Ted Tocks Covers has reached the quarter turn of 2022 on a high note. At the beginning of the year, I set a goal to average 50 page views a day over the course of the year and after three months I have been able to generate an average of 70+ page views a day. This is extremely validating for this small project driven by my love of music.
In March Ted Tocks Covers received page views from music lovers in 50 countries around the world led by the United States, Canada, the U.K., Australia and Ireland.
Before I move on to the top three original posts for March, I will share a couple of older posts that made it past the 300-page view plateau. Two very different songs that have inspired numerous covers from a wide range of artists.
Polk Salad Annie – This classic song from Tony Joe White combines a dash of Cajun cooking with a touch of country and a blend of the blues. It tells a story that is steeped in his Southern roots. It is interesting to note that the inspiration for White to sit down and write came from hearing ‘Ode to Billie Joe’ by Bobbie Gentry.
When I Paint My Masterpiece – I could listen to Levon Helm sing this song all day, but when I tear myself away from The Band version of this, umm ‘masterpiece’, I found so many covers of the song that I just couldn’t stop adding them to this post. I just love this song, and I confess that I first heard it as a cover by the Grateful Dead. The Dead opened so many doors for me, I can’t even begin to count.
Now, here are this month’s Top Three posts.
#3 – Total Eclipse of the Heart – Sometimes Ted Tocks Covers goes down a rabbit hole with these posts. These are the features that are the most fun to write because the links from songwriter to song, and performer to performer takes you on a seemingly endless quest. This one took me from New York City to Wales and from to Port Dover, Ontario to Texas and many points in between. It all began with the great Jim Steinman. It becomes a tutorial in song writing brilliance and it all emanates from the mind and the piano of this essential artist. Like Meat Loaf said; if you love quality compositions, “You gotta meet Jimmy”.
#2 – Lazy – Ted Tocks got lost in this feature too. Deep Purple’s musical mastery offered me several looks at this from both the studio and the stage. Keyboard wizard Jon Lord offers several looks at his stunning into, before giving way to Ian Gillan on vocals and harmonica, Roger Glover on bass and Ian Paice on drums. Richie Blackmore brings it all up a notch with his incredible guitar work that takes us on a tour of blues and classical influences. As we walk through the decades we conclude with a brilliant cover from Jimmy Barnes and Joe Bonamassa.
#1 –Linger – My annual St. Patrick’s Day feature became the #1 post for March. Any time I write about Dolores O’Riordan and The Cranberries is a treat for me, so the fact it generated some positive readership makes me smile. For me, the best part of this post was the moment in the live version of ‘Linger’ that saw O’Riordan perform with Simon LeBon from Duran Duran. When the orchestra kicks in Dolores just smiles. She is in a zone. That is music.
If you missed these features the first time around enjoy them now. If you think a friend might like to spend a few minutes with some good music, please share because…
#MusicisLife
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Thank you for continuing to read Ted Tocks Covers. I look forward to sharing more music with you as we wade deeper into 2022. Enjoy the April showers, because the May flowers are soon to follow.
Stay safe and have a grateful day and let me leave you with this post from earlier this year.
On March 25th the music world lost the energetic and gregarious musical ambassador Taylor Hawkins of Foo Fighters. To say this was a shock would be a gross understatement. Earlier this year Ted Tocks Covers featured Foo Fighters with references to Taylor Hawkins. Here is the Foo Fighters crowd favourite ‘Everlong’ which admittedly is a salute to Dave Grohl, but it offers a glimpse of the Hawkins energy.
And I wonder
When I sing along with youIf everything could ever feel this real forever If anything could ever be this good again
Dave Grohl – Everlong
The only thing I’ll ever ask of you
You’ve got to promise not to stop when I say when”
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