There are some songs, or musical works in general, that have come to define their composers and/or performers, rather than the other way around. When we hear the music, we instantly think of the performer – it’s indelibly associated with them, and no amount of performances by other artists can break the mental link between “this song” and “that performer”. They define each other, as it were.
I thought that today, I’d pick half a dozen of those pieces that are fixed in my memory from the days of my distant youth. I can’t hear them without thinking of their performers. I daresay there are many others, and I may put up more of them from time to time; but here’s my first-pass effort. I’ll list them in chronological order.
First, from 1964, here’s The Animals with “House of the Rising Sun“. They didn’t compose it – it’s far older than that – but their performance has become iconic of the piece.
From 1966, here’s The Rolling Stones with “Paint It Black“.
From a year later, here’s The Moody Blues with their classical/rock blend on “Nights In White Satin“. This is the original footage released to publicize the song and the album from which it came . . . and boy, does it look dated!
There are two songs from 1969 in this mix. The Who released their rock opera Tommy in May of that year. From that double album, here’s “Pinball Wizard“.
In October of the same year, King Crimson released their debut album, “In The Court Of The Crimson King“. It was a dramatic redefinition of the then-new progressive rock genre. From that album, here’s the title track. This is a live performance from, I think, 1970.
Finally (at least for today’s collection), from 1973, here’s Jim Croce with “Time In A Bottle“. He wrote it in 1970 after learning that his wife was pregnant. It reached the top of the charts after the singer’s untimely death in an aircraft accident. I’ve always wondered what he might have achieved, musically speaking, had he lived. He was very gifted.
Some may wonder why I chose “Time In A Bottle” instead of another Jim Croce hit, “Bad, Bad Leroy Brown“. The reason is that many performers have produced versions of the latter song, and it’s associated with many of them; but the former is indelibly Croce’s, and probably always will be.
Well, there you are; six songs forever intimately associated with six artists. If you have your own songs like that, please let us know in Comments. I may feature them in a future Sunday Morning Music post.
Peter
Excellent choices! Croce's "I got a name" would also fit in here well, IMHO.
Deep Purple – "Smoke on the Water"
Emerson, Lake, and Palmer – "Karn Evil 9"
Golden Earring – "Radar Love"
Nena – "99 Luftballons"
Michael Jackson – "Thriller"
Yes – "Roundabout"
Just a few from my favorites.
Dire Straits – "Sultans of Swing" (I could have picked others,but this is from their debut album, and it hooked me).
Strawbs – "Autumn"
Simon & Garfunkel – "Sounds of Silence"
Neil Young – "Like a Hurricane"
Lynyrd Skynyrd – "Freebird"
Meat Loaf – "Bat Out of Hell"
Clapton/Cream – "Sunshine of Your Love"
Clapton/Derek – "Layla"
Allman Brothers Band – "Whipping Post" (I'd accept "Statesboro Blues", even though it had been recorded decades earlier, since the ABB version is the one everybody remembers — for good reason.)
Fleetwood Mac – "Songbird" (I know it should be something like Don't Stop, or Rhiannon — but Christine McVie's voice is so incredible that even though nobody else is playing, it's always been, for me, the highlight of any of their concerts).
Springsteen – "Born To Run"
Procul Harum – "A Whiter Shade of Pale"
Led Zeppelin – "Stairway to Heaven"
Jackson Browne – "The Load Out/Stay"
Linda Ronstadt – "Long, Long Time"
And, of course, I hit Enter before I included Queen – "Bohemian Rhapsody"
Iron Maiden – The Trooper
Queen – Killer Queen
Steve Earle – Copperhead Road
Nightwish – Ghost Love Score
Eagles – Hotel California
Alan Jackson / Jimmy Buffett – It's Five O'clock Somewhere
Don Henley – Boys of Summer
Hank Williams Jr – A Country Boy Can Survive
Deep Purple – Burn
Rush – Red Barchetta
ELP – Pirates
David Bowie – Life on Mars
Frank Sinatra:
You Make Me Feel So Young
Fly Me To The Moon
One For My Baby (And One More For The Road,)
etc., etc., etc.
Patsy Cline – Crazy, I Fall To Pieces
Ray Charles – Hit The Road, Jack. Georgia On My Mind
BB King – The Thrill Is Gone
BOC- Astronomy, Stairway to the Stars, Last Days of May
Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac- early live gigs '68-'70
(Try this one: https://hooktube.com/watch?v=bv0nEvy3Pok )
Deep Purple
Blackmore's Night
Rory Gallagher
Jefferson Airplane
Cream
Doors
Tull
ABB
Gov't Mule
…and so on.
=TW=
Hey, music I remember… LOL All good songs, and we knew them all by heart.
Toto – Rain down in Africa
BOC – don't fear the reaper
rush – 2112
kansas – come sail away
ozzy – crazy train
I knew and worked with Jim Croce's son, AJ and a couple of projects. Great guy and musician in his own right.
and while Sultans of Swing is one of my favorites, and an iconic Dire Straits tune, I REALLY like this version from Leo and Mary Spender…. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0RV0kgdqJU which I may have first encountered here on this blog…. or possibly borepatch's?
nick
Oops. That link didn't work. Try this instead.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bv0nEvy3Pok
=TW=
This version by The Muppets reduced my family to tears.
Still does.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJHVUWwUCeA
10CC – I'm not in Love
Boston – Foreplay-Long Time
Styx – Come Sail Away
Yes – Owner of a Lonely Heart
Queen – Crazy Little Thing Called Love
Van Halen – Jump
back in the 40's and 50's there were quite a few acts that are tied to specific songs
Frank Sinatra
The Andrews Sisters
Dean Martin
Nat King Cole
come to mind (and I have a horrid memory for names, so there were quire a few others in the era)
David Lang
Part of the reason I'm always reluctant to include Bohemian Rhapsody is that the Muppets version turns into an earworm.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgbNymZ7vqY
This takes me back…