Cover versions

I am music, and I write the songs

Posted on by brucehhackett

Before the arrival of Bob Dylan, The Beach Boys and The Beatles, singing and songwriting were considered two distinctly separate talents.  Up until about 1960, you were pretty much one or the other, but not both.

Songwriters, by and large, accepted their place in the scheme of things, churning out catchy melodies and lyrics that someone else turned into hit singles.  In some cases, however, the songwriter nursed a dream of becoming a recording artist in his/her own right, even if that didn’t happen until years later.

Carole King is perhaps the best example of this.  Throughout the ’60s, she and husband Gerry Goffin wrote dozens of hits made famous by others — “Up on the Roof” by the Drifters, “I’m Into Something Good” by Herman’s Hermits, “The Locomotion” by Little Eva, “Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow” and “One Fine Day” by the Shirelles, “Pleasant Valley Sunday” by The Monkees, “(You Make Me Feel Like a) Natural Woman” by Aretha Franklin, “Hi-De-Ho” by Blood Sweat and Tears, to name just a few.

Then in 1970, King took a stab at singing, and although her debut album went unnoticed, her second was “Tapestry,” one of the biggest-selling albums of all time, and the beginning of an accomplished career as a singer.

There are some intriguing examples of hit songs from that era that were written by songwriters who hadn’t yet made their name on the charts as singers.  In the process of creating the song, the composers often recorded their own versions, either as demos or as official recordings that received little attention.  Hearing these “rough drafts” of tunes that became huge hits by others makes for fascinating listening, as the Spotify song list at the end of this blog will demonstrate.

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“I’m a Believer,” written by Neil Diamond.  Made famous by The Monkees (#1 in 1967)

Diamond, who went on to write 37 Top 40 hits, developed a passion for songwriting at age 15 growing up in Brooklyn.  He had his eye on a recording career, but meanwhile, he was happy to have his songs picked up by others.  In 1966, TV producer Don Kirshner, in charge of finding material for the new created-for-TV pop rock band The Monkees, came to Diamond and selected one of his recent compositions called “I’m a Believer,” which ended up at #1 on US pop charts for seven weeks.  Diamond recorded his own version later the same year on his “Just for You” LP, which also included his first hits “Cherry, Cherry” and “Girl, You’ll Be a Woman Soon.” 

“Red Rubber Ball,” written by Paul Simon.  Made famous by The Cyrkle (#6 in 1966)

Simon had been writing his irresistible melodies and introspective lyrics since 1963, and had recorded one album with Art Garfunkel that went nowhere.  But when a producer added drums, bass and electric guitar to their acoustic recording of “The Sound of Silence,” it became a #1 hit in early 1966, and Simon and Garfunkel were off and running.  Meanwhile, he had written “Red Rubber Ball” with Bruce Woodley of The Seekers, and the short-lived band called The Cyrkle made it into a big hit.  S&G played it in concert occasionally, and their live recording of it appears on the 1997 collection “Old Friends.”

“One,” written by Harry Nilsson.  Made famous by Three Dog Night (#5 in 1969)

In 1968, at a time when bands wanted to (or were expected to) write their own songs, Three Dog Night went the other way, covering songs written by others, mostly struggling young songwriters who had great material.  Singer Chuck Negron heard the unknown album “Aerial Ballet” by Nilsson, which included a track called “One,” a simple, mellow song about the loneliness felt following a romantic breakup.  The band recorded a more exuberant arrangement for their debut album, and “One” became a #5 hit in 1969, the first of 15 Top 20 singles for the trio.

“Wedding Bell Blues,” written by Laura Nyro.  Made famous by The 5th Dimension (#1 in 1969)

Nyro’s original vision for “Wedding Bell Blues” was as part of a mini-suite with dramatic rhythm changes to reflect the dual themes of adoring love and frustrated lament felt by the woman who “wonders if she’ll ever see her wedding day.”  That version was turned down by her producer, but instead she recorded a more soulful arrangement and released it in 1967 on her “More Than a New Discovery” debut album.  Two years later, The 5th Dimension enjoyed a pair of hits with Nyro’s songs “Stoned Soul Picnic” and “Sweet Blindness,” so they tried a third time with their rendition of “Wedding Bell Blues” (which was very similar to Nyro’s), and it went to #1.

