As you probably know, Joe Cocker died a couple weeks ago. Cocker made a career out of transforming other artists' songs into his own, scoring Top 40 hits in the U.S. and/or UK with his covers of "With a Little Help From My Friends" (The Beatles), "She Came In Through The Bathroom Window" (The Beatles), "The Letter" (The Box Tops), "Cry Me a River" (Julie London), "Feeling Alright" (Traffic), "Midnight Rider" (The Allman Brothers Band), "You Are So Beautiful" (Billy Preston), and "Unchain My Heart" (Ray Charles), among others.
He was able to add his own arrangements, style, and flair to most of those songs to essentially make them into his own. Cocker's death got me thinking about songs that have been covered so successfully that the cover version of the song is what most people think of when they hear the song title. Hence, this Tuesday Top Ten: cover songs that the cover artists made their own. These are songs that might make you say, "I didn't even know that was a cover!" And yes, you will say it with enough enthusiasm to merit an exclamation mark.
Before I get to my list, I would like to make a few explanatory comments:
1. I'm excluding covers of blues songs, since there are so many of them, and I've already done a Tuesday Top Ten about blues covers. Likewise, I'm excluding "traditional" songs or new takes on old standards or pre-rock-and-roll-era songs ("Just a Gigolo" or "House of the Rising Sun," for example)
2. This list will only include well-known covers that have been recorded and released by the cover artist. Sure, when I hear "So Lonely" by The Police, I think of the fantastic cover version often played live by my favorite college band, King Konga, but you probably don't make that connection.
3. This list will not include songs where the original version is just as famous as the cover version. Songs that come to mind that would fall into this category would be "Mony Mony," which was a #3 song in the US and #1 song in the UK for Tommy James and the Shondells 13 years before it was a Billboard #1 song for Billy Idol. Chart success of the original or cover isn't necessarily the deciding factor, but the cover should be the song that people of all ages overwhelmingly think of when they see the song title. In this respect, even though I think "I Will Always Love You" by Whitney Houston is far more recognizable than Dolly Parton's original, I put it in the honorable mention category, rather than the Top Ten, since Parton's version hit #1 twice on the Billboard country charts and was featured in The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas.
4. This isn't a list of my favorite cover songs or cover songs that I necessarily think are better than the original (although if it's on this list, the cover version is probably better than the original). Rather, it is my ranking of songs where I think the cover version is instantly more recognized and/or more iconic than the original version.
With that, here is my list, with the song and cover artist, along with the original artist in parentheses). I'm just going alphabetically by artist. In the playlist below, I am including both the original version and the cover version. As you can see from the honorable mention, there were a lot of great songs to choose from, and narrowing the list down to ten was tough.
Honorable Mention: "Twist and Shout" by The Beatles (The Isley Brothers); "Hard to Handle" by The Black Crowes (Otis Redding); "China Girl" by David Bowie (Iggy Pop); "Superstar" by The Carpenters (Delaney & Bonnie); "Hurt" by Johnny Cash (Nine Inch Nails); "Crazy" by Patsy Cline (Willie Nelson); "Killing Me Softly With His Song" by Roberta Flack (Lori Lieberman); "I Heard It Through The Grapevine" by Marvin Gaye or Creedence Clearwater Revival (The Miracles); "Got My Mind Set On You" by George Harrison (James Ray); "Alone" by Heart (I-Ten); "Hey Joe" by The Jimi Hendrix Experience (The Leaves); "I Will Always Love You" by Whitney Houston (Dolly Parton); "Me and Bobby McGee" by Janis Joplin (Kris Kristofferson); "Love Hurts" by Nazareth (The Everly Brothers); "Nothing Compares 2 U" by Sinead O'Connor (The Family); "Mustang Sally" by Wilson Pickett (Mack Rice); "Blue Suede Shoes" by Elvis Presley (Carl Perkins); "Cum On Feel the Noize" by Quiet Riot (Slade); "Unchained Melody" by The Righteous Brothers (Todd Duncan); "Tainted Love" by Soft Cell (Gloria Jones); "Papa Was a Rolling Stone" by The Temptations (The Undisputed Truth); "Wild Thing" by The Troggs (The Wild Ones); "Proud Mary" by Ike and Tina Turner (Creedence Clearwater Revival)
1. "Piece of My Heart" by Big Brother and The Holding Company (Erma Franklin)
In 1967, Erma Franklin released "Piece of My Heart" and had moderate success, as the song cracked the Top Ten of the U.S. R&B charts. Perhaps as karmic repayment for her sister's transformation of "Respect" (see below), in 1968, Big Brother and The Holding Company took "Piece of My Heart" and turned it into a masterpiece for the ages, with Janis Joplin, in my opinion, putting forth one of the greatest vocal performances in rock and roll history. When you think of Janis Joplin, this is one of the two of three songs you think of. Unfortunately for Erma Franklin, I'd venture to say that very few people know (or care) she sang the original version.
2. "Ring of Fire" by Johnny Cash (Anita Carter)
This one was a shocker. Until yesterday, I had no idea "Ring of Fire" was a cover song, but alas, it was recorded first by Cash's future sister-in-law, Anita Carter. The original version is a folky, ethereal acoustic song. The legend goes that Cash had a dream in which he heard the song accompanied by horns. He gave Carter's original song a few months and, when it wasn't a hit, he recorded his now-instantly-recognizable version.
