Chuck Berry released “Thirty Days” in 1955. Ronnie Hawkins, who passed away recently, covered it as “Forty Days” in 1959.
Category: Music covers
Covers: Oye Como Va
“Oye Como Va” was originally recorded by Tito Puente in 1962. Santana’s popular cover was released in 1970. Playing For Change just released a version by musicians around the world.
Covers: On a Night Like This (Bob Dylan song)
Bob Dylan’s “On a Night Like This “ was recorded by Dylan and the Band and released in 1974. It’s one of the best tracks on Planet Waves. Buckwheat Zydeco and Los Lobos covered it. All three versions include an accordian.
Covers: Walk a Mile in My Shoes
“Walk a Mile in My Shoes” was a 1970 hit for Joe South. The Lake Street Dive version is in an Ad Council TV ad. One of the covers is by the People’s Temple Choir!
Covers: Girls Just Want to Have Fun
“Girls Just Want to Have Fun” was a hit for Cyndi Lauper in 1983. I learned today that it was a cover of a 1979 song by Robert Hazard.
Covers: Kitty/Mickey
This article inspired me to post about “Mickey” (1982). Good for Toni Basil. The original version by Racey was known as “Kitty” (1979).
Covers: Sun Brimmer’s Blues
This 1972 Memphis Jug Band song was performed live by Tuba Skinny in 2022 on the YouTube video. Memphis Jug Band leader Will Shade was also known as Son Brimmer or Sun Brimmer.
Covers: House of the Rising Sun
“House of the Rising Sun” is best known from the 1964 version by the Animals but it goes back to old English folk songs. The earliest US version (as “Rising Sun Blues”) is from 1933 by Clarence Ashley and Gwen Foster.
Bob Dylan’s “House of the Rising Sun”: The Spark that Led to His Electric Revolution
Get On Board – Taj Mahal and Ry Cooder
Get On Board: The Songs of Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee is the new album by Taj Mahal and Ry Cooder (released on April 22, 2022). It’s not a major work but it’s very relaxed and low-key. It sounds like music someone could make on your porch or in your backyard. I’m a big admirer of both artists and encourage you to explore their solo work. For Cooder, I suggest starting with Into The Purple Valley (1972). For Mahal, I recommend Dancing the Blues (1993). Like Get on Board, both albums revive songs that are not well known today. Cooder finds Depression obscurities like “Taxes on the Farmer Feeds Us All” and “How Can You Keep On Moving (Unless You Migrate Too)”. Mahal covers songs by T-Bone Walker and Fats Domino, both huge stars in their day but not popular now.
Covers: Just Because (Nelstone’s Hawaiians song)
“Just Because” was first recorded in 1929. Elvis Presley is among the many artists who covered it. I thought of it because of this Instagram post.
Sad! 