While none of us are adverse to a superbly worked cover, take anything from the first four albums by Rod Stewart for example, offence can quickly be taken when an alternative version is ill-chosen or ill-conceived.
Scraping the bottom of this particular barrel would be Joe Walsh putting ‘Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow‘ through the mangle, had Rod not given ‘All Right Now‘ an 80s makeover – his tacky rendition lucky not to bring censure under the Trade Description Act for being so sub-standard.
But what of entire albums where a group of artists focus on the work of one performer, sometimes as a posthumous tribute?
As with any category there are good, bad and indifferent – therefore, in an act of chivalrous public service SAMTIMONIOUS.com has delved into a dozen, emerging from under the covers, so to speak, with these interpretations…….
TWO ROOMS – Celebrating The Songs of Elton John and Bernie Taupin (1991): Having lost interest in Elton John a long time since – delivering a piano ballad dressed as Donald Duck legitimising all the punk scorn that came his way – ‘Two Rooms‘ (so titled as John and Taupin write their parts in separate locations), is timely reminder of the songwriting force they were.
The Who (‘Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting‘), Tina Turner (‘The Bitch is Back‘) and Rod Stewart (‘Your Song‘) all make obvious choices, although Kate Bush gives ‘Rocket Man‘ an inventive, reggae twist.
Best of all, however, is the poignancy Sting brings to ‘Come Down In Time‘ emphasising his dexterity as a vocalist and that of Taupin as a lyricist. (B)
COMMON THREAD – The Songs of the Eagles: (1993) Having their back catalogue trawled by an emerging wave (then) of country rock newcomers was said to be a deal-breaker in the full-blown Eagles reunion of the following year – although most of the acts involved in ‘Common Thread‘ appear so in awe of the material it becomes a ‘copy’ rather than ‘cover’ album.
That said, Trisha Yearwood offers a nicely presented ‘New Kid in Town‘ while Vince Gill turns ‘I Can’t Tell You Why‘ into an effective torch ballad, this thoughtful take given sad irony with Gill joining the Eagles following the death of founding member Glenn Frey in 2016. (B+)
DYLANESQUE – Bryan Ferry (2007). Given his oft-voiced respect for the great man, Ferry making a concerted effort with a batch of Dylan songs came as no surprise – just a shame his first choice XI were all a bit obvious.
Things get off to a flier with an atmospheric ‘Just Like Tom Thumb Blues‘ and Springsteen-charged ‘Simple Twist of Fate‘ but after that becomes a touch predictable, save for a cool ‘Gates of Eden‘ that arrives close to the end of this surprisingly underwhelming set. (B)
ENJOY EVERY SANDWICH – The songs of Warren Zevon (2004): It says something for the esteem in which Zevon was held that in the year after his death, Dylan, Springsteen, Browne, Henley, Cooder, Lindley, Raitt, all show up to pay tribute.
Springsteen makes ‘My Ride’s Here‘ even more poignant by announcing from the stage at a 2003 Toronto show: ‘This is a Warren Zevon song. Warren passed away a few days ago. He was a good friend and great American songwriter. We’re gonna miss him.’
As ever, Springsteen finds the right words, but in terms of performance it is Jakob (son of Bob) Dylan who steals the show, leading his band The Wallflowers through a gloriously rousing ‘Lawyers, Guns and Money‘ that Warren himself would have been proud of. (A)
THE BYRDS PLAY DYLAN – The Byrds (1979): Compiled rather than specially recorded, this collection is testament to when head-Byrds-honcho Roger McGuinn was on song – and when he wasn’t. With chiming guitars and soaring harmonies, ‘Mr. Tambourine Man‘ and ‘My Back Pages‘ are transformed from plaintive folk ballads into six minutes of the most sublime rock ever recorded.
On the other hand, ‘The Times They Are a-Changin‘ sounds more television commercial than protest song with ‘Lay Lady Lay‘ a muddle from start to finish (perversely, Dylan liked it).
But victory on points is ensured by ‘You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere,’ the Gram Parsons-era Byrds putting down a foundation stone of country rock. (B)
RETURN OF THE GRIEVOUS ANGEL – A Tribute to Gram Parsons (1999): Assemble a group of top class performers, give them material by a seminal artist and the doomongers among us would be inclined to say ‘this sounds almost too good to be true‘ – which is exactly how this stunning tribute to Parsons rates.
Chris Hillman and Emmylou Harris provide ‘there at the time’ gravitas, while Elvis Costello, The Pretenders, Lucinda Williams, David Crosby, Sheryl Crow, Beck, Steve Earle and Wilco all give performances befitting the legacy of GP.
In fact the only umbrage to be taken is with Gram – for departing this world at the age of just 26. (A)
HEART OF MINE: THE LOVE SONGS OF BOB DYLAN – Maria Muldaur (2006): Restricting herself to ‘love’ songs, sultry songstress Muldaur comes up with a more cohesive collection than Ferry, despite a couple of overlaps.
Turning ‘Buckets of Rain‘ and ‘You’re Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go‘ into a country-jazz is a nice touch and fears for ‘Wedding Song‘ are unfounded as it works a treat.
Would have attained an A rating had she chosen say ‘Shooting Star‘ ahead of ‘Make You Feel My Love,’ the Dylan song every X-Factor hopeful now has to know. (B+)
ROCK ‘n’ ROLL DOCTOR – A Tribute to Lowell George (1997): Anyone who embraced the panache and pizzazz of Little Feat will find enough eclecticism on this Lowell George homage to recognise justice has been done.
Bonnie Raitt kicks things off by leading the Feat through a searing ‘Cold Cold Cold,’ JD Souther sings his heart out on ‘Roll Um Easy‘ and Jackson Browne (‘I’ve Been The One‘) could not be more tender. Chris Hillman and Jennifer Warnes bring a new dimension to ‘Straight From The Heart‘ – and it just seems such a shame Lowell is not around to hear the great music being made in his honour, particularly the touching take of ‘Trouble‘ by daughter Inara.
Five when her father died in 1979, hard to believe she will be fifty in four years. (A-)
LOOKING INTO YOU – A Tribute to Jackson Browne (2014): While it would be hard to desecrate songs by the most accomplished lyricist of the past forty-odd years, by the same token it is hard to enhance them. The Indigo Girls offer a pleasant, if almost note for note, ‘Fountain of Sorrow,’ while the Bonnie Raitt/David Lindley combo build ‘Everywhere I Go‘ from the same reggae-infused base as the original.
Bruce Springsteen and wife Patti Scialfa throw an agreeable curve ball in ‘Linda Paloma‘ but the vocal honours go to Don Henley for his heartfelt, world-weary reading of ‘These Days‘ – surely the most affecting song ever written by a sixteen year-old. (B+)
NILSSON SINGS NEWMAN – Harry Nilsson (1970): An across the board odd-ball, Harry Nilsson was acclaimed by the singer-songwriter fraternity (Newman, Taylor, Stills), who he predated by a couple of years, yet enjoyed his biggest successes with material by other writers.
At a time when doing an entire album of songs by another writer, in this case Randy Newman (think the Stones doing an album of Who songs in 1970) was eccentric to say the least, through sheer audacity Nilsson pulls it off.
He and Newman (piano) are the only musicians credited on a record that is engaging if not worthy of the ‘album of the year’ accolades it received in some quarters (with ‘Moondance‘ and ‘Plastic Ono Band‘ around?). Quirky and likable nevertheless. (B+)
FAMOUS BLUE RAINCOAT: The Songs of Leonard Cohen – Jennifer Warnes (1987):
On release there was a keen sense this was something special, the ensuing thirty three years doing nothing to dim its vaunted and (richly) deserved reputation.
The production mores of the time might not endear it to present day listeners, but right from the opening ‘First We Take Manhattan‘ through ‘Joan of Arc‘ and ‘Song of Bernadette‘ it is clear Warnes is attuned to Cohen in the way Sinatra was to Cole Porter.
An essential album, not just of its kind, but the 80s as a whole. (A)
TOWER OF SONG – The Songs of Leonard Cohen (1995): Aware of this set through a suitably cantankerous reading of ‘Everybody Knows‘ by Don Henley, this is a case of seen the trailer, don’t need to see the film.
Not a great deal to enthuse over – Michael Buble bringing far more nuance to ‘I’m Your Man‘ a few years later than Elton John does here, although Willie Nelson (‘Bird on a Wire‘) and Aaron Neville (‘Ain’t No Cure for Love‘) manage to emerge with credit.
Jennifer Warnes, who had the last word in covering Cohen on ‘Famous Blue Raincoat,’ wisely steered clear. (B-)
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NEIL SAMBROOK is also the author of ‘MONTY’S DOUBLE‘ – an acclaimed thriller now available in paperback and as an Amazon Kindle book.