Under The Covers

Introduction

I recently heard a stunning live cover of Frank Wilson's "Do I Love You? Indeed I Do" by Bruce Springsteen that was a taster for his new covers album.

This got me thinking, quite a few of my favourite artists have released covers albums in one form or another so I thought why not a playlist listing a few of the albums in my collection with a sample song from each one and some observations on each album?

So here we go under the covers so to speak.

Bryan Ferry - These Foolish Things

I was a Roxy Music fan from the start and was a bit perturbed when I heard Bryan Ferry was making a solo album I was worried that the band were going to split, though that was definitely not the case, and members of the band appeared on the album, which I was very impressed with when I firts heard it.

The song I am going to choose from this album is Bryan's cover of The Rolling Stones' "Sympathy For The Devil" which is made to sound monstrously brilliant by use of a double drum kit.

David Bowie - "Pin-Ups"

I was disappointed when I heard this after Ferry's excellent covers album and thought it was just too mannered. "Sorrow" (originally by The Merseys) was a great cover and only The Kinks "Where Have All The Good Times" gone was up to that standard (this is my opinion I know others will differ) , so as you all know "Sorrow" I will share the latter.

Bryan Ferry - Another Time, Another Place

This was the second and final covers album by Bryan Ferry although the title track was a self composition. Roxy Music also included some covers on later albums, Wilson Pickett's "In The Midnight Hour" and The Byrds' "Eight Miles High" on "Flesh and Blood", as well as covering "Jealous Guy" as a single when John Lennon was shot.

The song I will choose from this one is the heavy take on Dobie Gray's "The In Crowd".

"Gravelands" by The King

This is taken from my Alt-Elvis post which you can read at the end of this and find more information.

James “The King” Brown is a very impressive Elvis impersonator. An ex-postman born in Belfast in 1968 he claimed that he was not an impersonator, but his voice sounds like Elvis.

I picked up a copy of his debut album “Gravelands” where all the songs covered were by artists who had passed on, keeping fairly close to the original arrangements but with The King singing.

The song I have chosen is a brilliant live take on Tim Buckley's "Song To The Siren" on of the most beautiful songs I have ever heard.

The Byrds Play Dylan

I have a feeling that this was put together by a record company exec rather than being a band project, but they got me into Bob Dylan when I heard their cover of "Mr Tambourine Man" (and when I heard Dylan's original it was like sandpaper after silk but over the years I have grown to appreciate Dylan's voice), and from this I am going to choose "My Back Pages" because there are so many amazing lines in there, this is just the first verse and chorus:

Crimson flames tied through my ears, rollin' high and mighty traps

Pounced with fire on flaming roads using ideas as my maps

"We'll meet on edges, soon, " said I, proud 'neath heated brow

Ah, but I was so much older then, I'm younger than that now

Hollies Sing Dylan

This was a band project and caused Graham Nash to quit the band, but it is an excellent album. The one I have chosen is "All I Really Wanna Do", an interesting arrangement and the harmanies are perfect.

Bruce Springsteen - "Covers:Only The Strong Survive"

This is the album that promted this post, and I did a playlist of songs that Bruce Springsteen has covered over his career, but from this I will choose "I Wish It Would Rain", I first heard this covered by Rod Stewart and the Faces and love that version so much so Bruce is competing against my favourite version of that song but it is still gorgeous.

Conclusion

I know I will have missed lots of over covers albums but these are just a few in my collection and you can tell me what I have missed.