Beech Tree News Network

Today, I present the second installment of my covers column.  Being an avid music lover, I really enjoy hearing the stories behind the songs and who sang them first, second, etc.  I’ll begin with the song “Hush”.  The song was written by American composer and musician Joe South for Billy Joe Royal.  Royal took the song to #52 on Billboard 100 the week of October 28-November 11 in 1967 and #45 in Canada.  Deep Purple and Kula Shaker have also had hits with covers of the songs.  Deep Purple’s cover was in 1968, just one year after Royal’s original. 

 “Venus” is a song written by Dutch musician Robbie van Leeuwen.  In 1970, Dutch rock band Shocking Blue took the song to #1 in nine countries.  In 1981, it was sampled as part of the Stars on 45 medley.  In 1986, British female pop group Bananarama returned the song to #1 in seven countries.  The composition has been featured in numerous films, television shows and commercials, and covered dozens of times by artists all over the world. 

“Sorrow” was first recorded by the McCoys in 1965.  It became a hit in the United Kingdom in a version by the Merseys, reaching #4 on the U.K. chart on April 28, 1966.  A version by the late David Bowie charted worldwide in July 1973.  The Merseys version was more up-tempo than the McCoys.  I admit I wasn’t as familiar with this song as with the others on this list.

One of Garth Brooks’ favorite artists is Billy Joel.  He’s such a fan that he’s covered several of Billy’s songs.  “Shameless” was written and recorded by Billy Joel for his 1989 album Storm Front.  His version peaked at #40 on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks charts.  Two years later, the song was covered by Garth Brooks for his third album, 1991’s Ropin’ The Wind.  Brooks’ rendering of the song was his seventh #1 hit on the billboard country charts in late 1991. 

“ Make You Feel My Love” was originally done by Bob Dylan for his 1997 album Time Out Of Mind.  It was first released by Billy Joel under the title “To Make You Feel My Love” before Dylan’s version later that year.  It has since been covered by numerous performers and has proved to be a commercial success for recording artists such as Adele, Garth, Bryan Ferry, Kelly Clarkson and Ane Brun.  Two of the covers were featured on the soundtrack to the 1998 movie Hope Floats.  Dylan eventually released the song as a single.

I heard “Sorrow” on Underground Garage and that got me curious and interested in doing a covers series.  A third installment is upcoming.