Tommy Cash

Younger brother of the Man in Black, Tommy Cash enjoyed some chart success in his own right. Born April 5, 1940, in Dyess, Arkansas, Tommy was eight years younger than big brother Johnny. He formed his first band in high school, but enlisted in the Army soon after graduation. While serving in Germany during 1958, he DJed for Armed Services Radio -- perhaps contributing in some part to the incredible success of Johnny's hit of that year, "Ballad of a Teenage Queen." After resuming civilian life in the early '60s, Tommy played with Hank Williams, Jr. and gained his own recording contract from Musicor by 1967. After a move to United Artists, he just missed the country Top 40 in 1968 with "The Sounds of Goodbye." He moved yet again to Epic Records, Tommy delivered his biggest hit -- "Six White Horses," a tribute to JFK, RFK, and Martin Luther King, Jr. -- in late 1969. The single hit number four and was followed by two Top Ten singles in 1970, "Rise and Shine" and "One Song Away." During the '70s, Cash continued to tour and record -- for Epic, Elektra, 20th Century, and Monument -- but his only Top 20 entry was "I Recall a Gypsy Woman," which made it to number 16 in 1973. Tommy Cash died on September 13, 2024, at the age of 84. ~ John Bush