Platter Playlists: The Great Louisiana Cover-Up
The art of covering songs, Louisiana style
This month’s mix takes the art of covering songs to a new level. Not only are many of these songs some of the greatest ever written, Louisiana artists seem to effortlessly turn them into swamp pop and creole classics. These songs serve as strong testaments to the skillful diversity of Louisiana musicians.
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The Mix
We start our trip with Fats Domino covering The Beatles. Through piano rolls and soulful dips, Fats owns this classic and paves the way for Clarence “Frogman” Henry to do the same with his cover of the late Don Covay’s “See Saw.”
New Orleans’ Lloyd Price belts out another soul gem, with his cover of the Motown classic “Shop Around,” before the mix explores Cajun country with Clifton Chenier doing Ray Charles, Nathan Abshire doing Joe South, Van Broussard doing James Brown, and Johnnie Allan doing Percy Sledge. Southern soul artists pay tribute to influences and contemporaries when Joe Barry, Shreveport’s Eddy Giles, and “Mr. Happy Feet” Robert Parker cover Solomon Burke, Otis Redding, and Roosevelt Jamison.
We return to Fats towards the end of the mix with yet another Beatles cover followed by Louie Armstrong moaning out the immortal words of John Lennon amidst the angelic chants of Soul Sisters. Too often, you’ll hear Otis or The Beatles covered to the point of sacrilege, but during the '60s and early '70s, when everyone covered everyone, it is refreshing to think that Louisiana was never the one to drop the ball.
Tracklist
Lovely Rita — Fats Domino See Saw — "Clarence “Frogman” Henry Shop Around — Lloyd Price What’d I Say — Clifton Chenier Games People Play — Nathan Abshire Try Me — Van Broussard Out of Left Field — Johnnie Allan That’s How Strong My Love Is — Eddy Giles Mr. Pitiful — Robert Parker Everybody's Got Something To Hide Except Me And Monkey — Fats Domino Give Peace A Chance — Louis Armstrong To follow Platter Playlists on MixCloud, visit mixcloud.com/PlatterPlaylists.