And I should add that the piquant lead vocal is by friend of PowerPop Jai Guru Dave. Take a bow, Dave.
Rush, BTW, was one of my favorite of that generation of folkies, and we should note that he was also pretty much the first of them to go, as they used to quaintly say, electric (on the wonderful 1966 album Take a Little Walk with Me, where he covered the likes of Buddy Holly and Bo Diddley(!), with the help of notable musicians including Al Kooper. It's still in print, and you should hie thee over to Amazon and snag a copy HERE immediately.
But now to business. To wit:
...and your favorite (or least favorite) traditional or contemporary folk song as re-interpreted by a rock solo artist or group is...?
Discuss.
Meanwhile -- have a great weekend, everybody!!!
[h/t Steve Schwartz]
i heard tom rush sing this at an outdoor venue in the early to mid 70s in the boston/cambridge area - as i recall it was him on acoustic and someone else on electric - someone in the audience sobbed all through this song
ReplyDeleteas for folk song cover favorites - and these preferences go back to my teens/early 20s
lovin' spoonful - sportin' life
traffic - john barleycorn
byrds - turn turn turn
Bryan Ferry: "Carrickfergus" an old Irish folk song. Beautiful.
ReplyDeleteAnais Mitchell did a whole album of Child Ballads, which is gorgeous. Does she count as a rock artist?
The Move - The Last Thing On My Mind
ReplyDeletePorter & Dolly do a fine version, too:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KhgPo62eLyQ
Have been listening to some Fairport Convention recently and Matty Groves and their rendition of Matty Groves really hit home with all the murdering and whatnot.
ReplyDeleteBill
Matty Groves was gonna be my pick, too.
ReplyDelete'Knoxville Girl' is usually given the somber treatment, but the Lemonheads amped it up nicely.
ReplyDelete'Whiskey in the Jar' is an interesting case, as done by Thin Lizzy and Metallica...
Phil Lynott's vocal is just right, but James Hatfield's somehow just isn't.
My late mother-in-law Cynthia Gooding did a great version of Matty Groves. And, yes, Traffic's arrangement of John Barleycorn has lasted in my book for decades. While I'm reminiscing here I'll say that I saw Tom Rush in 1967, where he did songs by a then-unknown Joni Mitchell, definitively. Also, I opened for him in Atlanta mid-'70s and saw him handle (which is to say turn down) a frankly horny fan-girl with the most class and sympathy imaginable.
ReplyDeleteBut to your subject: I nominate "O! Susanna" by Neil Young and Crazy Horse. I also love his arrangement of Don Gibson's "O Lonesome Me," which may or may not be a "folk song."
Does "Sloop John B" count?
ReplyDeleteRoger — yes.😎
ReplyDeleteLove Son House’s Death Letter Blues as interpreted by the White Stripes on their second album.
ReplyDeleteI saw Pete Townshend in a solo acoustic set just after John Lee Hooker died, and Pete did a version of St. James Infirmary Blues in tribute.
(I’m counting both of those because they came out of the American folk tradition into the blues tradition.)
And yes, Traffic’s take on John Barleycorn, and the Fairport Convention take on Matty Groves are both fabulous.
Johnny Cash - Frankie & Johnny
ReplyDeletehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3CvNieSsdQU
Dark Eyed Sailor by Steeleye Span would top my list. rs
ReplyDelete"How Can a Poor Man Stand Such Times and Live," the Del-Lords version.
ReplyDeleteHouse of the Rising Sun as done by the Animals is a contender.
ReplyDeleteSteve, noticeable lack of upvotes for your Mary Travers comment. Kids today! YOUNG MT was incredibly hot.
ReplyDelete