The Highway Men - Big River

This is a live performance by the country supergroup The Highway Men. They perform the classic Johnny Cash song "Big River". The Highway Men is a supergroup consisting of various members who are most known for influencing the sub-genre of country known as "outlaw country". The genre was big in the 60's and 70's and also somewhat popular in the 80's. It is known for having a specific sound, and the artists are often self-declared outlaws in music.
The song Big River is a Johnny Cash original and it was released in 1958. Cash is also one of the members of the band, alongside; Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson and Kris Kristofferson. I think it's a really good performance, and a really well written song.
Of course as with so many other good songs it has been covered. My favourite cover is the one done by Motörhead front man Lemmy. He really sings it well and it somehow fits his voice really well. I've embeded that version beneath.


Enjoy ; )

Jeff Beck - Hi Ho Silver Lining

This is a live performance by Jeff Beck, he is joined on stage by Mitch Mitchell and Steve Winwood. "Hi Ho Silver Lightning" is an iconic 1960's rock song. It was released as a single in 1967 by "The Attack", but only a few days later Beck released a version of the song as well, and this became the most known rendition of the song.
It's a pretty silly song, but also a crowd pleaser and something that gets the crowd going and singing along. Beck does a little solo, but it's not much. A good steady performance of a silly song.

Hope you enjoy it ; )

The Doors - Light My Fire

This is a performance from of the classic song "Light My Fire", it's probably one of The Doors' most famous tracks, and everyone knows it. It was recorded in 1966 and released as a single in 1967, it was the band's debut record, and it did pretty well.
The song did very well and got a lot of radio play. The radio version was severely cut down, so that it was just under three minutes with almost all of the instrumental breaks cut.
A famous story about the song is the infamous Ed Sullivan appearance which is also a story every one knows. The band was set to perform and the producers asked the band to change the lyrics so it didn't say "girl, we couldn't get much higher". Advertisers had a problem with the somewhat obvious undertones about substance abuse. The band agreed and rehearsed the song with altered lyrics. But, when they did the live performance they kept the original lyrics. Ed was very upset and didn't shake hands with the band when they left the stage and the band also lost a seven episode deal due to the incident.
The song also ranked no. 35 on Rolling Stone Magazine's list of 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, a great song.

A great song, and performance, enjoy ; )

John Lee Hooker - Boom Boom

This is a performance from the 60's by blues legend John Lee Hooker. He performs it with an electric guitar accompanied by himself. It's a great performance, and the foot tapping is just excellent and done with perfect timing. It's a nice throw back to the roots of the blues, artists like Robert Johnson who would also tap the rhythm with his foot as he was recording. Now it's just done with an electric guitar instead.
The song also gained some notoriety when featured in "The Blues Brothers", John himself cameos in the film as a South Side Chicago street musician.
A great song, and a great performance.

Enjoy ; )