Covered With Soul Vol. 24
Over the past couple of years I’ve been rather stingy with the Covered With Soul mixes, despite the series having been so popular. Up to August 2015, there were 22 such mixes; since then there have been two, the last one, Vol. 23, in 2018. That sorry situation cries out for relief. So here is Volume 24 — and it’s a really good one.
I won’t claim that every cover in this series eclipses the original or hit version it is based on, but on this collection, I think there are at least four such tracks. In fairness, Wilson Pickett doesn’t have a terribly high bar to clear with Sugar Sugar — but what fun to hear The Wicked Pickett soulifying bubblegum pop.
Aretha Franklin tended to appropriate or at least improve on most songs she covered; here she eclipses, or at least comes close to it, the great Dusty Springfield on her signature song, Son Of A Preacher Man. But it takes something quite special to leave Barbra Streisand in the dust. Gladys Knight’s version of The Way We Were does just that. But then, Knight is one of the great singers in popular music.
Probably the least-known song here is the closer, Randy Newman’s I Think It’s Going To Rain Today. I’ve never been a fan of the song (nor, apparently, is Newman) — except in Grady Tate’s version. His vocal performance is exquisite, and I like the arrangement.
Little known fact: Bread’s Everything I Own, covered here by Barbara Mason, is about David Gates’ loss of his father, rather than a romantic love song. “You sheltered me from harm, kept me warm, you gave my life to me, set me free…”
One of the unwieldiest record credits in pop music must be that of the collaboration LP by Diana Ross and The Supremes and The Temptations. At least their 1969 album had the snappier title Together. On the featured track, the Four Seasons’ Can’t Take My Eyes Off You, it isn’t La Ross taking the female lead vocals but Mary Wilson, in duet with Eddie Kendricks.
Pretty Purdie, who here leads on You Got A Friend, is the great drummer Bernard Purdie. The Playboys, with whom he recorded just one album (with mixed results), included guitarist Cornell Dupree, the prolific bassist Chuck Rainey, the great arranger Harold Wheeler on piano and keyboards, the late trumpeter Snooky Young, among others. Purdie was, of course, the subject of two mixes of tracks on which he played drums: Volume 1 and Volume 2.
Purdie’s version of You Got A Friend is one of two Carole King tracks here; the other is It’s Too Late, covered here by Denise LaSalle. That song features in this series for the third time. Previously it was covered by Isaac Hayes on Vol. 1, and the Isley Brothers on Vol. 23. The Any Major Carole King Songbook featured in February.
Also getting a third outing is The Look Of Love. Previous versions were by The Delfonics on Vol. 7 (the Bacharach edition) and Gladys Knight on Vol. 16. Isaac Hayes’ wonderful live version has featured already elsewhere. On this edition, Bobby Womack does the honours.
The Carpenters’ We’ve Only Just Begun also features for the third time, here by Curtis Mayfield, and previously by Charles Brimmer (again Vol. 1) and The Temprees (Vol. 16)
But I don’t think any track has featured more than Wichita Lineman, presently featured by The Meters (with Art Neville on vocals). Previous covers were by The Dells (Vol. 1), Sunday’s Child (Vol. 8), Willie Hutch (Vol. 13), and The Main Ingredient (Vol. 20).
As always, CD-R length, home-souled covers, above text in PDF. PW in comments.
1. Wilson Pickett – Sugar Sugar (1971)
2. Al Green – Light My Fire (1971)
3. Aretha Franklin – Son Of A Preacher Man (1969)
4. Bobby Womack – The Look Of Love (1973)
5. Denise LaSalle – It’s Too Late (1972)
6. The Meters – Wichita Lineman (1970)
7. Pretty Purdie & The Playboys – You Got A Friend (1971)
8. Curtis Mayfield – We’ve Only Just Begun (1971)
9. Bill Withers – Everbody’s Talkin’ (1971)
10. Four Tops – California Dreamin’ (1969)
11. Jermaine Jackson – Homeward Bound (1972)
12. Maxine Brown – Reason To Believe (1969)
13. Billy Paul – Without You (1976)
14. Etta James – Take It To The Limit (1978)
15. Lou Rawls – She’s Gone (1974)
16. Natalie Cole & Peabo Bryson – What You Won’t Do For Love (1979)
17. Gladys Knight & The Pips – The Way We Were (1974)
18. Barbara Mason – Everything I Own (1972)
19. Merry Clayton – Suspicious Minds (1972)
20. The Supremes and The Temptations – Can’t Take My Eyes Off You (1969)
21. Grady Tate – I Think It’s Going To Rain Today (1970)
PW = amdwhah
Exceptional.
Thx much for your hard work on this and all of your mixes.
I’m late to the halfhearted party, so the earlier volumes are something I should explore.
Wow! Thanks for this new edition. I went back and grabbed all the older ones I was missing, and every one I needed was still up. Thanks for keeping the old links alive, though Zippyshare is getting harder and harder to negotiate.
I’m glad you could complete the collection. I know Zippy is a bit of a pain, but in terms of managing files and keeping them live, they are bertter than others — even if that too requires some tedious management.