Though Johnny Cash was nicknamed The Man in Black due to his distinctive look, and everyone knows who you are talking about if you reference that nickname, the song he wrote to explain his getup was not one of his biggest hits. Nor is it among his very best remembered songs: it is barely in the Top 25 in streams and it has something like one tenth the covers “Walk the Line” has. Though “Man in Black” is a protest song, it is obviously so associated with Cash the man that the lack of covers makes sense, even for a song that was once a #3 Country hit.
Sugardeer is a chamber pop project of Danny Kit, a singer/keyboardist based in Cleveland, Ohio who is also a member of The Big Leagues. As Sugardeer, they’ve put out a few EPs and singles over the last couple of years but otherwise have not released a lot of music. Their cover of “Man in Black” was recorded for a Flowerpot Records compilation of covers recorded to raise money for people in Gaza.
Kit completely abandons the original country arrangement and starts instead with a single, repeating piano note. They sing softly, almost in a whisper, to start and they are accompanied by a cello. Starting with the second verse, they begin to sing with more force and slowly build their vocal performance as more strings come in.
It feels like an entirely different song, with the focus on Kit’s vocal due to the stark arrangement and words of the verses, rather than just the idea of a “Man in Black” wearing clothes in mourning for those suffering injustice. Kit’s voice is so far from Cash’s that there’s no longer that image in our minds of the man himself. And there’s no country to the arrangement or performance, just pretty music accompanied by sad singing.
