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Covered With Soul Vol. 1

February 26th, 2010 Leave a comment Go to comments

Generally I”m wary of cover versions, especially if the song being covered is already well known in its original form or is otherwise identified with a particular artist. There is not much you can do to improve on, say, Bridge Over Troubled Water other than to strip the song down and rework it completely. Not many artists have succeeded in doing so. But for an example of how a well-known song can be totally reworked, one might look to Otis Redding”s version of Try A Little Tenderness (originally recorded by Bing Crosby). Or listen to what Donny Hathaway does with the standard Misty on this mix.

The songs covered by soul artists come almost exclusively from a non-soul tradition. Some are standards (Don”t Fence Me In, Misty, Nature Boy), some country (King Of The Road, Harper Valley P.T.A.), some were pop or rock hits. Only two songs here were originally soul numbers, though For Once In My Life had traversed genres before Gladys Knight & the Pips released their take in 1973 (see HERE). The other, originally by Smokey Robinson & the Miracles, is redone here by Chic man Bernie Edwards in a rather nice poppy way. Merry Clayton (whom we last encountered HERE) may be covering a Rolling Stones song, but it is she who sang on the Stones in the first place, so it’s really half a cover.

I”d be interested to know which covers worked for the listener, and which fell flat. As always, the mix is timed to fit on a standard CD-R , and a front and back cover is included.

TRACKLISTING
1. The Isley Brothers – Listen To The Music (1973)
2. Merry Clayton – Gimme Shelter (1970)
3. Erma Franklin – Light My Fire (1969)
4. Stevie Wonder – Bang Bang (1966)
5. Jackie Wilson – Eleanor Rigby 1969)
6. The Dells – Wichita Lineman/By The Time I Get To Phoenix (1969)
7. Isaac Hayes – It’s Too Late (1973)
8. The Delfonics – Alfie (1968)
9. Donny Hathaway – Misty (1970)
10. Grady Tate – Don’t Fence Me In (1974)
11. Joe Tex – King Of The Road (1965)
12. Vivian Reed – Harper Valley P.T.A. (1970)
13. Flaming Ember – Spinning Wheel (1971)
14. The Supremes & The Temptation – Got To Get You Into My Life (1968)
15. George Benson – Nature Boy (1977)
16. Bernard Edwards feat. Jocelyn Brown – You’ve Really Got A Hold On Me (1983)
17. Charles Brimmer – We’ve Only Just Begun (1976)
18. Gladys Knight & The Pips – For Once In My Life (1973)
19. Roberta Flack – Hey, That’s No Way To Say Goodbye (1969)
20. Billy Paul – Mrs. Robinson (1970)
21. Voices Of East Harlem – For What It’s Worth (1970)

GET IT!

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  1. paul
    February 26th, 2010 at 11:01 | #1

    great,as always. here’s one i did,enjoy
    http://8tracks.com/arthurdog/rock-n-soul

  2. Oldetymer
    February 27th, 2010 at 09:19 | #2

    I was truly awestruck with Hey, That’s No Way To Say Goodbye by Roberta Flack her voice and Cohen’s lyrics, who could ask for anything more?

  3. Shaun
    March 20th, 2010 at 19:21 | #3

    The Isley’s “Listen To The Music” is one of the best covers ever in that it completely surpasses the greatness of the original.

  4. December 3rd, 2010 at 05:41 | #4

    Another brilliant compilation.
    I’m totally with you about covers – not generally a fan – but the songs you’ve picked are so interesting it sort of makes me rethink my position. Still, these are obviously exceptions – and exceptional.

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