Vintage Shaver
Seattle, WA
Jerry Jeff Walker, who wrote the famous song 'Mr. Bojangles' died a few days ago. In addition to the original version and the even more well-known one by the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, the song was covered by many other artists, some of whom were surprises to me:
Harry Nilsson
Neil Diamond
George Burns
Lana Cantrell
Lulu
John Denver
Harry Belafonte
Frankie Laine
Sammi Smith
David Bromberg
King Curtis
Nina Simone
Dolly Parton
Nancy Wilson
Sammy Davis Jr.
Johnny Paycheck
Bob Dylan
The Brothers Four
Rod McKue
Brenda Lee
Vassar Clements with Jeff Hanna & Jimmie Fadden June
Robbie Williams
Melissa Walker
Bebe Neuwirth
Bobbie Gentry
Whitney Houston
And one of his proteges, singer-songwriter Todd Snider, recalled a night when he and Jerry Jeff were the last customers at a bar in Santa Fe, N.M. After it closed, they were walking down a street at 2 a.m. when they heard someone play the opening chords to “Mr. Bojangles” on a banjo. “This was a bedraggled guy, not a kid,” Snider recalled. “A homeless guy, kind of crazy looking, with a harmonica around his neck, his hat on the ground in front of him, and nothing in the hat... The guy looked up at us. He didn’t know Jerry Jeff Walker was standing there. He may never have heard of Jerry Jeff Walker.” They listened as the man sang Mr. Walker’s masterpiece about a down-and-out street performer, “and I could feel us both getting choked up,” Snider said. He wondered if he should say something, “but no, I figured if Jerry Jeff wanted to let the guy know who he was, he’d tell him.”
The only thing Mr. Walker said was: “That sounded great.” He took all the money out of his pockets, put it in the street singer’s hat, then walked away. He never told him his name.
All of this got me to wondering about the most covered songs of all time, and here is a list of the top 25. Not surprisingly, the Beatles account for 16 of them.
#25. ‘With a Little Help From My Friends’ by The Beatles
#24. ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’ by Simon & Garfunkel
#23. ‘The Fool on the Hill’ by The Beatles
#22. ‘A Hard Day's Night’ by The Beatles
#21. ‘The Christmas Song’ by Nat King Cole
#20. ‘In My Life” by The Beatles
#19. ‘O Holy Night’ by John Sullivan Dwight
#18. ‘Something’ by The Beatles
#17. ‘Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing’ by Traditional Folk
#16. ‘Jingle Bells (One Horse Open Sleigh)’ by James Pierpont
#15. ‘What Is This Thing Called Love?’ by Elsie Carlisle
#14. ‘Here Comes the Sun’ by The Beatles
#13. ‘Hey Jude’ by The Beatles
#12. ‘Let It Be’ by The Beatles
#11. ‘White Christmas’ by Bing Crosby feat. John Scott Trotter and His Orchestra and The Ken Darby Choir
#10. ‘Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)’ by The Beatles
#09. ‘Imagine’ by John Lennon
#08. ‘Here, There and Everywhere’ by The Beatles
#07. ‘Blackbird’ by The Beatles
#06. ‘Summertime’ by Helen Jepson
#05. ‘Michelle’ by The Beatles
#04. ‘Silent Night’ by John Freeman Young
#03. ‘And I Love Her’ by The Beatles
#02. ‘Eleanor Rigby’ by The Beatles
#01. ‘Yesterday’ by The Beatles
Harry Nilsson
Neil Diamond
George Burns
Lana Cantrell
Lulu
John Denver
Harry Belafonte
Frankie Laine
Sammi Smith
David Bromberg
King Curtis
Nina Simone
Dolly Parton
Nancy Wilson
Sammy Davis Jr.
Johnny Paycheck
Bob Dylan
The Brothers Four
Rod McKue
Brenda Lee
Vassar Clements with Jeff Hanna & Jimmie Fadden June
Robbie Williams
Melissa Walker
Bebe Neuwirth
Bobbie Gentry
Whitney Houston
And one of his proteges, singer-songwriter Todd Snider, recalled a night when he and Jerry Jeff were the last customers at a bar in Santa Fe, N.M. After it closed, they were walking down a street at 2 a.m. when they heard someone play the opening chords to “Mr. Bojangles” on a banjo. “This was a bedraggled guy, not a kid,” Snider recalled. “A homeless guy, kind of crazy looking, with a harmonica around his neck, his hat on the ground in front of him, and nothing in the hat... The guy looked up at us. He didn’t know Jerry Jeff Walker was standing there. He may never have heard of Jerry Jeff Walker.” They listened as the man sang Mr. Walker’s masterpiece about a down-and-out street performer, “and I could feel us both getting choked up,” Snider said. He wondered if he should say something, “but no, I figured if Jerry Jeff wanted to let the guy know who he was, he’d tell him.”
The only thing Mr. Walker said was: “That sounded great.” He took all the money out of his pockets, put it in the street singer’s hat, then walked away. He never told him his name.
All of this got me to wondering about the most covered songs of all time, and here is a list of the top 25. Not surprisingly, the Beatles account for 16 of them.
#25. ‘With a Little Help From My Friends’ by The Beatles
#24. ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’ by Simon & Garfunkel
#23. ‘The Fool on the Hill’ by The Beatles
#22. ‘A Hard Day's Night’ by The Beatles
#21. ‘The Christmas Song’ by Nat King Cole
#20. ‘In My Life” by The Beatles
#19. ‘O Holy Night’ by John Sullivan Dwight
#18. ‘Something’ by The Beatles
#17. ‘Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing’ by Traditional Folk
#16. ‘Jingle Bells (One Horse Open Sleigh)’ by James Pierpont
#15. ‘What Is This Thing Called Love?’ by Elsie Carlisle
#14. ‘Here Comes the Sun’ by The Beatles
#13. ‘Hey Jude’ by The Beatles
#12. ‘Let It Be’ by The Beatles
#11. ‘White Christmas’ by Bing Crosby feat. John Scott Trotter and His Orchestra and The Ken Darby Choir
#10. ‘Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)’ by The Beatles
#09. ‘Imagine’ by John Lennon
#08. ‘Here, There and Everywhere’ by The Beatles
#07. ‘Blackbird’ by The Beatles
#06. ‘Summertime’ by Helen Jepson
#05. ‘Michelle’ by The Beatles
#04. ‘Silent Night’ by John Freeman Young
#03. ‘And I Love Her’ by The Beatles
#02. ‘Eleanor Rigby’ by The Beatles
#01. ‘Yesterday’ by The Beatles
John
