Cover Me: The Stories Behind the Greatest Cover Songs of All Time

by Ray Padgett

From the creator of the popular website covermesongs[.]com comes the perfect book for music fans: the inside stories behind 20 iconic cover songs and the artists who turned them into classics.
 
A great cover only makes a song stronger. Jimi Hendrix’s version of Bob Dylan’s “All Along the Watchtower.” The Beatles rocking out with “Twist and Shout.” Aretha Franklin demanding “Respect.” Without covers, the world would have lost many unforgettable performances. This is the first book to explore the most iconic covers ever, from Elvis’s “Hound Dog” and the Rolling Stones’ “Not Fade Away” to Led Zeppelin’s “Dazed and Confused,” the Talking Heads’ “Take Me to the River,” and Adele’s “Make You Feel My Love.” Written by the founder of the website covermesongs.com, each of the 20 chapters investigates the origins of a classic cover—and uses it as a framework to tell the larger story of how cover songs have evolved over the decades. Cover Me is packed with insight, photography, and music history.

Genres: Music, Nonfiction, History, Pop Culture

240 pages, Hardcover

First published October 3, 2017

Reviews

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

"A great cover only makes a song stronger. It can make you think about a lyric in a way you never had before, or make you remember a favorite song from years ago. It can bring a great song to a wider audience, or bring a forgotten song to a younger audience." -- the author's introduction, page 9

Music journalist / blogger Padgett presents a collection of expeditious essays on famous rock / pop / R&B tunes in Cover Me. Starting chronologically from Elvis Presley's 1956 rollicking take on Big Mama Thornton's 'Hound Dog' and moving steadily forward to conclude with Adele's 2008 career-establishing debut with her version of Bob Dylan's 'Make You Feel My Love,' the nineteen chapters - and I wish there were twenty, with a worthy inclusion of Billy Stewart's catchy uptempo version of Gershwin's 'Summertime' (which the author claims first made him fully interested in cover songs as a subject matter several years ago) - each contain informative interviews from the musicians and/or songwriters, inside stories / trivia on the songs, and lots of great photographs. The stand-out sections, at least in my opinion, included Aretha Franklin's 'Respect,' Gladys Knight & the Pips' 'Midnight Train to Georgia,' Whitney Houston's 'I Will Always Love You,' and Johnny Cash's 'Hurt.' For those that love modern music history, this was a enjoyable and sometimes enlightening read.

[Fred Klein · Rating 4 out of 5]

This very readable book provides a lot of insight into cover songs. They come about for different reasons. In the early days, record companies came out with covers as a matter of course to piggyback on a hit song (consumers didn't care as much back then about who sang the song). Some performers cover songs that they admire, as an homage to the original; others to put their own imprint on a song; and others have covered songs that they didn't even know had been originally done by someone else. There are an infinite number of reasons why covers come about, and each chapter tells the story of a different cover version. I wish there had been even more stories, and I hope there will be a sequel to this one. (Example of one I would have liked included: Van Halen's cover of the Kinks' "You Really Got Me".)

[Keely · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Cover Me, Ray Padgett draws on his cover songs blog in telling the stories of some of the most notable covers in pop music history. Padgett definitely emphasizes interpretation in what he deems a great cover song. The covers he includes are ones in which the cover artist makes the song their own, giving it their own spin and possibly even digging up some element that the original artist and/or songwriter didn't know was there. Think Devo covering the Rolling Stones' "Satisfaction," the Patti Smith Group covering Them's "Gloria," or Johnny Cash covering "Hurt" by Nine Inch Nails. Padgett also includes some famous songs I hadn't even realized were covers, notably Aretha Franklin's "Respect" (a cover of Otis Redding) and Adele's "Make You Feel My Love" (a cover of Bob Dylan).

This is a fun read for pop music fans. The book itself is beautiful, alternating columns of text with inset and full-page photos. It's a picture book for music-nerd grownups. I think my favorite story in the book is Dolly Parton turning down Elvis's request to cover "I Will Always Love You," because his M.O. was to take a songwriting co-credit on any song he covered. Savvy businesswoman that she was, Dolly wouldn't do it--a move that would come to seem especially prescient in 1992 when Whitney Houston did her knockout cover of the song for the movie The Bodyguard.

[Pam Masters · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great look at the story behind a mix of loved and unknown songs. Highly recommend to anyone who loves music and music history.

