Friday, June 04, 2021

Ten Bold Cover Tunes Part XI: Original Tunes That Got The Twist and Shout Treatment

Note. Please be sure to check out prior installments in the Ten Bold Cover Tunes series: 

Ten Bold Cover Tunes Part XI: Original Tunes That Got Twist and Shout Treatment

Sometimes cover tunes so completely become thought of at THE VERSION of the tune that the original is forgotten. In fact, the COVER becomes known as the ORIGINAL. Think of the Beatles' version of "Twist and Shout." The Fab Four brought so much energy and excitement to the tune that the fine Isley Brothers version--released not so long before the Beatles' and a commercial hit in its own right--was almost immediately forgotten. To this day few people are aware that the first, original recording of "Twist and Shout" was by a Philadelphia based R & B band known as The Top Notes. 

So this edition of Ten Bold Cover Tunes is not about the cover tunes. Rather, it's about some classic originals that got the "Twist and Shout Treatment;" originals that got lost due to the immense popularity of the cover version(s). My choices of the ten originals riffed about below were based on two criteria: (1) I personally enjoy the original as much as if not more than the better-known cover, and (2) I think the original deserves a wider audience. 

#10:  The Family, "Nothing Compares 2 U."  Sinead O'Connor's passionate and powerful 1990 cover of the Prince-penned tune, which  became one of the most popular and iconic music videos of all time, made the Ireland-born singer an international superstar. 

Prince himself actually recorded the song in 1984, but that version was not officially released until 2018. The first "official" version of "Nothing Compares 2U" was recorded in 1985 by The Family, an R & B band that was a side-project of sorts for Prince. I think this version has a melancholy beauty to it that, in some ways, rivals the cries of desperate grief O'Connor brought to it. Check it out: The Family "Nothing Compares 2 U."  

#9:  Creedence Clearwater Revival, "Proud Mary." Over 100 artists have covered "Proud Mary," but Ike and Tina Turner's funk version became definitive, in part because Creedence disbanded in the early 1970s and writer John Fogerty for many years would not perform CCR songs. Tina Turner, on the other hand, performed the song for 40 years until her retirement from the stage in 2009. John Fogerty has pretty much reclaimed the song since then, but a 2018 movie borrowed the name and used Tina's version. 

CCR's original really is kick-ass. Here it is. 

#8:  Bob Dylan "All Along The Watchtower." Though few people know what "All Along The Watchtower" is even about, Jimi Hendrix's version became a baby boom generation anthem. Dylan himself has said that when he performs the song he experiences it as a tribute to Hendrix. 

Dylan's original was released in 1968 ( 6 months before Hendrix's cover), a time when his fans still weren't sure if he had made the full transition from civil rights movement activist to aloof, offbeat poet. Thus "All Along the Watchtower" has an aura of social commentary to it even though it lacks the moral clarity of "Blowin' in the Wind" or the generational spirit of "The Times They Are A Changin'. Dylan's folk contemporary Dave Von Ronk probably was correct when he said that by 1968 Dylan had figured out that when it comes to songwriting he could "get away with anything." 

Bob Dylan is a critical figure in the history of popular music. His original version of "All Along the Watchtower," probably more than any of his other tunes, represents his uncanny ability to make listeners feel they have been introduced to an earth shaking MESSAGE even as they struggle to figure out just what that message is. 

Here's Bob Dylan's original version of "All Along the Watchtower."

#7: The Sutherland Brothers' "Sailing." Rod Stewart's 1975 version of "Sailing" was an international hit for him and established the song's reputation as an epic love quest. In the early days of music video, established rock stars like Stewart struggled to find a way into the visual space. Video, after all, "killed the radio star."  A 1981 music video for "Sailing" was one of Stewart's first contributions to MTV. 

The Sutherland Brothers' original 1972 recording has a spiritual vibe to it not frequently heard in popular music. That's not surprising when we consider what writer Gavin Sutherland said about it: "Most people take the song to be about a young guy telling his girl that he's crossing the Atlantic to be with her. In fact the song's got nothing to do with romance or ships; it's an account of mankind's spiritual odyssey through life on his way to freedom and fulfillment with the Supreme Being."

Here's the original Sutherland Brothers' recording of "Sailing." 

#6: Tiny Bradshaw's "The Train Kept-A Rollin". There have been a number of great cover versions of this tune, the most popular being Johnny Burnette's rockabilly treatment of it, the Yardbirds' British blues invasion cover, and Aerosmith's 1970s reworking of it into an American metal masterpiece. 

