Johnny Cash - 'Hurt"

To celebrate the launch of NME Video - a new standalone site dedicated to the best music videos - we're counting down the greatest examples of the artform.

Director: Mark Romanek

The montage of shots of Cash served a poignant purpose at the time; after Johnny’s death seven months later it became even more powerful. A fitting audiovisual epitaph.

Best bit: Those opening chords and that opening line ”I hurt myself today / to see if I still feel” – near perfection.

This poignant performance of Nine Inch Nail's, "Hurt" is almost haunting, as it was recorded just prior to Cash's untimely death. Whether or not a Johnny Cash fan, this performance is powerful and deep with emotion. Produced by Rick Rubin, The Man Comes Around is the fourth and final Grammy Award-winning album Cash and Rubin have collaborated on.