[Bradley Morgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

In 2007, Padgett founded the blog “Cover Me” which has become the largest blog dedicated to cover songs. For this book, Padgett compiles the stories behind the 19 of the biggest cover songs ever recorded. Going as early as Elvis Presley’s rendition of “Hound Dog” all the way into the new millennium with Adele covering Bob Dylan’s “Make You Feel My Love,” this collection contains entertaining and informative stories behind our favorite cover songs and covers a wide array of genres.

In a special introduction, Padgett philosophizes on the concept of cover songs and their importance on shedding light on a forgotten or unknown song and taking it into new directions that newer and younger audiences can grasp onto. He also presents a brief historical overview on the evolution of cover songs and its derivatives including parody and answer songs.

Padgett was recently interviewed on WBEZ’s “Sound Opinions.” Highlights from this book include the concept of appropriating race and crediting original artists (Elvis Presley’s “Hound Dog”), the introduction of a live song becoming a hit (the Who’s “Summertime Blues”), the unlikely success of a passionate bar band (Joe Cocker’s “With a Little Help From My Friends”), introducing R&B to the punk scene (Talking Heads’ “Take Me To the River”), cross-genre medleys (Weird Al’s “Polkas on 45s”), unlikely success of a movie single (Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You”), the first viral Internet hit (The Gourd’s “Gin & Juice”), an overlooked song made famous by its music video (Johnny Cash’s “Hurt”), and an unknown artist updating a song whose original singer they didn’t like (Adele’s “Make You Feel My Love”).

[Elspeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love covers. I had an all cover version radio show in 1993 and a covers blog in 2000. I enjoyed the introduction to this book which enlightened me to the history of the cover version. However I feel like the choices of the "greatest cover songs" is way too subjective and I don't agree with Padgett that this is "the only way you could write a book about covers".

The covers he chose for this book are fine, if not specifically geared towards baby boomers because of the original version choices and also the cover choices. Even if you're a covers super fan it would be hard to choose covers that were "the greatest" for other demographics since popular music has changed so much and no one can keep up with all the latest music of all genres and their cover versions. Not being a boomer, the only song I like in this list is Devo's "Satisfaction" but frankly the best Rolling Stones cover is "Start Me Up" from the "A Mighty Wind" soundtrack. And I believe that many Americans of all ages would agree with me that the "best" cover ever is either Dolly Parton's version of REO Speedwagon's "Time for Me to Fly" or almost any cover of Dolly Parton's "Jolene" (including Lil Nas X's).

I love that there is a book dedicated to the history of covers so I had to read this one and I wasn't entirely disappointed, but it could have been a lot better, especially for those of us who are not boomers.

[Roger Smitter · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about copiers. It’s also a book about how music can be changed in multiple ways. One singer or group takes a record that has been released, change the song and produce a interpretation of what the first singer produced.

It’s no surprise that the first chapter shows how Elvis Presley took the song “Hound Dog” from Big Mama Thorton and, without ever giving her money or credit, changed the world. Rock and Roll defined an era and what a teenager should be doing to changed the world of music.

The stories about the other 18 writers/singers whose music got “covered” by many others who whose names we recognizes right away. The “cover” songs cover a very wide range of pop music. Author Padgett does a good job of linking the music to the cultural times with the differences and overlaps of the original and the “cover” musician. We also get many pictures of the performers presented in ways that give the paragraphs depth and insight. There’s enough information about music itself to attract musicians and those who teach music. Believe it or not, it might also be a book for a history class focused on the 50’s and pop culture.

Anyone who has a deep interest in pop music since the 1950’s will enjoy the book.

[Cat · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a copy of this in a Goodreads giveaway, and have not let it affect my review.

This book is gorgeous, bursting with photos and colorful layouts, and very interesting. I appreciated that in addition to the straight history of the songs the author addressed a little bit of the social context, particularly with the first cover song "Hound Dog" and the racial divisions of the popular music scene. In addition to covering "canonical" covers it seemed like there were also a variety of themes the author wanted to tackle with different songs--"Summertime Blues" (The Who) talked about live vs recorded performances, "Gin and Juice" (The Gourds) explored the "one-hit wonder"-type effect on the covering band, "Gloria" (Patti Smith) discussed how the covering artist expressed her changing religious views through the piece throughout the years.

I knew 14 of the 19 songs (in 4 of those cases I only knew the original versions, not the cover) and look forward to doing more listens with this additional insight. Overall, I thought this was fun and informative, making a good coffee table book.

