If you want a measure of how old your body is feeling, do what I did tonight. I told the hay baler to get his SMALL square baler out of the barn. I had a couple of small acreage plots that had a nice cover crop mix on it–German millet, BMR hay grazer, mung beans, red ripper cow peas and some crab grass. I did tell him when that bale counter got to 200 to shut that SOB off! Thank GOD!
There was a bit of rain in the forecast but it wasn’t looking strong. I decided that I didn’t want to gamble with it. I got home from school, hooked onto the trailer and slowly started loading. Duke showed up just in time. A couple of hours later, 183 bales were in the barn. And these bales weren’t light. Duke is in shape and his donkey is dragging as well. The Dragon Lady was driving and she did manage to throw me off the trailer. It didn’t kill me, yet. I think that she missed her chance. I left 17 bales hoping for a chance of those things getting wet tonight. I probably screwed up.
Speaking of old, I got hit about the greatest “cover” songs of all time. I’m dragging ass tonight but this topic intrigues me. I’m just going to rattle off some of the songs that I listen to and know that they were first done by other artists. Even though they may be “cover” songs, some of these versions rank in the very best songs of all time. I mean all time, all genres.
Some cover songs, led me to love the original artists. Metallica’s version of “Turn the Page” intrigued me. But, once I realized that was a cover and the original artist was Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band, I really delved into Seger’s music. I still like their sound.
I could also make a list of songs that should never have been covered. Sheryl Crow singing “Sweet Child o’ Mine” quickly comes to mind.
Sometimes, I feel like the Sports Animal or some other call in sports channel, where some of the callers are regulars. Text, call, email–It’s all fun. At times, I get to teach on here, while others I answer questions, sometimes I just tell stories, others I start arguments and other times, I just might piss somebody off. But, I try to respond to those of you that take the time to read this. Yes, low rent Kansas goat swapper or Indiana old dude or Georgia flash or Arkansas bored at lunch watching goat show videos from 2011 or flooded in NE OK or I don’t normally read this page from TX or I have a new buck in CA or I only read this after the 3rd person calls me asking about what your dumb ass wrote. Whomever, wherever, it’s all good. Let us discuss some cover songs.
Louie, Louie–Yes, that song. A classic that everyone should recognize. Made famous by The Kingsmen but first performed by Rockin Robin Roberts & the Wailers. I remember a rap version of this in the 80s. If I ever start a band, I will sing this song. Properly–“A Louie, Louie, aaahhh, Louie, aarrgafghahrhafhherhh”
Red, Red Wine–A high school staple of mine that still puts me in a good humor. Something about a monkey getting choked? It was probably the biggest hit for the band UB40. But it was first done by Neil Diamond. I would have liked to seen that dude perform live back in the day.
Sound of Silence–The one on the list that does NOT fit. Simon & Garfunkel made this song a timeless hit. But the rock band Disturbed made an outstanding version. I mean, I almost like it better than the original. It shouldn’t have worked but it is impressive.
Whiskey in the Jar–One of my favorite Metallica songs. It wasn’t originally theirs but they made it their own. Originally released by some band called The Dubliners. Then by Thin Lizzy. But once Metallica got a hold of it, added a guitar, ooohhh yeah. “As I was goin’ over the Cork and Kerry Mountains…..” I like this one a lot. One of the most played on my iTunes list.
Girls just wanna have fun–Who sang it? Yes, that pink haired chick named Cyndi Lauper. Everybody from the early 80s remembers this song. It was huge. And her version is the best. But she wasn’t the first. Some dude named Robert Hazard did it first.
Hurt–Oooh!!! I will not argue with anybody that says that this is the best cover song of all time. I still remember an early morning in 2003, I was watching VH1 when they actually still played music videos. I was getting ready to walk out the door, but before I shut off the tv, as I always did, I waited to see if the next video was a good one. OOHH snap! I watched it, stood there and then went to the back to tell Tammy that I just watched the most powerful video that I had (or still) have ever seen. The video of this song is POWERFUL! Cash was old. The original version was done by NineInchNails, a progressive rock band. These two genres normally don’t mesh. But the Cash version is wicked awesome and kids today know it. This one was and is big.
I Will Always Love You–numerous singers have covered this song. But the original was bad ass. Dolly Parton wrote & sang the original. She had a number one hit with it. BUT, then Whitney Houston got a hold of it and forever more made it the version that still sends chills shooting through your soul. That movie was good but that song, done by Whitney, was wicked donkey kickin’! On a side note, her version of the “STAR SPANGLED BANNER” is technically a cover song, as she was not the first to do it. OOOOHHH MMMYY!!! She did own that version at the ’91 super bowl. Let’s get real. This chick could have stood there and sang lyrics like “my dog is a crayon eating retard that licks his own rainbow colored butt” and it would have been good. No matter, she owned those two songs as timeless classics. Like, put those versions in the Smithsonian classic.
You ready for the next one. Yes, this one is a cover song. You better respect my knowledge of worthless info like this. I mean you better RESPECT. Yes, that one. R-E-S-P-E-C-T. You know that legendary song by the legendary Aretha Franklin. We all know it. And you just spelled it out. She wasn’t the first one to sing this song. What? Hunh? Another legendary singer named Otis Redding has that credit. Much like Dolly, he wrote it and then sang it first but another powerhouse singer grabbed a hold of this tune and made it her own. She had a LOT of hits, but this one defined her.
Walk this way–another great 80s cover song that was a hit for legendary performers. Aerosmith did well with it and still performs “Walk This Way”. I still make stupid, old guy jokes and say “Let’s make like Aerosmith and walk this way.” Back in the 80s, a rap group by the name of Run DMC collaborated with Aerosmith and made a video combining both groups version of this song. It helped re-ignite Aerosmith and it helped make rap popular to the main stream. I like both versions. As I am a child of that age, I loved the video.
I Love Rock N Roll–I’ll bet more than a dime that you didn’t know that this one was a cover. Joan Jett & the Blackhearts made this tune iconic. But some band called The Arrows did it first. However, put another dime in the jukebox, baby will always belong to Joan Jett.
I will name this song as the #1 cover song of all time. Numerous artists from different genres have done well with this song. Some will say that Dwight Yoakam did it best. Others will point to the duet of Waylon Jennings and Jessi Colter. However, I distinctly remember the version from the Fine Young Cannibals. Numerous people have had hits with this song. They don’t even really have to change much–it can be pop, rock, country, blues and almost gospel. Kind of like the original performer–THE king–Elvis Presley. “Suspicious Minds” was a huge hit for Elvis and several other artists. This song holds records for weeks on charts, numerous charts. For some reason, this song works for a wide range of artists. I remember the FYC having a hit with it and thinking that sounds like a Waylon song. Then I heard Elvis’ original version. No matter what, we’re caught in a trap if we try to argue these top cover songs.
As I stated earlier, this is just off the top of my head. I’m sure that if Molly Hatchet, Lynyrd Skynyrd or .38 Special had a great cover song, then Joey Scott will let me know. Hit me up with great cover songs that I missed. I do like to read that kind of stuff.
We started with cover crops then cover songs and now maybe, it is that time of year to get some does covered. I digress.
People, it is a productive Friday night and I’m going to be sore as hell on Saturday. Have a great day today and a better tomorrow.
