Interesting Song Cover Versions
Some random cover versions that have popped up on my musical radar over the years.
Money (That’s What I Want)
This is the ‘original’ version I grew up with from The Beatles. From 1963. Yes, I’m aware they didn’t write it, so this is in fact a cover. But it is by far the most well known version.
In 1979, John Lennon – who did the searing lead vocal on the above – was still with us. AFAIK his reaction to this cover-of-their-cover , went unrecorded 🙂 This is ‘experimental band’ The Flying Lizards [what’s with the floating at about the 1:14 mark ? Strange…but yet it fits in; that bit reminds me of a Twin Peaks sequence]:
Summertime
So, I’m a huge fan of George Gershwin’s music and also Peter Gabriel ; but never thinking the two would come together. And yet, they did. And boy was I happy.
There are many versions of the original song, from Gershwin’s 1935 opera Porgy and Bess. For my ‘original’ I’ve picked what I believe is one with Billie Holiday on lead vocals:
And from 1994’s Glory of Gershwin tribute album, here’s Peter Gabriel. The album is fantastic; it was also paying tribute to Larry Adler, the superb harmonica player, who had turned 80 and was on the album..as you can hear:
Alison
Probably the first allegedly controversial one in this list. So it goes like this. In 1977 Elvis Costello released his achingly bitter-sweet masterpiece Alison.
The following year Linda Ronstadt released her cover version of it:
The controversy is the conflicting stories that Elvis liked or disliked her version. I initially heard the dislike story, back in the 80s. But then since then people have said he liked it. I’m not fussed either way.
It has caused a (still open?) discussion: if you pay the royalties/usage-rights can you cover a song, even if the original artist doesn’t want you to?
All By Myself
We’ll do this one backwards, with the original second. Plus it’s only sort of a cover, as you’ll see.
In 1975 Eric Carmen had a big hit with All By Myself. He had been playing music since he was a child and was very aware of classical music. As for this song, the “verse is based on the second movement (Adagio sostenuto) of Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Opus 18″ (source: Wikipedia)
The Wikipedia article goes on “Rachmaninoff’s music was in the public domain in the United States at that time and so Carmen thought no copyright existed on it, but it was still protected outside the U.S. Subsequent to the release of the album, he was contacted by the Rachmaninoff estate and informed that it was protected. An agreement was reached in which the estate would receive 12 percent of the royalties from “All by Myself” as well as from “Never Gonna Fall in Love Again”, which was based on the third movement from Rachmaninoff’s Symphony No. 2.”
Jump to about 12:20 in this clip:
