Johnny Cash would have celebrated his 88th birthday today (2/26). Cash died on 2003 at the age of 71 not long after his beloved wife June Carter Cash passed away.

Barbara Mandrell toured with Cash as a teenager. Below, the now retired and a bit reclusive country star, talks about what it was like getting to know “The Man In Black.”

We take a look at the amazing Country Music icon in pictures of his amazing and landmark career that brought so many to the genre of country music.

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  Headshot of American country singer Johnny Cash (1932 - 2003) singing on stage in a still from the film, 'Johnny Cash - The Man, His World, His Music,' directed by Robert Elfstrom, 1969.

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  American country singer and songwriter Johnny Cash (L) and his wife June Carter Cash of the Carter Family group arrive May 1, 1968 at London Airport in London, United Kingdom. June Carter Cash, 73, died May 15, 2003 of complications from heart surgery.

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  American country singer Johnny Cash (1932 - 2003) sits inside an airport with his wife June Carter Cash (1929 - 2003) and their infant son John Carter Cash, as the singer arrived in Copenhagen, Denmark to begin his Scandinavian tour, circa 1971.
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  28th February 1972: American country singer Johnny Cash (1932 - 2003) appears on Grand Gala du Disque in Amsterdam.

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  1st March 1979: Country music legend Johnny Cash (1932 - 2003) in London.

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  American country singer Larry Gatlin (left) prepares for an appearance on Johnny Cash's television show at the NBC studios, USA, 11th December 1973.
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  Johnny Cash performs during an all-star Tribute to Johnny Cash at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City that is scheduled to air on TNT April 18, 1999. Johnny Cash died September 12, 2003 in a hospital in Nashville, Tennessee while being treated for a stomach complaint. He was 71.

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  U.S .President George W. Bush (L) and first Lady Laura Bush pose with singer/songwriter Johnny Cash (C) during the National Endowment for the Arts National Medal of Arts Awards ceremony April 22, 2002 in Washington, DC.

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  Tributes are left on the star of Musician Johnny Cash on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on September 12, 2003 in Hollywood, California. Johnny Cash died September 12, 2003 in a hospital in Nashville, Tennessee while being treated for a stomach complaint. He was 71.
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  A black shroud and roses adorn the plaque marking Johnny Cash's 1980 induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame September 14, 2003 in Nashville, Tennessee. Cash died in a Nashville hospital on September 12.

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  John Carter Cash accepts Willie Nelson Lifetime Achievement Award on behalf of his father, Johnny Cash at the 49th annual CMA Awards at the Bridgestone Arena on November 4, 2015 in Nashville, Tennessee.

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