Laura Nyro - singer, songwriter. Covered by others: "Eli's Coming" - Three Dog Night ; "And When I Die" - Blood, Sweat & Tears. An occasional performer: "Poverty Train" - Monterey Pop Festival ; "He's A Runner" (TV) ; "Blowin' Away" and "Wedding Bell Blues" - Pittsburgh, 1994 ; "Save the Country" (TV). And media glitz: "Stoned Soul Picnic" - The Fifth Dimension ; "Sweet Blindness" - The Fifth Dimension w/Frank Sinatra. Video quality and loudness vary.
posted by Ardiril on Jun 19, 2011 - 19 comments

This past Spring, Oklahoma State Representative Joe Dorman (D-Rush Springs) and State Senator John Ford (R-Bartlesville) joined together to put their bipartisan support behind House Concurrent Resolution 1047, a bill to designate the Official Rock Song of Oklahoma, as to be chosen by the people. As long as the song was written or recorded by an artist from Oklahoma, it would be eligible. The lengthy list of nominees has now been pared down to ten, and the voting has opened online. The finalists vary from Elvis Presley's "Heartbreak Hotel" (written by Okie Mae Boren Axton) to "Do You Realize," by The Flaming Lips, and my personal pick, Three Dog Night's "Never Been to Spain." [more inside]
posted by Navelgazer on Sep 4, 2008 - 50 comments

Try a Little Tenderness. Otis Redding owns the song, but it's had an interesting history. Ruth Etting, Bing Crosby [mp3], and Ted Lewis [Windows Media] recorded the song (with more lyrics) in the early '30s. An instrumental version was the opening theme for Dr. Strangelove. Tennessee Ernie Ford did the song on his variety show. And then there was Jack Webb's deadpan Dragnet-style version [Amazon sample].
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posted by kirkaracha on Jul 16, 2007 - 19 comments