Joe Cocker

Joe Cocker, one of the key players in the classic rock era, died last month. I didn't have any of his stuff in my collection, so I picked up a greatest hits album, and have been listening all week, much to my pleasure.

Cocker was one of a legion of young British men who loved American black music. When he passed, many described him as the greatest white soul singer of all time, which is kind of odd but there it is. His voice was a growl, coming from deep within the chest, and his movements were spasmodic and parodied. What I think is that he basically invented air guitar, and air piano, too.

Cocker was a vocalist only, and, unusually for rock stars of the period, was not a songwriter of any distinction. Of the eleven tracks on the album, he only wrote one, "High Time We Went," which is a fine tune. But mostly he was known for interpreting the music of other. To be more specific, The Beatles.

I have always maintained that there were only two Beatle songs that were bettered by others: Elton John's version of "Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds," and Joe Cocker's "With a Little Help From My Friends." Ringo's vocals on The Beatle version are, to be kind, a bit flat, and the song doesn't reach any heights, and is instead kind of an inside joke. But Cocker, man, he whips the shit out of this song. The version I've linked to, which closed his set at Woodstock, made him a star, and was one of the most scintillating moments at that legendary concert.

Cocker also covered the Abbey Road throwaway, "She Came in Through the Bathroom Window," which, while not necessarily an improvement over The Beatles' version, does give it more importance, and again begs the question, what does it mean that "she could steal, but she could not rob?"

Other great songs of Cocker's are Dave Mason's "Feelin' Alright," Leon Russell's "Delta Lady," which is a song I'm sure I've heard before but I didn't realize I liked so much, The Box Tops "The Letter,"  and Billy Preston's "You Are So Beautiful,"  which he renders with just enough pathos, but not too much to make it sappy (although, when we were kids, my cohort and I did laugh at that last note, in which his voice skips like a stone across a river).

Although Cocker performed all through the '80s and beyond, his last hit was the Oscar-winning son from An Officer and a Gentleman, "Up Where We Belong."  This is not a very good song, though at unguarded moments I may have hummed it, and it's interesting to note that this was a comeback for Cocker, even though he was only 38 years old.

In the obituaries for Cocker many mentioned his "Mad Dogs and Englishmen" tour. In an example of rock-star excess, it featured more than 30 musicians, including Leon Russell and three drummers, and almost bankrupted him. In the links I've used live versions of songs, since its easy to tell that though his studio versions are terrific, his greatest strengths were as a live performer.

So long, Joe. Enjoy Rock and Roll Heaven.