“Mr. Tambourine Man,” written by Bob Dylan.  Made famous by The Byrds (#1 in 1965)

By 1965, Dylan was already regarded as a songwriting genius/prophet in some circles, but he hadn’t yet made a dent on the charts as a recording artist.  That began to change when the Southern California band The Byrds used their jangly electric 12-string guitar sound and lush harmonies on a folk-rock arrangement of Dylan’s acoustic “Mr. Tambourine Man,” and The Byrds’ cover rocketed to #1.  Dylan’s version, found on his “Bringing It All Back Home” LP, has a running time of 5:34 and includes four verses; The Byrds’ version is severely truncated to 2:29, using only the second of the four verses.

“Both Sides Now,” written by Joni Mitchell.  Made famous by Judy Collins (#8 in 1968).

Judy Collins gives credit to her friend and musician Al Kooper for introducing her to the genius of Joni Mitchell, still a relative unknown at the time.  “He knew I was in the midst of recording my ‘Wildflowers’ album, and he wanted me to hear Joni’s songs, particularly ‘Both Sides Now,'” Collins wrote in her autobiography.  “Joni’s writing was magnificent.  ‘Both Sides Now’ has everything — sweep and tenderness, specificity and breadth.  It’s a perfect jewel of a song, perhaps one of the greatest songs ever written.”  Mitchell’s own version appeared on her second album, “Clouds,” in 1969.

“Wichita Lineman,” written by Jimmy Webb.  Made famous by Glen Campbell (#3 in 1968)

Webb remembers driving toward the late afternoon sun one day in Oklahoma, passing endless miles of telephone poles, until he saw the silhouette of a solitary lineman atop a pole.  “He looked like the absolute picture of loneliness,” said Webb, who put himself in the lineman’s place and wrote what has been described as “the first existential country song” and “the greatest pop song ever composed.”  Glen Campbell was the first of many artists to record “Wichita Lineman,” which charted at #3, and Webb himself finally got around to it on his 1996 album called “Ten Easy Pieces,” which also includes new arrangements of other hits he wrote like “By the Time I Get to Phoenix,” “The Worst That Can Happen,” “Galveston” and “MacArthur Park.”

“Mama Told Me Not to Come,” written by Randy Newman.  Made famous by Three Dog Night (#1 in 1970)

After an early attempt as a recording artist flopped, Newman concentrated on songwriting throughout the ’60s, and his 1966 song “I Think It’s Going to Rain Today” was recorded by a dozen different singers.  That same year he wrote “Mama Told Me Not to Come” for Eric Burdon and The Animals, but it ended up an overlooked album track.  Four years later, Newman released his “12 Songs” LP, which included his piano-based rendition of the song.  Almost simultaneously, Three Dog Night’s rock/funk version raced up the charts to become one of the biggest singles of the year.

“Come and Get It,” written by Paul McCartney.  Made famous by Badfinger (#7 in 1970)

McCartney wrote several songs during the Beatles years that he gave away to others, particularly Peter & Gordon (Peter Asher was the brother of his then-girlfriend Jane Asher).  In 1969, McCartney was commissioned to write songs for “The Magic Christian” soundtrack, and in the midst of the “Abbey Road” sessions, he arrived early one day and recorded a polished demo of “Come and Get It” by himself.  Badfinger was a new band signed to the Apple label, and to help jumpstart their career, he gave them “Come and Get It,” also producing it exactly as he had recorded it on the demo.  McCartney’s original was finally released as a Beatles track on the “Anthology 3” CD in 1996.

“Red Red Wine,” written by Neil Diamond.  Made famous by UB40 (#1 in 1988)

This one has this list’s longest gestation period from composing to hit-single status.  Originally written and recorded by Diamond in 1967 on his “Just for You” LP, “Red Red Wine” was resurrected 15 years later by British pop/reggae band UB40, who released an album in 1983 of cover versions of songs by their early rock idols.  Their reggae version went to #1 in the UK but stalled at #34 here, but five years later in 1988, it was re-released in the US and went to #1 here as well.

“Stoney End,” written by Laura Nyro.  Made famous by Barbra Streisand (#6 in 1971)

Another Nyro composition that appeared on her underrated 1967 debut “More Than a New Discovery” was this upbeat number that eventually captured the attention of producer Richard Perry.  He suggested it as a featured song for Barbra Streisand’s first album of pop-rock songs, and although she initially balked at the line “I was raised on the good book Jesus” because of her Jewish faith, it ended up being the title song when released in 1971.  She took Nyro’s song to #6, her first Top Ten hit since “People” in 1964, and the beginning of an impressive run on the charts throughout the ’70s and into the ’80s.

