Johnny Cash Christmas Re-Issued

The Man in Black goes red and green with the coming reissue of two late-‘70s holiday specials featuring Kris Kristofferson, Anne Murray, Steve Martin and Tom T. Hall.

The 1978 and ’79 installments of The Johnny Cash Christmas Special, which became a staple of network yuletide programming for a decade, will be released Oct. 7, along with a four-DVD box that pairs the two new titles with the 1976 and ’77 editions, which came out last year. The footage has been out of circulation for nearly three decades and is finding its way to the public through a joint effort by Shout! Factory and the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

Kris and then-wife Rita Coolidge are featured with Steve Martin in the ’78 set, shot in Los Angeles. Kris and Rita team with Johnny and wife June Carter on the bluegrass classic “Christmas Time’s A-Comin’,” while Johnny and June reprise the Gene Cotton/Kim Carnes duet from that year, “You’re A Part Of Me.” The hour closes with all the Cash daughters — including Rosanne Cash and Carlene Carter — joining their parents on “Silent Night.”

The 1979 DVD opens with an Andy Kaufman comedy sketch, interspersing Christmas songs with hits such as Anne’s “You Needed Me,” Johnny’s “(Ghost) Riders In The Sky” and Tom T.’s “(Old Dogs, Children And) Watermelon Wine.”

Shout! Factory has left open the possibility that all the Johnny Cash Christmas specials will eventually be released on DVD.