"American Remains" is a song written by Rivers Rutherford and originally recorded by the Highwaymen (Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Kris Kristofferson, and Willie Nelson)[1] for their 1990 album Highwaymen 2. The song follows the stories of 4 historically fictional men (a shotgun rider for the fictional "San Jacinto Line", a card shark, a Midwest farmer, and a Cherokee American Indian) in a similar vein to their cover of "Highwayman".[2] Unlike in Highwayman, however, none of the characters are implied dead; their legacies are instead emphasized.

"American Remains"
1990 single cover, b/w 'Texas'
Single by The Highwaymen
from the album Highwayman 2
A-side"Silver Stallion", "Texas"
Released1990 (1990)
GenreCountry
Length4:06
LabelColumbia 38-73233, 38-73572
Songwriter(s)R. Rutherford
Producer(s)Chips Moman
Music video
"American Remains" on YouTube

The song was chosen as the fifth track of the album[3] and as a flip side to the lead single from it ("Silver Stallion" / "American Remains", Columbia 38-73233).[4] In October of the same year, it was again released as a single, this time coupled with "Texas".[5]

Track listing

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7" single (Columbia 38-73233, January 1990)[6][4]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Silver Stallion"L. Clayton3:12
2."American Remains"R. Rutherford4:06
7" single (Columbia 38-73572, October 1990)[5]
No.TitleLength
1."American Remains"4:07
2."Texas"2:42

References

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  1. ^ Dunkerley, Beville (July 7, 2014). "Songwriter Spotlight: Rivers Rutherford". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 5, 2022.
  2. ^ The Highwaymen (September 22, 2014). "American Remains". YouTube. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  3. ^ "Highwayman 2". Johnny Cash official site. Retrieved 2022-05-12.
  4. ^ a b "Silver Stallion / American Remains". Discogs. Retrieved 2022-05-12. WAYLON JENNINGS, WILLIE NELSON, JOHNNY CASH, KRIS KRISTOFFERSON SILVER STALLION -L. Clayton- Produced by Chips Moman, Taken from the forthcoming Columbia Lp: "HIGHWAYMAN II" 45240. // WAYLON JENNINGS, WILLIE NELSON, JOHNNY CASH, KRIS KRISTOFFERSON AMERICAN REMAINS -R. Rutherford- Produced by Chips Moman, Taken from the forthcoming Columbia Lp: "HIGHWAYMAN II" 45240.
  5. ^ a b "Waylon Jennings / Willie Nelson / Johnny Cash / Kris Kristofferson - American Remains". lescharts.com. Retrieved 2022-05-12.
  6. ^ "lescharts.com - Waylon Jennings / Willie Nelson / Johnny Cash / Kris Kristofferson - Silver Stallion". lescharts.com. Retrieved 2022-05-12.