“Me and Bobby McGee,” written by Kris Kristofferson.  Made famous by Janis Joplin (#1 in 1971)

Kris Kristofferson was an Army brat who became an accomplished pilot, an award-winning boxer and rugby player, and a Rhodes scholar at Oxford — and he left all that behind to pursue his dreams of writing music and acting.  He found his niche in Nashville, where his songs were recorded by dozens of country stars from Johnny Cash to Ray Price, but Kristofferson’s own recordings never achieved much commercial success.  He introduced one song from his debut album “Kristofferson” to his friend Janis Joplin, who decided to record a rollicking arrangement for what would become her final album, “Pearl.”  Four months after her death, Janis’s recording of “Me and Bobby McGee” was the #1 song in the country.

“All the Young Dudes,” written by David Bowie.  Made famous by Mott the Hoople (#37 in 1972)

In 1972, Bowie’s career was only just starting to take off in the US when he heard that his friends in Mott the Hoople were about to break up because of a lack of chart success.  He offered them his song “Suffragette City” from the “Ziggy Stardust” LP, but they turned him down, so instead, Bowie sat down in a London flat across from singer Ian Hunter and wrote “All the Young Dudes” specifically for them.  It went to #3 in the UK, saving the band’s career, and it became the unofficial anthem of the glam-rock era.  Bowie recorded it himself during the “Aladdin Sane” sessions but never released it until the mid-’90s on several different compilation CD sets.

“Lotta Love,” written by Neil Young. Made famous by Nicolette Larson (#8 in 1979)

Larson had sung backing vocals on Young’s “American Stars and Bars” album in 1977, and the two had become friends. One day she was driving around Malibu with him when she popped a cassette of his demos in his tape player. She praised his early take of “Lotta Love,” and Young responded, “You want it? It’s yours.” Her shimmering arrangement of it became her successful debut single in early 1979, while Young’s more stripped-down version appeared on his “Comes a Time” LP around the same time.

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I urge you to compare the composers’ and cover versions of these other hits that made my honorable mention list:

Bruce Springsteen wrote “Blinded by the Light,” “Fire,” and “Because the Night” (popularized by Manfred Mann, The Pointer Sisters and Patti Smith, respectively);  Bob Marley wrote “I Shot the Sheriff,” a #1 hit for Eric Clapton; Leon Russell wrote “This Masquerade” (a hit for George Benson) and “A Song for You” (the title song of The Carpenters’ fourth album);  Tom Waits wrote “Ol ’55,” a popular track for The Eagles;  Prince wrote “Nothing Compares 2 U” (Sinead O’Connor’s big debut) and “Manic Monday,” (a #1 smash for The Bangles);  and Bob Dylan wrote “All Along the Watchtower” (wildly reimagined by Jimi Hendrix).

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Come on in and cover me

Posted on by brucehhackett

When I was in my teens and early 20s, I had a peculiar aversion to cover songs. If I loved a tune, I had no interest in hearing someone else record the same song, whether it was a note-for-note copy or a radically different arrangement. I thought it was lazy of the artist to rip off a song already made famous when there were so many unknown songs waiting to be recorded and popularized.

Eventually, I saw how shortsighted this attitude was. I felt sheepish when I discovered that a song I loved — James Taylor’s “How Sweet It Is To Be Loved By You,” for instance — was in fact a cover version of Marvin Gaye’s original from a decade earlier.

A great song is a great song, and it will almost certainly stand up to multiple re-imaginings. This truth has been driven home to me hundreds of times in recent years as newer artists have been returning time and time again to songs from the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s. Some of these cover versions, of course, have been failed experiments, to my ears, but so many more have been resoundingly successful as valid art, regardless of whether they made any impact on the charts.

I have enjoyed combing through the releases of the past two decades, searching for the best cover renditions of classic rock tracks by current singers. Some I knew already but others were brand new to me, and I felt compelled to select 15 and present them here to my readers. As always, I have included a Spotify playlist so you can listen to these new versions of old favorites as you read along. If you have your own favorite cover songs, I’d be very interested to hear about them for a future blog post.

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“Someday We’ll Be Together,” Bruce Springsteen, 2022

Since his earliest days as a performer, Springsteen has often covered classic R&B and roots rock tunes in his concerts, most notably “Devil With the Blue Dress,” “Raise Your Hand,” “War,” “Quarter to Three,” “In the Midnight Hour” and “Twist and Shout.” In 2022, he finally got around to recording “Only the Strong Survive,” an entire studio album of soul covers like “Turn Back the Hands of Time,” “What Becomes of the Broken Hearted” and “Do I Love You (Indeed I Do).” My favorite from that collection is his version of The Supremes #1 hit from 1969, “Someday We’ll Be Together.” One critic praised the LP as “an ideal opportunity for a new audience to discover glorious classics as interpreted by a rock ‘n’ roll stalwart.”

