Mostly Music Covers

  What is a Cover Song? Simply put: a cover song is a re-recording of an original song. And the original song has to have been recorded first and in most cases, released on some recognizable format be it vinyl, video or digital. It’s sometimes splitting hairs as there have been many songs that are written and recorded but not released by the record company. Said company may give that song to another artist who may release it first. Technically, there is no formal legal definition of a cover song, and one could even argue the first recording is now a cover song once it is released. I will talk more on that in a bit. Regardless, after a song is released it is now free game for anyone to obtain a mechanical licence and cover it. I gave an example in a previous blog where Bruce Springsteen blocked Bette Midler from releasing one of his songs, that’s because he had only performed it live and he nor anyone else had released it yet. Though as soon as it’s recorded, the artist would lose that

Isn't it Ironic? Sorry, I'm not talking about Alanis Morissette! But there are artists who have been eclipsed by their own songs. Many of them are amazing songwriters but, ironically, their chart-topping hits were written by someone else. As I pointed out in my series, I Write the Songs, many great songwriters are not well-known, yet their songs are easily recognized by most people. Today I will point out the contrasts in popularity for some singer/songwriters. When I say ironic, I mean that things turned out the opposite or in an unexpected way from what one might have expected. Willie Nelson Now everyone knows of Willie Nelson, and I've mentioned him quite a bit. He is one of the best songwriters in Country music but his first #1 song was " Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain " (1975), written by Fred Rose. Not only did Nelson not write it himself, it was a cover version that was first done by Roy Acuff . In fact, Nelson’s next five #1 songs: "If You've Got t

  Music Icons, is it all just DNA? Some well-known recording artists come from families who have a strong musical background. It makes perfect sense, having the exposure and a bit of musical DNA most certainly helps. And how do the offspring of musical legends fair? In the inset photo I love the expression on Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour's daughter’s face: it looks to me like a classic "oh dad, just let me play!" But then he is not just any old Dad. Here is a song by father and daughter, David Gilmour with Romany Gilmour - Yes, I Have Ghosts .  Another example is Jakob Dylan. I don't need to explain who his father is and it is a stretch well beyond my imagination as to what it might be like for him to be in the family business.  Growing up with one or both of your parents as musical icons must be very difficult. I can imagine it’s hard to find a way to have your own life and career whether you stay in the world of music or not. At the same time, you have inherit