For this installment of The Original Vs. The Cover, we are discussing the classic Aretha Franklin song “Respect” which is actually a cover of the song originally written and performed by Otis Redding just two years earlier. The Otis Redding song was written for Speedo Sims and his band the Singing Demons, but they were unable to find the sound they liked and so Otis decided to sing the song.
The song came out in 1965 and went to the Top 5 on the Black Charts, but actually crossed-over to the pop charts where it reached #35. It was one of a couple songs that crossed-over for Otis. The Redding version is about a man’s plea to his woman to show him some respect for bringing home the bacon. He could care less if she does him wrong, but just wants his due from her.
OTIS REDDING
In looking through his roster of musicians, he had a couple that stood out for me. There were two keyboard players on the song, one goes by the name Booker T. Jones and the other is Isaac Hayes. The rest of the band were all Booker T. & the MG’s band members except for the horn section, they were not part of Booker’s band.
Every year I do a post memorializing musicians that we lost in that year. The list is really long and I guess each year it will get longer as all the bands I grew up with are getting older and it is bound to happen. Though we have lost them, they live on in our hearts and in their music they left behind. I guess we might as well get started. Do realize this list isn’t every musician that passed away, it is really those that I have listened to over the years or were legends and icons in music. So if I leave someone off, it is nothing personal but please add their name in the comments.
JANUARY 2018
January 10th: “Fast” Eddie Clark of Motorhead and Fastway. He was the last surviving member of the original and classic line-up of Motorhead. He was in the band from 1976 up until 1982 and was on the classic song and album that everyone knows, “Ace of Spades”. Clark was also a founding member of the 80’s band Fastway (“Fast” Eddie Clark wasn’t a giveaway).
January 15th: Dolores O’Riordan of the Cranberries. A common theme lately is that artist seem to be committing suicide at an alarming rate. The year kicked off with the loss of these heavenly voice. The Cranberries were huge in the 90’s with such great songs as “Zombies” and “Linger” to just name a few. She will be missed.
January 16th: Dave Holland, drummer for the band Judas Priest during some of the biggest years of the band, The 1980’s.
January 24th: Mark E. Smith, founder and lead singer of The Fall. The band released over 32 albums from 1972 to 2017. Quite an accomplishment.
FEBRUARY 2018
February 1st: Dennis Edwards, singer for The Contours and The Tempations. He died at 74 of meningitis.
February 7th: Pat Torpey, drummer for the band Mr. Big. Pat’s drumming was sensational and a much respected drummer by musicians and non-musicians. He was 64 and died from Parkinson’s Disease.
MARCH 2018
March 9th: Gary Burden – album cover artist. I normally do only musicians, but the album cover is just as important as the album itself (at least it used to be). Gary was a pioneer in the the whole idea of cover art. He worked mostly with Neil Young, but wored with The Doors, The Eagles, Joni Mitchell and many, many more.
March 14th: Alfred Lynn, singer for Wu-Tang Clan. Alfred died of a heart attack at the age of 62.
March 20th: Peter Cowling, bassist for the Pat Travers Band. He was 72 years old.
APRIL 2018
April 18th: Dale Winton – Dale was an English Radio DJ and very famous over in the UK. He even had a cameo in the movie Trainspotting.
April 20th: Avicii – This Swedish musician and DJ was only 28 years old. The details of his death were never released (that I can see), but it appears it was related to years of alcohol abuse.
April 26th: Charles Neville – saxophonist for the Neville Brothers. He was 79 and died of pancreatic cancer.
MAY 2018
May 1st: John “Jabo” Starks – drummer for James Brown. He was 79 years old.
May 4th: Steve Coy – drummer for the 80’s band Dead Or Alive who had the big hit “You Spin Me Round”
May 10th: Scott Hutchison – guitarist, singer and songwriter for the Alternative rock band Frightened Rabbit. I came across them on a post I did about them years ago. Damn fine singer and artist.
JUNE 2018
June 8th: Danny Kirwan – Danny was a former guitarist for the band Fleetwood Mac. He was with the band at it’s infancy from 1968-1972. Danny was 68 at the time of his passing.
June 18: XXXTentacion – XXXTentacion was a rapper and was murdered at only 20 years of age.
June 22: Vinnie Paul of Pantera – Vinnie was the drummer for the famed Thrash metal band Pantera. He was only 54 years old and is now with his brother Dimebag who was killed during a concert in 2004.
June 27th: Joe Jackson – the mastermind behind the Jackson 5 and father of Michael Jackson and all the other Jackson clan. His abrasive style has not looked fondly for him, but he did make those kids successful.
July 2018
July 3rd: Richard Swift – Richard was a singer & songwriter for the band The Shins and The Black Keys.
AUGUST 2018
August 14th: Randy Rampage – Randy was the singer and bassist for Canadian thrash metal band D.O.A. He died at 58 of a heart attack.
August 14th: Jill Janus – Jill was the singer for the rock band Huntress. She died of an apparent suicide at the age of 42 years old.
August 16th: Aretha Franklin – Aretha was a living legend and one of the greatest singers we have ever had. Her song “Respect” by Otis Redding is one of the most famous songs probably ever. There was no one that her vocal power and she was adored by so many. Definitely a legend and a icon has been lost.
August 22nd: Ed King – Ed was a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame guitarist for the band Lynrd Skynrd and Strawberry Alarm Clock. He is most famous for co-writing the song “Sweet Home Alabama” Funny thing, he was from California.
August 25th: Kyle Pavone – Kyle was the lead singer for the band We Came as Romans. He was only 28.
SEPTEMBER 2018
September 7th: Mac Miller: Mac Miller was a Rapper, singer and producer. Sadly at he age of 26 died of a drug overdose. For me, most notable for his collaborations with Ariana Grande who my kids are a fan.
