Comments on: Hoggin’ the Covers

By: Sammy Kent

Sammy Kent — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 21:22:41 +0000

Addendum to daughter story:
My older daughter (not the one referenced earlier), her husband, and I were eating chili at Hard Times Cafe a few days ago, and “Islands In The Stream” by Kenny R and Dolly P came over the jukebox. After a couple of minutes she said, “They made a country version of this song?”

AAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

By: lillingtondemocrat

lillingtondemocrat — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 20:05:00 +0000

Best greatest hits album of all time, Songs I’ll always Sing by Merle Haggard. I converted more rockers to country music with that 8 track that you can imagine. Still have a copy as a 2 record album but can’t find it as a CD.

If any of you were country-rock or Outlaw Country fans back in the 70s early 80s here in NC, especially eastern NC you might remember Super Grit Cowboy Band, Bill Lyerly Band and Danny Joe Reagan. I reccommand you get a copy of Bill Lyerly “The Twang Years”. It’s alt-country before there was a name for it and features Bill’s music from Super Grit and his later band. Google Bill Lyerly if you want a copy, he’s still out there playing.

By: Sammy Kent

Sammy Kent — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 15:33:16 +0000

I heard some newbie (no idea who) singing Dottie West’s classic “A Lesson In Leaving” just yesterday. Alan Jackson also did Elvis’s “T-R-O-U-B-L-E”, and Charley McClain’s “Who’s Cheating Who.” Reba McEntire covered Bobbie Gentry’s “Fancy.” One of the most covered songs is Rodney Crowell’s “I Ain’t Living Long Like This.” Gary Stewart and Waylon Jennings both covered it. Both are excellent versions, but I still like the original best. The measure of a great songwriter is how many artists record his or her songs, which is part of the reason I consider Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, and Hank Williams the third, second, and first best country songwriters ever.

I’m sure there are many many more, but I stopped listening to country radio years ago. However, I discovered a few years ago that the easiest way for me to ruin a current hit song for my “country music” loving teenage daughter was to start singing along with it when it came on the radio. Whereupon the following conversation would always take place with only minor variations:

Daughter: How do you know that song?

Daddy: Honey I was singing that song when you was just a gleam in my eye.

Daughter: UNH UNH!!!!!!!! NO WAY!!!

Daddy: Way. Who’s that singing it?

Daughter: (insert name of current star)

Daddy: S/he’s doing a pretty good job on it, but (insert name of REAL star) did it first back in (insert year predating her birth by at least a decade.)

Daughter: (changes station)

By: southernmaledemocrat

southernmaledemocrat — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 03:36:09 +0000

My friend WolfTim99 is having computer problems and asked me to post the following on his behalf…..

I was born to post on this thread.

Where to start….

Dwight Yoakam - “Honky Tonk Man,” “Suspicious Minds,” “Little Sister,” etc.

Garth Brooks - “Fishin in the Dark” - great stuff. Garth wrote plenty of his own, but made a heck of a career out of covers - “Friends in Low Places” comes immediately to mind, plus “Shameless,” “Wild Horses,” “Callin’ Baton Rouge”, etc.

Willie - “City of New Orleans” (he made it better), “Pancho and Lefty” with Merle, “Georgia on my Mind”

Sawyer Brown - “The Race is on” among others.

Johnny Cash - “Sunday Morning Comin Down,” “Hurt” - no one can pull these off like the man in black.

Merle - obscure, but “in the Good Old Days, When Times Were Bad” - written and originally recorded by Dolly Parton, who had a restraining order against the Hag at one point.

Charley Pride - “Kawliga”

Brooks n Dunn “My Maria”

Reba - “Night the Lights Went Down in Georgia”

Lonestar - “Walkin in Memphis” (should have been a country song in the first place!)

Alison Krauss - “When You Say Nothing At All” - Keith Whitley is toasting one upstairs.

Randy Travis - “On the Other Hand” - amazing that George Jones never recorded it. Something he said he regrets.

I got a hell of an album (yea, that’s right) at Cracker Barrel of all places. All cover songs, and some great ones. Here is the lineup:

Dang Me - Willie Nelson & Jack Ingram

Strawberry Wine - The Wreckers

Sunday Mornin’ Comin’ Down - Trace Adkins

Back Home Again - Trisha Yearwood

Murder On Music Row - Dierks Bentley & George Jones

When I Call Your Name - Jo Dee Messina

City Of New Orleans - Lonestar

Chiseled In Stone - Randy Travis

Stranger In My House - Jypsi

I Still Believe In You - Jamie O’Neal & Michael McDonald

The Gambler - Blake Shelton

Go Rest High On That Mountain - Deana Carter & Heart

By: Steve

Steve — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 10:09:41 +0000

Sherrie Austin was one beautiful woman, if I may be so sexist as to mention that!

By: southernmaledemocrat

southernmaledemocrat — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 13:13:28 +0000

^Upon reading your post I had to go fire up Itunes and check it out. OMG! What a great album. Thanks for the heads up.

By: Amy

Amy — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 05:44:25 +0000

Quote: “Raul Malo’s vocal is nothing short of haunting….. What a shame that these guys broke up.”

No need to cry - You want country covers???
try Raul Malo’s 2007 release “After Hours” .
I promise you Raul’s ear is as amazing as his voice and you won’t be disappointed.

By: southernmaledemocrat

southernmaledemocrat — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 13:14:43 +0000

Melissa - All are welcome at the SMD honky-tonk!

I can’t believe I forgot to list the Alan Jackson album, Under the Influence. His cover of Jim Ed Brown’s “Pop-aTop” is awesome.

And all the rest were great suggestions, especially the “Jolene” cover by Sherrie Austin.

Come back any time!

By: melissa

melissa — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 12:55:43 +0000

Two more: “Jolene” by Sherrie Austin (original by Dolly Parton)

and “Goodbye Time” by Blake Shelton (original by Conway Twitty)

By: melissa

melissa — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 12:46:32 +0000

I’m a female, so I’m not sure if I’m technically allowed to comment here. But I’m a country music fan (who actually listens to things beyond what radio plays) and I happened to wander across your blog. I should probably do more research before posting this but in case I forget to, just a few things offhand I can suggest are 1) something that’s actually on radio right now - Mark Chesnutt’s “Rollin’ With the Flow” (originally done by Charlie Rich) 2) Tonight the Bottle Let me Down, also by The Mavericks…I’m not sure where or if it’s available. But I know they played it in concert a number of times. 3) Flowers on the Wall, by Eric Heatherly (originally done by the Statler Brothers) 4) Clay Walker, Before the Next Teardrop Falls…done with Freddy Fender on Clay’s album “Fall.”

Tracy Byrd’s hit “Don’t Take Her She’s All I Got” was originally a hit for Johnny Paycheck.

An artist by the name of Jeff Bates gets Conway comparisons all the time. Although personally I think he’s a lot more than that…he covers “Lay You Down” in concert a lot although again I’m not sure if that’s available. Worth looking into! I know a personal favorite of mine that he did called “Rub It In”, on his Leave the Light On album, is a cover.

Alan Jackson did an entire album of covers called “Under the Influence.”

Also, i LOVE Gary Allan. I have been a fan of his forever and a day (pun intended), although I’m not as happy as where his music is lately. That entire album and most after are too awesome to put into words. Probably more than you bargained for, but believe it or not it could have been worse! Apologies for my carried-awayness.

Clever headline/title you have here, BTW. Bye!