of the family’s boyhood home near Dyess. In 2009, the Arkansas legislature directed Arkansas State University to determine the feasibility of developing the town of Dyess as a heritage tourism site, focusing on its agricultural heritage and native son Johnny Cash. To carry out this mandate, a Dyess Colony Redevelopment Master Plan was completed in 2010, and the city donated the Administration Building, along with the adjacent Theatre center shell, to Arkansas State University. The restored Administration Building houses exhibits related to the Dyess Colony, the Cash family, and the impact of Dyess on Johnny Cash and his music.
Executive Director of the A-State Heritage Sites, Dr. Adam Long, reflected on Tommy’s passing this morning. “We are saddened to hear of the passing of Tommy Cash. Born and raised in Dyess, Arkansas, before going on to a long and successful music career, Cash was extremely generous in sharing his time and memories to help with the restoration of the Cash family home in Dyess. He will be greatly missed.”
Arkansas State University acquired the Johnny Cash Boyhood Home in 2011. The restoration was directed by the Arkansas State University Heritage Studies program using proceeds from an annual Johnny Cash Music Festival which Tommy, Joanne and Johnny’s children J.R. and Roseanne regularly participated in. The event was presented annually from 2011-2014 at the Arkansas State University Convocation Center. The first festival in 2011 featured Rosanne Cash, Kris Kristofferson, George Jones, Rodney Crowell and others. The festival was later held in the cotton fields in Dyess next to the Cash home. The Master Plan also calls for placing historic markers at appropriate locations and creating a walking/biking trail from the Colony Center to the Cash Home.
Bill Miller is the CEO and founder of Icon Entertainment, as well as the spearhead behind the Johnny Cash Museum in Nashville, TN. He released a statement this morning following Tommy’s passing. “Shannon and I lost a very, very dear friend last evening,” Miller said in a statement sent to American Songwriter. “I knew him for over 50 years. Tommy Cash was a loyal supporter of the Johnny Cash Museum and a very beloved member of our extended family as well as a highly respected member of the music industry. This great man will be deeply missed by his friends and many loyal fans around the world.” Bill went on to ask fans of the late singer to keep Tommy’s wife Marcy in their prayers.
Tommy Cash was born in Dyess, Arkansas (Mississippi County) on April 5, 1940. After graduating from high school, Tommy enlisted in the Army and became a DJ for the Armed Forces Radio Network. Like his famous siblings, he was a musician who played with the likes of Hank Williams Jr. early in his career. He scored his first record deal in 1965. Tommy is known for the Epic Record track “Six White Horses” from 1969, which was dedicated to political icons John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy, and Martin Luther King Jr.
Tommy released a number of other songs that charted well throughout his music career, notably “One Song Away”, “The Sounds Of Goodbye”, and “Rise And Shine”. The 1973 hit “I Recall A Gypsy Woman” was his last Top 20 hit. He also took on an acting role in the 2016 film The River Thief and worked as a licensed realtor in Tennessee for some time.