September 27th: Marty Balin – Marty was the singer and musician for the Hall of Fame band Jefferson Airplane. He was 76 years old.
OCTOBER 2018
October 29th: Jimmy Farrar – Singer for Molly Hatchet and Gator Country died of a heart attack at the age of 67. I loved me some Molly Hatchet. He was singer from 1980-1982 and appeared on two of their albums.
October 30th: Hardy Fox – musician with the avant-garde musical group The Residents. Famous for their weird eyeball-band.
NOVEMBER 2018
November 3rd: Glenn Schwartz – a member of the James Gang died at 77. I just picked up a live James Gang album that I will play in his honer.
November 4th: Josh Fauver – Bassist for the band Deerhunter. Josh was only 39 years old. Way too young.
November 15th: Roy Clark – Roy was 85 when he died of pneumonia. I remember Roy from Hee-Haw and was actually one of the first guitarist I remember paying attention to. I was forced to watch Hee-Haw and it was funny at times, but Roy Clark’s guitar and banjo playing was sensational. He was one of the few Country musicians that I ever noticed that could serious play…I mean freaking awesome. He will be missed.
DECEMBER 2018
December 6th: Pete Shelley – Pete was a member and co-founder of the band the Buzzcocks. He died from a heart attack at only 63. The Buzzcocks were a British punk rock band that have influenced so many others. Some songs include “I Don’t Mind”, “Fast Cars”, “Ever Fallen in Love (with Someone You Shouldn’t’ve) and “Orgasm Addict”.
December 13th: Nancy Wilson – The Grammy winning Jazz Singer was 81 years young. She won 3 Grammies in her life including for Best R&B recording in 1965 for “How Glad I Am”.
To all the musician we have lost in 2018, may you rest in peace knowing the legacy you have left behind. Thanks for the music!!
Have a seat and prepare to stay awhile. There are a ton of releases this week and the most we have had on the list in quite awhile. A lot of these are throwback artist that have been around a very long time and it is awesome to get some new releases from them even if there are some greatest hit type packages. My favorites are highlighted in Blue. Let me know what you are interested in or if I missed anything. Thanks and have a great weekend!!
Tom Petty – An American Treasure – (Reprise Records)– From the press release…The 60-track set unveils dozens of previously unreleased recordings, alternate versions of classic songs, rarities, historic live performances and deep tracks that spotlight Tom’s remarkable depth and evolution as a revered and tremendously influential songwriter, recording artist and performer. An American Treasure marks the first release of Tom Petty music since the artist’s tragic passing in October 2017. I don’t think I can add to that.
Billy Idol – Vital Idol: Revitalized – (Capitol Records): I love Billy Idol and not sure I need another Vital Idol, but if it is as creative and good as the first, than this will be a nice addition. Plus it has a remix of “Save Me Now” which is one of my favorite Idol songs. I will get this one. I didn’t see a video, so here is Save Me Now (Original).
Welcome to another Friday New Releases and this week is a biggie. Why? Because Taylor is finally releasing her long awaited new album. I put it at the top because it will be the most played album in our house (I have two girls that love her). But don’t fret! There is plenty of other releases for everyone. I have a ton of rock records that I can’t wait to spin and they are highlighted in Blue. I hope there is something for you. Enjoy!
Taylor Swift – Reputation – (Big Machine): Get ready because the old Taylor is DEAD!! This is a new Taylor Swift and from what I have heard so far, I would agree. Taylor is reinventing herself now with each new release and I don’t see it as a bad thing. At least for me, the new songs are more interesting than the prior songs. I actually might like this new direction. We will see as I will definitely hear it enough to become familiar with it.
Sweet & Lynch – Unified – (Frontiers Records): Now here is where I will begin. Michael Sweet & George Lynch were brought together by Frontiers Records as one of their special projects and usually they end up as a one time deal, thankfully, this one is not. We are now given a second release and they are touring. Maybe this will last a little while. I always need more rock & roll.
January 15th: Dolores O’Riordan of the Cranberries. A common theme lately is that artist seem to be committing suicide at an alarming rate. The year kicked off with the loss of these heavenly voice. The Cranberries were huge in the 90’s with such great songs as “Zombies” and “Linger” to just name a few. She will be missed.
February 7th: Pat Torpey, drummer for the band Mr. Big. Pat’s drumming was sensational and a much respected drummer by musicians and non-musicians. He was 64 and died from Parkinson’s Disease.
June 22: Vinnie Paul of Pantera – Vinnie was the drummer for the famed Thrash metal band Pantera. He was only 54 years old and is now with his brother Dimebag who was killed during a concert in 2004.
August 16th: Aretha Franklin – Aretha was a living legend and one of the greatest singers we have ever had. Her song “Respect” by Otis Redding is one of the most famous songs probably ever. There was no one that her vocal power and she was adored by so many. Definitely a legend and a icon has been lost.
October 30th: Hardy Fox – musician with the avant-garde musical group The Residents. Famous for their weird eyeball-band.
November 15th: Roy Clark – Roy was 85 when he died of pneumonia. I remember Roy from Hee-Haw and was actually one of the first guitarist I remember paying attention to. I was forced to watch Hee-Haw and it was funny at times, but Roy Clark’s guitar and banjo playing was sensational. He was one of the few Country musicians that I ever noticed that could serious play…I mean freaking awesome. He will be missed.
December 13th: Nancy Wilson – The Grammy winning Jazz Singer was 81 years young. She won 3 Grammies in her life including for Best R&B recording in 1965 for “How Glad I Am”.
2 Loud 2 Old Music 