As great as are the covers, I still find myself drawn to Tiny Bradshaw's original. Bradshaw was a bandleader, singer and pianist whose "jump blues" style became a foundational part of the hidden history of rock-and-roll. "The Train Kept-A Rollin" came out in 1951, and while it has never been considered as a candidate for the first rock and roll song, its energy would certainly justify such an accolade. 

Here's Tiny Bradshaw's "The Train Kept-A Rollin." 

#5: The King Cole Trio's "(Get Your Kicks) On Route 66." The Rolling Stones recorded this classic in 1964 for their first album, and their version is probably definitive. They were most likely influenced by Chuck Berry's rendition. John Mayer's outstanding version appears on the 2006 soundtrack of the movie "Cars." 

"Route 66" was written by Bobby Troup and originally recorded by the King Cole Trio in 1946. I love this jazzy version not just because Nat King Cole was one of the greatest singers in history, but because when this song was released the actual Route 66 was an exciting place. It was the "Mother Road;" the "Main Street of America" that ran almost 2,500 miles from Chicago to Santa Monica. 

Here's The Cole Trio's "(Get Your Kicks) on Route 66."

#4: Big Mama Thornton's "Hound Dog." The early Elvis Presley covered songs originally recorded by African-Americans in a style that was--at that time--so unique for White artists that listeners just assumed he wrote the tunes. In fact Elvis never wrote a song, including one of his signature hits "Hound Dog" which he released in July of 1956. 

"Hound Dog" was composed by the legendary songwriting team of Jerry Lieber and Mike Stoller and recorded originally by blues great Big Mama Thornton. Wildly popular upon release, the song provoked no fewer than 10 covers BEFORE Elvis'. But no matter how popular the song was in the early 1950s, post-1956 it became identified almost completely with Elvis. In Jim Crow America, huge numbers of white Americans could only hear Elvis' version, either because of their own unwillingness to listen to black artists, or because racist radio stations would not play the music of African-Americans.

If you want to understand the roots of rock-and-roll, Big Mama Thornton's "Hound Dog" is a good place to start. Here it is. 

#3: Neil Diamond's "Red Red Wine." UB40's reggae/pop version of this tune was so danceable, and so much fun, that casual listeners would not even realize it's a pretty sad song about getting wasted in order to forget a lost love. Still, the UB40 version became the definitive one. 

I like Neil Diamond's original version because he credibly adopts the persona of a depressed man drinking his troubles away. Actually he sounds like Neil Diamond imitating a drunk dude imitating Neil Diamond in a karaoke version of "Red Red Wine." Classic. 

Here's Neil Diamond's 1968 original version of "Red Red Wine." 

#2: Jake Holmes' "Dazed and Confused." When Led Zeppelin released their first album in 1969, they rewrote most of the lyrics to Jake Holmes' "Dazed and Confused" and then had the gall to take full songwriting credit for it! Holmes reached an out-of-court settlement with Zep in 2010, part of which required the Zeppelin version to be credited to "Jimmy Page, inspired by Jake Holmes." Still, the Zeppelin version will forever be THE "Dazed and Confused" people think about when the the song comes to mind. A good history of the song can be found here. 

Holmes' original version, released in 1967, is one of the most underrated rock songs of all time. It's got the trippy vibe of the best music released in the "Summer of Love," and some of the most creative instrumentation and melody of the period. Ironically, despite the title ("Dazed and Confused") the tune really has nothing to do with drugs; it's about a guy's reaction to a relationship breakup. 

Here's Jake Holmes' original "Dazed and Confused." 

#1: Shuggie Otis' "Strawberry Letter 23."  The most recognized version of this song is the 1977 soul/funk jam by the Brothers Johnson. That version is a dance-era masterpiece. 

Shuggie's 1971 original is a masterpiece too, though more difficult to categorize. Is it rock? Rhythm and blues? Pop? Folk? Or is it also soul/funk? I love both versions, though Shuggie's strikes me as a bit more authentic, especially in terms of his vocal sincerity. The album on which Strawberry Letter 23 appears, "Freedom Flight," never shows up on those "all time great" lists. Perhaps it's time for that to change

Here's Shuggie Otis' original version of Strawberry Letter 23. 

So there you have it: ten original tunes tunes that got the "Twist and Shout" treatment. That is, the cover version of the tune became so well known that the original almost got lost. The purpose of this post was to find those songs again. Hope you enjoyed it! 

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