Well, it's Friday, and you know what that means.
Yes, my Oriental houseboy Kato and I, inspired by the late Jacques Cousteau and the crew of the Calypso, are off to explore the colorful waterfront bars and nightclubs of Marseilles (we call it our "Allo, Sailor!" tour, for obvious reasons).
So posting by moi will necessarily be sporadic for a couple of days.
But in my absence, here's a fun project for you.
Best Whiteboy Covers of a Motown Song!!!!!
[utterly arbitrary rule: Nobody is allowed to nominate Soft Cell's Tainted Love, which sucks beyond measure. If anybody does nominate it, I swear to god I'm gonna take a hostage.]
Okay, here's my totally top of my head Top Ten.
1. First I Look at the Purse -- J.Geils Band
2. Where Did Our Love Go (studio version) -- J.Geils Band
3. Come See About Me -- Afghan Whigs
4. Money -- The Beatles
5. You Really Got a Hold on Me -- The Beatles
6. I 'm Losing You -- The Faces
7. Baby Don't You Do It -- The Who
8. Every Little Bit Hurts -- Small Faces
9. Do You Love Me -- Dave Clark Five
10. I Was Made to Love Her -- Beach Boys
Join in, won't you?
Ball n Chain by Janis Joplin
ReplyDeleteDang - was all ready with Vanilla Fudge and People Get Ready, but alas it wasn't Motown!
ReplyDeleteThees ees how joo know that white pipples suck, they weel no tell "The Afghan Whigs" to, for the sake of fuck, STOP ALREADY.
ReplyDeleteand screw jour infinitives, they already split.
so.
steve - there's this guy, you may have heard of him, Bruce something or other - does passable versions of "Do You Love Me" and "Devil with the Blue Dress."
ReplyDeleteNo Michael Bolton?
ReplyDeleteOk, how about John Bolton?
Cosmic Tumbler:
ReplyDeleteBall and Chain is not, alas, a Motown song.
Old blues -- forget who by, but not Motown.
All I'm blanking out so I'll just saying CCR on "I Heard it Through the Grapevine," because I like CCR.
ReplyDeleteJeffCO, you thinking of the Fudge doing You Keep Me Hanging On?
ReplyDeleteMy submissions:
From Head To Toe - Elvis Costello & The Attractions
Come See About Me - Jane Aire & The Belvederes
Baby Don't You Do It - The Band
Please Mr. Postman - The Beatles (and whoever that band of modern rock all-stars was that did it for the soundtrack to Backbeat)
Leaving Here - The Who
You Can't Hurry Love - D.L. Byron
And just for the sake of variety:
Baby Love - Tim Curry
He Was Really Sayin' Somethin' - Bananarama
"Baby, Don't Do It" - The Band
ReplyDelete"Heatwave" - The Jam
"(Just My Imagination) Runnin' Away With Me" - Stones
(And it always SLAYS me to hear Los Lobos cover "What's Going On' live.)
- Bill Buckner
I can't believe I forgot the Stones "Just My Imagination."
ReplyDeleteWhich replaces the urbane martini'd regret of the Temps version with desperate longing...gives me goosebumps just thinking about it.
Darn, I was going to nominate the Stones "Just My Imagination." Their best cover ever but another good one, not sure if it's Motown is "Going to a Go-go".
ReplyDeleteRare Earth, a Motown act composed of some pretty homely white boys, turned out a solid effort with the Tempts' "(I Know) I'm Losing You."
ReplyDeleteThey were a terrific live act then, too.
There's practically all of Laura Nyro's "Gonna Take A Miracle" album: Jimmy Mack, Nowhere to Run, Dancing in the Street,etc.
ReplyDeleteOf course she's not a white boy.
Now that the blog Nazi won't let me use Soft Cell, I will have to go with the Action's ripping version of the Marvellettes' "I'll Keep Holding On."
ReplyDeleteI don't think Gloria Jones' Tainted Love was on the Motown label anyway ... hell, I don't know if "Motown" is referring to the label or just Detroit.
ReplyDeleteSince I'm confused, I'll throw in a group that aren't all whiteboys:
Tears of a Clown: The (English) Beat
I suppose Pat Boone singing "TUTTI FRUTTI" doesn't
ReplyDeletequalify?
vanilla fudges You Keep Me Hangin' On was Motown as far as I know
ReplyDeleteThen there's Rare Earth who did vanilla homogenized versions of about three Motown standards
"I Want You Back" - Graham Parker and the Rumour
ReplyDeleteAin't to Proud to Beg - Rolling Stones
ReplyDeleteDancing in the Streets - Mamas and the Papas
Heard it Through the Grapevine - CCR
I'm Losing You - Rod Stewart
War - Bruce Springsteen
Heat Wave - The Who
ReplyDeleteDancing in the Streets - Grateful Dead (5/8/77, Barton Hall)
Ball n Chain by Janis Joplin
ReplyDelete1.Janis Joplin was by no stretch of the imagination a white boy. Double for Los Lobos.
2. So what's Johnny Rivers? Chopped liver? "Tracks of My Tears" "Baby I Need Your Lovin"
3. el gato negro for President
dave™© said...
ReplyDelete"I Want You Back" - Graham Parker and the Rumour
How the fuck did I forget that one?
Damn....
Dancing in the Streets - Van Halen
ReplyDeleteI'll Be There - Shooting Star
To be honest, I can't stand Motown. I don't know if it's the music, harmonies or production values, but it just makes me feel oogy. Seriously oogy...
I appreciate its place in the history of modern music but... blech!