Luther Vandross Sings Covers
On July 1 it will be 20 years since Luther Vandross died, aged only 54. His career had ended two years earlier, halted by a severe stroke soon after his final album, Dance With My Father, was recorded (it was released while Luther was still in hospital).
That final album showed that Luther was still a master of his craft, one who could even save a mediocre song by the power of his vocals.
Luther Vandross was a gifted songwriter in his own right, of course, but what set him truly apart was the artistry he brought to his covers. There were not that many of them; he was not a covers singers. His discography includes only one album of covers, the Grammy-nominated Songs (1994), from which three other tracks were also nominated. Aside from that, each album featured one cover, maybe two. On almost every album, they constituted a highlight, sometimes even the highlight.
That was certainly the case on 1982’s Forever, For Always, For Love, with the astonishing cover of The Temptations’ Since I Lost My Baby, and on 1983’s Busy Body, which closed with the nine-minute version of Superstar.
Both of these instances hint at Luther’s astute discernment in choosing songs to covers. Few of them had been over-covered, and some were quite obscure, such as Brenda Russell’s If Only For One Njght and Stevie Wonder’s deep cut Creepin’ (both on 1985’s The Night I Fell In Love). The latter featured on the Any Major Stevie Wonder Songbook Vol. 1 , which I posted last month, so the version featured here is a live recording from 2003 (just two months before that stroke), with superb backing vocals.
Talking of which, Luther Vandross had been a prolific backing singer before he became a recording artist in his own right (he features on Any Major Backing Singers, supporting David Bowie), so he knew well how to arrange his backing singers to fullest effect, sometimes letting them step into the limelight. The backing on Since I Lost My Baby and, as mentioned, Creepin’ are good examples of that.
I think Since I Lost My Baby is my favourite cover by Vandross, though many others might go for A House Is Not A Home from 1981’s Never Too Much album (and those many others may well be correct). The Bacharach/David song was originally recorded by Dionne Warwick, and Barbra Streisand created a wonderful cover of it as part of a medley with One Less Bell To Answer. Luther eclipses Babs (as he would later with her Evergreen) giving a masterclass in control, phrasing and restrained devastation.
He’d repeat these masterclasses over the next two decades. Shortly before the stroke, he recorded a cover of Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway’s The Closer I Get To You with Beyoncé. I’d not go as far as to say that their version is better than the original, which is pretty much perfect. Luther and Beyoncé honour that perfection by avoiding the pitfall of over-singing. Instead of trying too hard with the fireworks, as one might have feared, they give the song a restrained and even intimate treatment. It won a Grammy for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals; one of eight Grammy Luther won (out of 33 nominations).
So here are 20 Luther Vandross covers, listed with the performers of the song’s best-known versions in parentheses. Tracks 12-14 are timed to fit on a standard CD-R, and the lot includes home-warbled covers and the above text in an illustrated PDF. PW in comments.
1. Love The One You’re With (1994, Stephen Stills)
2. Since I Lost My Baby (1982, The Temptations)
3. A House Is Not A Home (1981, Dionne Warwick)
4. If This World Were Mine (1982, with Cheryl Lynn) (Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell)
5. If Only For One Night (1985, Brenda Russell)
6. Creepin’ (live) (2003, Stevie Wonder)
7. So Amazing (1986, Dionne Warwick)
8. Knocks Me Off My Feet (1996, Stevie Wonder)
9. Evergreen (1994, Barbra Streisand)
10. Superstar (1983, Carpenters)
11. Going Out Of My Head (1996, Little Anthony and the Imperials)
12. Anyone Who Had A Heart (1986, Dionne Warwick)
13. Always And Forever (1994, Heatwave)
14. The Closer I Get To You (2003, with Beyoncé) (Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway)
BONUS TRACKS
15. Love Won’t Let Me Wait (1988, Major Harris)
16. Going In Circles (1994, Friends of Distinction)
17. I Who Have Nothing (1991, with Martha Wash) (Tom Jones; Sylvester)
18. When I Need You (1998, Leo Sayer)
19. Any Day Now (2001, Chuck Jackson)
20. The Lady Is A Tramp (1993, with Frank Sinatra) (Frank Sinatra a.o.)
Previously in Sings Covers:
Al Green Sings Covers
Aretha Franklin Sings Covers
Bruce Springsteen Sings Covers
Diana Ross Sings Covers
Gladys Knight Sings Covers
Roberta Flack Sings Covers
Tina Turner Sings Covers
PW = amdwhah
Thank you!