By Jeremy Cook
Not a lot is known about what country music star Johnny Cash got up to during his time in Stanthorpe in the ‘80s and ‘90s.
At least not by people who weren’t alive to see the country music hall of fame inductee wander down the main street in the early 1980s.
However, the tale lives on for many residents who were old enough to remember Cash’s regular visits to Stanthorpe during that era.
It’s what prompted Brisbane-based writer Shannen Galavin-Chardon to write a book about it and memorialise a unique part of the town’s history.
While visiting Stanthorpe earlier this year, Ms Galavin-Chardon, who grew up on the Darling Downs listening to Cash’s CDs and cassettes, said she became fascinated by the story.
“I did a bit of googling and I found there were a couple of news articles that sort of touched on it, but there was no real record or written history of this ever having really occurred,” she said.
“I decided I wanted to try and get this down on paper and make this a published book so that we have a written record of it, particularly before all those people who are involved pass away.”
So what is currently known about Cash and his connection to Stanthorpe? Legend has it that he and his wife June Carter visited the town often for holidays to soak up the vast and quiet countryside.
In May 1991, Cash even put on a fundraiser concert at the Stanthorpe Civic Centre where he raised about $10,000 for the Stanthorpe Blue Nurses. The now iconic gig was a sellout and forever remembered by those who attended.
Ms Galavin-Chardon said she hoped to fill in the gaps by talking to residents who have stories to tell about Cash.
“The people I have been able to get in touch with have shared some really fantastic stories … really really interesting,” she said.
“They were not two people who were overly full of themselves. They were very down to earth people.
“The resounding comments from everyone is just that they didn’t see themselves as above anybody else which I think we have all heard that about a celebrity or some other public figure at some point. Apparently that was not the case with them.
“They would walk into town and sit down at a coffee shop and have cake and coffee and chat to the staff and the locals.”
Already she’s unearthed physical remnants of his time in town. Items like old newspaper articles, signed photos, letters to and from Cash, and an envelope which he had written on and used when mailing a cheque to the blue nurses have been discovered.
“I’m trying to take all those stories, make them palatable, make them readable whilst staying true to the original material and compile them into a book which basically nods to obviously a time in Queensland’s history but also I think an important time in country music history,” she said.
Ms Galavin-Chardon said there were probably “a few little hidden gems” left for her to find. She now hopes to shift her focus to talking to locals who might not be as computer literate.
“I’m still in the collaboration stage of this project, trying to gather as many stories and recollections as possible,” she said.
“Unfortunately Facebook has proven to be a hindrance with many older locals either not using it or not knowing how to message etc to discuss further.”
Ms Galavin-Chardon estimated a rough publication date for around late-2025 and, in a nod to Cash’s famous 1991 gig, said all proceeds will be donated to BlueCare.
If all goes to plan, the book could also feature a written foreword from Cash’s only child John Carter Cash.
“That’s my ultimate goal,” she said.