“Back Stabbers,” Seal, 2011

“In my years in the music industry, two things have remained constants — the voice and the song,” noted Seal upon the release of “Soul 2,” his second collection of R&B covers. “I continue to make music because of the chance that today could be the day I write a memorable song or have the opportunity to sing an all-time classic.” The songs he chose — “What’s Going On,” “Let’s Stay Together,” “I’ll Be Around,” among others — are some of the finest soul tunes ever. His magnificent treatment of The O’Jays’ 1972 hit “Back Stabbers” is the cream of the crop.

“Happy Together,” Weezer, 2019

Since their debut in the mid-1990s, Weezer has been one of the most critically praised and commercially successful alt-rock bands in the country, churning out more than a dozen albums and 15 Top Ten singles on the alt-rock charts. Their fans wanted them to record a cover of Toto’s mid-’80s hit “Africa,” so instead, they released another Toto hit, “Rosanna,” which led to “The Teal Album,” an LP of covers that included not only “Africa” but other iconic tunes like “Billie Jean,” “Everybody Wants to Rule the World,” a-ha’s “Take On Me” and The Turtles’ 1967 hit “Happy Together.” They chose to remain faithful to the originals — “straight-ahead paint-by-numbers covers,” as one critic put it, “like something a wedding band might play.”

“Lean On Me,” Keb’ Mo’, 2022

Kevin Moore has been going by the Ebonic “Keb’ Mo'” version of his name since his debut in 1995, writing, recording and performing award-winning contemporary blues music. He has also dabbled in many convincing covers along the way, re-imagining traditional pieces like “America the Beautiful” and pop songs such as The Youngblood’s “Get Together,” Stevie Wonder’s “Isn’t She Lovely” and The Eagles’ “One Of These Nights.” In 2022, his 18th LP “Good To Be…” featured a compelling cover of the Bill Withers #1 hit “Lean On Me.”

“After the Gold Rush,” k.d. lang, 2004

Inspired by poet e.e. cummings and his use of lower-case letters, Kathryn Dawn Lang became k.d. lang upon her debut as a Canadian country singer in the late 1980s. She has won Grammy and Juno awards for her country, pop and folk music in the years since, especially for her 1992 LP “Ingenue” and its hits “Constant Craving” and “Miss Chatelaine.” She paid tribute to fellow Canadian musicians Leonard Cohen, Joni Mitchell and Neil Young on her 2004 LP “Hymns of the 49th Parallel” (the latitudinal line that comprises much of the border between Canada and the US). Feast your ears on her gorgeous cover of Young’s “After the Gold Rush.”

“Tougher Than the Rest,” Shawn Colvin, 2015

Colvin is best known for the 1997 Grammy Song of the Year “Sunny Came Home,” but there’s so much more in her rich catalog that’s well worth exploring. She typically records her own songs but has twice released albums of other composers’ work — 1994’s “Cover Girl,” on which she sang unknown songs, and 2015’s “Uncovered,” where she attempted familiar tracks like “Baker Street,” “American Tune,” Graham Nash’s “I Used to Be a King” and Creedence’s “Lodi.” From that LP, check out her credible arrangement of Bruce Springsteen’s “Tougher Than the Rest” from his 1987 album “Tunnel of Love.”

“Alone Again Naturally,” Diana Krall, 2014

Krall is an accomplished jazz singer and pianist, winning countless awards for her impressive albums on which she has favored time-honored standards by the likes of Hoagy Carmichael, Irving Berlin, Cole Porter and Sammy Cahn. In 2014, she chose to wrap her voice around some of the better pop ballads of the 1970s by artists as varied as Jim Croce, The Carpenters, 10cc and The Eagles for her album “Wallflower,” produced by David Foster. I was knocked out how she took an eye-roller like Gilbert O’Sullivan’s melancholy 1972 hit “Alone Again (Naturally)” and made it something rather extraordinary.

“Bluebird,” Corrine Bailey Rae, 2014

Since the mid-1990s, several albums have been released that gathered a range of popular artists to each record covers of songs by celebrated songwriters like Elton John and Bernie Taupin, Jackson Browne, Bob Dylan, Don Henley and Glenn Frey. On 2014’s “The Art of McCartney,” 42 different singers (Brian Wilson, Billy Joel, Smokey Robinson, Chrissie Hynde, B.B. King, Roger Daltrey, to name a few) paid tribute to the songs written by Sir Paul as a Beatle and a solo artist. Several of these tracks stood out to me, one being Corrine Bailey Rae’s version of “Bluebird,” the tender ballad from Wings’ 1973 LP “Band On the Run.”

