Covers

Today was the day for uploading some new tunes into the pod. An album which had been on my radar for quite awhile was the Byrds 'Sweetheart of the Rodeo'...a 1968 vinyl which didn't sit well with Nashville or the rock world when it arrived on the scene. And since I was going to be mining for some new musical notes relatively close to the genre, why not load up on those two good ol' boys, Bob Wills and Hank Williams too. But, what triggered all of this, sometimes it's a relatively small yearning, what I really coveted more than anything was the cover of Bob Dylan's song, 'You ain't going Nowhere,' the lead track on the 'Sweetheart' album. Then I got to thinking. Hmm. What makes a good cover great? Is it the singer(s) or the song?

Which dispatched me to a song perched close to the summit of my top ten list of covers: 'I only have eyes for you.' Composed in 1934 by Harry Warren and Al Dublin and floated off the silver screen by Dick Powell and Ruby Keeler, the song became an instant hit. Throughout the decades 'I only have eyes for you,' has been covered by Frank, Ella, Billie, The Temptations, Bette, Carly, and geezuz, even Doris Day. But the definitive cover is The Flamencos rendition which echoed hauntingly throughout the great 1973 film, American Graffiti. To this day, I can close my eyes and see the line of cruising cars along the boulevard and hear those beautiful melodic notes conveyed by the Flamencos. Sitting comfortably on a pedestal right next to the Flamencos is Art Garfunkel's 1975 cover which the Brits adored, showing Art the love, by making it #1 on their billboard charts. A smidge lower, but definitely hanging with the big boys is Peggy Lee's cover, a fabulous video catching a youthful Lee in a simple but lavish rendition of this quintessential song. Slow weekend? Killing time before lunch or dinner? You tube any one of these covers. And tuck into the passion.