I see that most of my evening groove posts up to this point have been jazz. I love jazz, but let's fix that. Tonight I'm in the mood for this classic from Joe Cocker, which may be the single best cover of all time, completely blowing away the original in every way (sorry Ringo). With a Little Help From My Friends.
The filming is a little chaotic, but that's ok because we are here for the singing, not the video. And the singing is amazing. I suggest you sit back, close your eyes, turn up the volume, and enjoy.
Bonus
If you somehow have managed to go through life without hearing it, here is the original for comparison. It's a fun song, and Ringo sings it well—and it's fun to watch how much he appears to be enjoying himself in this video below—but it doesn't even compare to Joe's cover.
Joe Cocker had some pretty distinctive movements, eh? They didn't escape notice of SNL, and John Belushi nailed them in his perfect imitation.
One more. The mix is a little off here, making the background singers too loud... but we can't expect too much from YouTube.
Enjoy!
title graphic made from this image which has been graciously released into the public domain
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