[Pete · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m really surprised that anyone can give this book less than 4 stars. It’s full of detail that you feel is more than you need to know but you end up so glad you’ve read it. Cover songs are always going to be divisive and to select 19 as some of the best examples of the genre is always going to be problematic. However, it made me want to listen to (and compile a playlist of) all the originals and covers (and the other covers inbetween that are mentioned in each chapter). And all the words are supplemented by fantastic images, lovely presentation and a (book) cover that is a joy to touch.

[Arin Brutlag · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read each chapter accompanied by the original version(s) of the songs as well as the covers, and sometimes other songs that were mentioned in each chapter. It was wonderful to see the way that each song evolved over time, and how powerful these covers can be. My two favorite chapters were “Unchained Melody” and “Always on My Mind.” They are both songs that I’ve had a long-standing personal connection to, and listening to their trajectory through several artists reminded me of why I keep these songs in my heart. I need about six more books just like it.

[Nathan Albright · Rating 5 out of 5]

As someone who is generally fond of cover songs, this is a book I happily waited for from the library for it to arrive.  Although I did not look up the cover songs beforehand, I found myself familiar with most of them and also found it interesting the way that cover songs became a phenomenon of respect at the point where they were transitioning away from simply being a way for race records tracks to reach a white audience and vice versa.  Nowadays songs from the urban mainstream reach the white mainstream at the same time due to streaming, but for a time it was possible for bands to make covers while disguising somewhat their specific inspiration, choosing songs that were either familiar or obscure enough to allow them to do their own take on it, and this book does a good job at pointing out how it was that the best cover songs increase the greatness of the original by showing depths that may not have been originally recognized when the songs were first created.  And it is that greater depth that makes for compelling reading, and listening.

The contents of this book extend for a bit more than 200 pages and contain the author's thoughts about nineteen definitive covers.  Again, most of these are covers that I am familiar with as a music listener, and the author spends time discussing the process by which the covers were recorded as well as the original recording and its fate.  Sometimes cover versions were tossed off in one or two takes, and at other times they were obsessively worked over.  The author looks at these covers in chronological fashion, beginning with Elvis' "Hound Dog," and the concerns about racism in the part of the listening audience for the Big Mama Thornton original.  Then the author moves to the Beatles' cover of the Isley Brothers/Top Notes' original "Twist And Shout," the Righteous Brothers' cover of Todd Duncan's "Unchained Melody," and Aretha Franklin's seminal cover of Otis Redding's "Respect."  After that the author writes about Hendix's cover of Dylan's "All Along The Watchtower," Joe Cocker's Beatles cover of "With A Little Help From My Friends," The Who's "Summertime Blues" cover of Eddie Cochran, and CCR's cover of Marvin Gaye's "I Heard It It Through The Grapevine," a discussion which also mentions the Ike & Mary Turner cover of the CCR original "Proud Mary."  After that the author examines the various covers of Gladys Knight & The Pips and Cissy Houston of the Jim Weatherly track "Midnight Train To Georgia," which was originally "Midnight Plane To Houston."  Patti Smith's cover of Them's "Gloria," the Talking Heads cover of Al Green's "Take Me To The River," Devo's "Satisfaction" cover of the Rolling Stones, and the breakthrough Weird Al cover "Polkas On 45" follow.  The author then concludes with a discussion of important covers by the Pet Shop Boys ("Always On My Mind"), Whitney Houston ("I Will Always Love You"), the Fugees ("Killing Me Softly), the Gourds ("Gin And Juice"), Johnny Cash ("Hurt"), and Adele's Dylan cover "Make You Feel My Love."

In exploring individual covers and their originals, the author provides an implicit study of what it is that makes a great cover great.  A great cover song provides a chance for a band/artist to pay homage to the original while also exploring their own take on the song.  Sometimes an overstuffed original is pared down to its core essentials, or an obscure song is given a new lease on life by someone who is able to bring out its greatness.  At times a great song in one genre is transmitted to another genre where it is equally great but in a very different way.  However it is done, the existence of these great covers demonstrates that even in an age where artistic creativity is valued so highly, a cover can serve as an entree into a band's work by fans who can enjoy something familiar but also different.  One can also see the way that many bands are ambivalent about their cover songs and the way that sometimes people can prefer the cover to the band's original, such that playing them can become a cross that a band has to bear rather than something that the band wants to celebrate for the long haul.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

A pleasant and enjoyable book but one that reads like a collection of thoughtful blog posts rather than a coherent overall book, which makes sense, since this grew out of a blog. The subtitle gives away the entire premise of the book. There are some obvious selections (i.e. Hendrix' version of "All Along the Watchtower") but I appreciated the selections of DEVO's version of the Stones' "Satisfaction" and Pet Shop Boys' renditions of "Always on My Mind" (which most of us may know as a Willie Nelson song, but was viewed as an Elvis Presley cover).

