TURN-ONS AND TURN-OFFS IN CURRENT HOME ENTERTAINMENT RELEASES : Excellent Good Fair Poor : VIDEOCASSETTES

“Johnny Cash: Ridin’ the Rails.” Sony. $29.95. Unlike so many quickly assembled thematic music videos, this isn’t simply a collection of loosely connected songs played over some vaguely appropriate stock footage. Nicholas Webster and Dyann Rivkin show considerable imagination and standards in employing appealing animation, photos and lots of original footage (with actors re-creating key incidents) to tell the history of the American railroad. Cash is a delightful host, narrating the video and singing all or part of more than a dozen songs (from “John Henry” to “City of New Orleans”). Information: (800) 847-4164.