Historic home went down, down, down in a burning ring of fire as renovations were being carried out by new owner, Barry Gibb of the Bee Gees

The iconic Tennessean home of the late country singer Johnny Cash has been destroyed in a fire. The lakeside property burnt down on Tuesday while renovations were being carried out by the house's new owner, Barry Gibb of the Bee Gees.

A fire broke out at the stone and wood building in the suburb of Hendersonville, about 20 miles north-east of Nashville, at about 1.40pm local time and while the fire service arrived within five minutes, the structure was already engulfed. Almost nothing was left, save the chimney. Associated Press report that one firefighter was injured in the blaze.

The Man in Black and his wife June Carter Cash lived at the 1,289-square metre property for over thirty years until their deaths in 2003. Cash wrote most of his famous music there and entertained US presidents, music royalty and visiting fans.

The house was made famous in the Grammy-winning video for Cash's cover of the Nine Inch Nails song Hurt, a final hit for the singer in 2002. The video shows Cash looking back over his troubled life whilst surveying the home he had shared since 1968.

Singer Marty Stuart, who lives next door and was once married to Cash's daughter Cindy, described the house as "a sanctuary and a fortress" for the country singer. "So many prominent things and prominent people in American history took place in that house - everyone from Billy Graham to Bob Dylan went into that house."

According to Stuart, local builder Braxton Dixon built the distinctive house in 1967 was reluctant to sell but Cash persisted until Dixon gave in.

"It was a very, very unusual contemporary structure," said Cash's brother, Tommy Cash. "It was built with stone and wood and all kinds of unusual materials, from marble to old barn wood. I don't think there was a major blueprint. I think the builder was building it the way he wanted it to look."

He said that while Johnny and June also owned a house in Jamaica and a second house in Tennessee, they considered the lakeside residence to be their home. They spent many holidays and family get-togethers there.

Barry Gibb purchased the house in 2006 and despite remodeling the interior, was keen to preserve and honour cash's memory. The renovations were at their final stage and Gibb was expected to move in this summer. Gibb's spokesman, Paul Bloch, said the former Bee Gee and his family were "both saddened and devastated by the news" of the fire.

The cause of the fire remains unknown, though reports carried by ABC News suggest that the blaze spread quickly due to the flammable materials used in the construction work taking place.