“Can’t Find My Way Home,” Haley Reinhart, 2017

Reinhart came to the nation’s attention through the “American Idol” TV program, where contestants sing their versions of hit songs to show off their vocal chops. In Season 10 in 2012, Reinhart was a finalist, earning standing ovations for her renditions of songs by The Animals, Led Zeppelin and Adele. She won a record contract and has done well with superb covers of songs like Radiohead’s “Creep,” Elvis Presley’s “Can’t Help Falling in Love,” Janis Joplin’s “Piece of My Heart” and Buffalo Springfield’s “For What It’s Worth.” From her “What’s That Sound?” LP in 2017, I’ve been impressed by the way she nailed Steve Winwood’s classic “Can’t Find My Way Home” from the 1969 “Blind Faith” album.

“For Free,” David Crosby with Sarah Jarosz, 2021

Crosby played a pivotal role in getting Joni Mitchell discovered back in 1968, bringing her to L.A. and producing her debut LP. In the mid-’70s, he and Graham Nash sometimes performed Mitchell’s song “For Free” (from her 1970 “Ladies of the Canyon” LP), and a recording of one of their performances ended up on the Crosby, Stills and Nash live album “Allies” in 1983. In 2021, Crosby decided to collaborate with singer Sarah Jarosz for a proper studio recording of “For Free” and made it the title track of what turned out to be his final album before his death in 2023. What a song. What a voice.

“Ode to Billie Joe,” Tom Scott with Patty Smyth, 1999

Saxophone great Tom Scott has appeared on more than 200 albums during his storied career, sometimes just contributing sax solos, sometimes as bandleader on his own albums. His work spans multiple genres — jazz fusion, rock, blues, country and pop — and in 1999, a new lineup of the L.A. Express accompanied him on his “Smokin’ Section” LP. It’s an all-instrumental album, with one exception: He invited the great Patty Smyth (formerly with ’80s band Scandal and a solo artist in the ’90s) to offer a potent vocal on a new arrangement of the 1967 hit by Bobbie Gentry, “Ode to Billie Joe.”

“Bell Bottom Blues,” Larkin Poe, 2020

Sisters Rebecca and Megan Lovell, based in Nashville, have built a following under the moniker Larkin Poe, the name of one of their ancestors. They have specialized in blues and Southern rock since their 2010 debut, releasing LPs and EPs and collaborations with other like-minded players. In 2020, they came up with “Kindred Spirits,” an album of covers of songs by Neil Young, The Allman Brothers, The Moody Blues, Elton John and Phil Collins. Not surprisingly, their most effective entry here is the Eric Clapton heartbreaker, “Bell Bottom Blues,” from the Derek and The Dominos’ “Layla” double album.

“Immigrant Song,” Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross with Karen O, 2011

In 2010, filmmaker David Fincher tapped Atticus Ross and Ten Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor to provide the electro-industrial soundtrack for his movie “The Social Network,” and their work earned an Oscar for Best Soundtrack. They were an obvious choice the following year when Fincher needed an edgy soundtrack for his film version of “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.” The highlight of the soundtrack LP, featured in the popular trailer as well, was a spectacular take on Led Zeppelin’s chaotic “Immigrant Song” from “Led Zeppelin III,” with Karen O of Yeah Yeah Yeahs shredding the lead vocals.

“Space Oddity,” Brandi Carlile, 2022

Carlile has been everywhere lately, notably as cheerleader and collaborator for the return to the stage of Joni Mitchell, but her albums have been generating lavish praise since her 2005 debut. Each LP has performed better than the one before, and her two most recent works — “By the Way, I Forgive You” (2018) and “In These Silent Days” (2021) — have won awards, notably the anthemic ballad “The Joke” from 2017. She chose to re-release “In These Silent Days” in 2022 with acoustic treatments of the songs, and then added a startling cover version of David Bowie’s landmark “Space Oddity” as the closer.

“The Sound of Silence,” Disturbed, 2015

Surely one of the most unlikely covers recorded in recent years was this heavy metal band’s reinterpretation of Simon and Garfunkel’s 1965 classic. “I was surprised,” said Paul Simon in response to Disturbed’s performance of his song on “Late Night With Conan O’Brien” in 2016. “It was pretty moving.” Disturbed has released four #1 LPs since 2002, mostly original material, and had covered a few tunes from the ’80s like Tears for Fears’ “Shout” and U2’s “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For,” but this was a much bigger departure for them. “We’re aggressive, but also intensely melodic,” claimed lead singer David Draiman, “and the song is about isolation and darkness, so maybe it wasn’t all that strange for us to give it a shot.”

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