A new album containing never-before-released songs by Johnny Cash is set to be unveiled under the title 'Out Among the Stars', including two duets with his wife June Carter.

Johnny CashThe Inimitable Johnny Cash

The Man In Black teamed up with country music producer Billy Sherrill in the early 80s to record the collection of songs, but Columbia Records were far from impressed and decided against its release only a few years before he was dropped from their label in 1986. However, Cash's son John Carter Cash has revealed how his father had a habit of keeping things, and the original recordings were found last year to his and the archivists' delight.

"They never threw anything away," John told the Associated Press. "They kept everything in their lives. They had an archive that had everything in it from the original audio tapes from 'The Johnny Cash Show' to random things like a camel saddle, a gift from the prince of Saudi Arabia."

The release of the new album is one of several projects that have been underway for the past year and a half to commemorate the 10th anniversary of his death in September 2003. It's a 12-track epic featuring touching collaborations with his wife of 35 years June Carter as well as with Waylon Jennings. On the album, he is backed by musicians Hargus 'Pig' Robbins and a friend of Cash's named Marty Stuart, who agreed to re-record his parts into the re-mastered release.

Johnny Cash

According to his son, the main reason the album was shelved was due to the growing transgression in country music - something that Cash was unwilling to go with. "Dad was always uniquely himself', John said. 'He never modified himself. But Nashville at the time was in a completely different place." However, his struggles with his career had an impact on his life during that time, which was already embroiled in personal problems regarding his prescription drug addiction and infidelity in his love life.

However, the discovery of this album has thrilled all members of the Cash estate. "Johnny Cash is in the very prime of his voice for his lifetime." John Carter Cash revealed. "He's pitch perfect. It's seldom where there's more than one vocal take." The album will be released on March 24th 2014.