3. "The Twist" by Chubby Checker (Hank Ballard & The Midnighters)
"The Twist" is a tale of kismet if you've ever heard one. In 1959, Hank Ballard & The Midnighters released "The Twist" as a B-side, and it nonetheless got up to #28 on the Billboard charts in 1960. When Dick Clark wanted to book the group to sing the song on American Bandstand, they were unavailable. Clark then searched for a local artist to sing the song on the show, finding Cubby Checker because his voice was similar to Ballard's. Checker sang the song on the show, then recorded it, and it shot up to #1. "The Twist" was the number one song on Billboard's list of songs from the Hot 100's first 50 years. I remember hearing or reading a story about Ballard hearing the song on the radio and thinking it was him singing, but it was actually Checker. It wasn't all bad news for Ballard, though, since he is the man who wrote it, so he could thank Checker for plenty of royalty checks.
4. "With a Little Help From My Friends" by Joe Cocker (The Beatles)
This list was inspired by Cocker, and more narrowly, by Cocker's cover of The Beatles' "With a Little Help From My Friends." The original version was the second track on the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album, with Ringo tackling the vocals (as Billy Shears). It's an under-three-minute, clean poppy song. A year later, Cocker completely changed the song, slowing it down, stretching it to over five minutes, and adding soul, backing vocals, and that now famous organ-and-guitar intro (featuring Jimmy Page on guitar!). His most famous song -– at least for anyone who has ever seen the Woodstock film or The Wonder Years –- is spectacular. I'm hard-pressed to say anything ill about The Beatles, but Cocker's version just blows the original out of the water. It makes me want to try to make out with Winnie Cooper, but then blow it because I'm too nervous, so instead I'll say something stupid and my voice will crack.
5. "Respect" by Aretha Franklin (Otis Redding)
"R-E-S-P-E-C-T / Find out what it means to me." That now-instantly-recognizable line is not in Otis Redding's 1965 original version, which is more of a standard, Stax/Volt Memphis soul song than what Aretha Franklin turned the song into in 1967. It went from a song sung from the point of view of a desperate man asking his woman for respect to a song sung from the point of view of a strong woman demanding respect from her man (and getting it). This song is Aretha.
6. "All Along the Watchtower" by The Jimi Hendrix Experience (Bob Dylan)
It would be impossible to have a list about cover songs that are more recognizable than the original without including "All Along the Watchtower," which is arguably Hendrix's most popular song. Hendrix took a folky song, rearranged it a little (in the musical sense, not spatially), and electrified it as only he could, with blistering guitars and soulful vocals. Hendrix's version is so good that you forget that arguably the best songwriter ever wrote the lyrics.
7. "I Love Rock 'n' Roll" by Joan Jett & The Blackhearts (Arrows)
Until doing some research for this post, I had no idea this was a cover song. I was a little surprised, since this is essentially Jett's anthem. Originally recorded in 1975 by British rock band Arrows, it was written in response to the Rolling Stones' "It's Only Rock 'n' Roll (But I Like It)." Jett heard the song while touring with the Runaways in 1976, and recorded it in 1981, when it shot to #1 on the Billboard charts for seven weeks. I honestly can't imagine anyone but Joan Jett singing this song.
8. "Blinded By The Light" by Manfred Mann (Bruce Springsteen)
"Wrapped up like a douche," or so it sounds like. With that garbled line, Manfred Mann turned an unsuccessful Springsteen single from his 1973 debut album into a #1 song in 1977. In case you're wondering -– and I know you are –- the actual line is "revved up like a deuce," which Manfred Mann changed from Springsteen's original line, "cut loose like a deuce." Aside from that, Manfred Mann extends the song and fills it out considerably with bigger vocals and more instruments.
9. "Black Magic Woman" by Santana (Fleetwood Mac)
Before Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham, Fleetwood Mac was a British '60s blues band, born out of the ashes of John Mayall's Bluesbreakers. In 1968, they recorded and released "Black Magic Woman," which became a minor hit in the UK. Two years later, Santana recorded the funky, Latin rock version song that you now know to be "Black Magic Woman," which was on their fantastic third album, Abraxas. Santana's version climbed all the way up to #4 on the Billboard charts, making it Santana's highest-charting single until the 1999 megahit collaboration with Rob Thomas, "Smooth."
10. "Red Red Wine" by UB40 (Neil Diamond)
Did you even know this was a Neil Diamond song? For many years, I sure didn't. UB40, like Joe Cocker, was another one of those acts that made a living off of cover songs, with a reggae flavor, which usually meant that they added a distinctive take on the song (unlike a traditional cover). More than any other UB40 song, "Red Red Wine" stands out, not only because it went to #1 on the Billboard charts, but also because, unlike many of their other successful covers ("(I Can't Help) Falling In Love With You," "I Got You Babe" (with Chrissie Hynde), "The Way You Do the Things You Do," and "Here I Am (Come and Take Me)"), the cover version is far more popular and recognizable than the original. Even Neil Diamond has said that this is one of his favorite cover versions of his songs.
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