Which song written by Kris Kristofferson was a hit for Johnny Cash?

“Sunday Mornin’ Comin’ Down” was the Kris Kristofferson song that became a major hit for Johnny Cash. Cash’s version reached No. 1 on the U.S. country chart in 1970 and became one of the most recognized recordings associated with Kristofferson’s songwriting.

Kristofferson wrote the song during a difficult period when he was living alone and struggling with loneliness. Its narrator wakes up on a Sunday morning feeling isolated, hungover, and emotionally adrift. Details such as a “cleanest dirty shirt” give the song its vivid, down-and-out realism, a style that distinguished Kristofferson from many Nashville songwriters of the era.

Ray Stevens recorded the song first in 1969, but his version had only modest chart success. Cash performed his rendition on The Johnny Cash Show, including a spoken introduction about drifters and people riding freight trains during the Great Depression. The performance helped turn the song into a signature Cash recording.

The other choices were also written by Kristofferson, but they became best known through other artists’ recordings. “For the Good Times” was a hit for Ray Price, while “Me and Bobby McGee” became especially associated with Janis Joplin.