Classic rock, pop, and soul songs from the '60s, '70s, and '80s
Classic rock, pop, and soul songs from the '60s, '70s, and '80s
I love picking out little-known tracks from the 1960s and 1970s and giving them a little wider exposure. That leads us to your totally forgotten classic soul song of the day, “I Wouldn’t Change a Thing About You” by Johnny Wyatt. Released in August of 1963 on Challenge Records, this track was the B-side of a single; a tune called…
Today’s classic song of the day takes us “Twenty Four Hours from Tulsa,” courtesy of Gene Pitney. This song was released in October of 1963 and peaked at #17 on the Billboard Hot 100. “Twenty Four Hours from Tulsa” was written by the legendary team of Burt Bacharach (music) and Hal David (words). It was the seventh top twenty hit…
Our final classic song song of the day this week where the cover proved more popular than the original is “Mr. Tambourine Man.” Believe it or not, the Byrds’ cover ranked considerably higher than any of Bob Dylan’s versions of his own song. “Mr. Tambourine Man” was, of course, written by Bob Dylan. Many assumed the song was about drugs…
Today’s classic song where the cover was a bigger hit than the original of the day is “You’re No Good.” This tune was a moderate hit for Betty Everett in the U.S. in 1963, a slightly bigger hit for the Swinging Blue Jeans the next year in England, and a much bigger hit for Linda Ronstadt worldwide a decade later.…
Today’s classic song where the cover was much bigger than the original is “Me and Bobby McGee.” The song was written and recorded by Kris Kristofferson, was a country hit for Roger Miller, was a Canadian hit for Gordon Lightfoot, but became a mainstream monster chart topper for Janis Joplin. As noted, Kris Kristofferson wrote “Me and Bobby McGee, although…
Today’s classic song where the cover performed better than the original of the day is “Superstar.” It was first recorded by Delaney and Bonnie (didn’t go anywhere), then Rita Coolidge (as part of Joe Cocker’s Mad Dogs & Englishmen tour), then Bette Midler (which got more attention), then the Carpenters (a big hit). “Superstar” tells the story of a groupie…
Today’s classic song that was a bigger hit as a cover version of the day is “Twist and Shout.” It was originally released by and a decent hit for the Isley Brothers, but became a monster smash when covered by the Beatles. “Twist and Shout” was written by long-time songsmiths Phil Medley and Bert Berns. They were collectively or individually…
Today’s classic song that became an even bigger cover is “Respect.” This tune was an initial hit for Memphis soul legend Otis Redding and an even bigger hit for the Queen of Soul herself, Aretha Franklin. Who wrote “Respect” is open for debate. While the song is credited to Otis Redding, he doesn’t appear to be the original creator. The…
This week we’re looking at songs that were popular enough in their first go round but really blew up when covered by other artists. With that in mind, today’s classic song and cover of the day is “I Heard It Through the Grapevine,” a hit originally for Gladys Knight & the Pips and later for Marvin Gaye. “I Heard It…
Celebrating one full year of classic songs on this blog, today’s classic song of the day is “What the World Needs Now is Love” by Jackie DeShannon. Released in April of 1965, this song went to #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 and remains a favorite to this day. I started the Classic Song of the Day blog on February…