Padgett doesn't offer a lot of broader context, but I actually learned some useful things: Like the historical origins of the term "cover," and the fact that "covering" a song really only emerged in the modern era of pop and rock, because prior to easy access to recorded music, most folks experienced songs only as sheet music or live performances. And he helpfully explores the difference between covers and parody in terms of copyright law, especially in a digression about Weird Al Yankovic, where the legal distinctions can become a bit dicey in terms of legal ownership and control of a piece of music. One of the recurring themes in the book is the role of race, and the history of white artists taking songs out of the African American context and bringing them to the mass audiences, and the problematic issues raised there: artistic integrity, cultural context, control over economic revenues. This goes back to Elvis of course — even though Elvis was frequently covering songs popularized by Black artists, but written by white songwriters, like "Hound Dog" — and through Talking Heads and their version of "Take Me to the River" and into the present day. (He doesn't present many examples of a Black artist covering a song popularized by a white star; "All Along the Watchtower" was a Dylan deep cut that few people have heard in the original.)

Since Padgett started writing about covers on his blog, the genre has gotten a bit overwhelming, as he notes, with "string quartet tributes to Limp Bizkit" and "lullaby tributes to Jay-Z" as well as innumerable YouTube-only one-off covers, by acoustic singer-songwriters covering hip-hop and other cross-genre gimmicks. I listen to a covers-only podcast and (especially in the midst of COVID) the number of artists throwing out covers as Bandcamp singles and other projects is a bit absurd. So the value of a book focused on great pop music covers may be diminishing, but it's still pleasantly diverting.

[Andrew · Rating 2 out of 5]

"Greatest Cover Songs of All Time" is a pretty big statement and of course people are going to find issue with the resultant choices. I am one of those people.
On the plus side, most of the stories behind the songs are rather interesting, but in a World full of music, the choices are fine at best and pedestrian at worst.
Unchained Melody, one of the "Greatest Cover Songs of All Time"? Yeah, no. Not saying the Righteous Brothers didn't do a good job there, but talented people doing workman like jobs on songs other people wrote was pretty par for the course in those days. Nothing particularly special or significant going on here.
And TWO Dylan covers? Dylan wrote some of the greatest songs of the modern era and some of the cover versions manage to elevate the music even more. But Adele's cover of Make You Feel My Love although, once again a fine performance, is not particularly noteworthy. And the story behind it is pretty weak tea. I've read more interesting stories about corporate mergers.
Only in a couple of the entries does one get both a Great cover with a Great story and one would think that for a book with such high aspirations, the author should have found songs that had both.
I can't help but think that his editors had a big hand in choosing the subjects he was to write about.

[Sean · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not sure how I came into having this book on the shelf. My best guess is that I must have had it on a neglected Amazon wish list and a family member gave it to me for Christmas a couple years ago. Regardless of that, I was familiar with Ray Padgett via his blog, COVER ME, before reading is book, which is essentially a deep dive into twenty or so cover songs. It's a quick and fun read for someone who is into that sort of thing (and I am the kind of person that is into that sort of thing) but I can't imagine a casual music afan wanting to read it. I'm not sure how Ray decided that this group of songs was the most interesting group of covers to put in a hardbound book, but he did...even if I didn't think many of them were all that interesting and can easily rattle off more that I'd be more interested in learning more about. The bits I most enjoyed were regarding the legalities of royalties, publishing and licensing. Steamy stuff. Oh yeah, I'll say this: I was pleasantly surprised to see the Gourds in the book. I used to get into screaming matches with people who swore it was Phish covering "Gin & Juice." I can't imagine I'll ever pull this off the shelf again. It's not that kind of book.

[Roo · Rating 3 out of 5]

A pleasant book, first about what makes a "cover" song, and then a look at 19 songs that became popular when sung by a singer other than the original person who recorded it. I recall several of the early songs, some of which are my favorites: "All Along the Watchtower" as sung by Jimi Hendrix), "Unchained Melody" by the Righteous Brothers, and "Take Me to the River" done by The Talking Heads. Other songs such as "Gloria" by Patti Smith were discussed in depth, however, that is not my favorite Smith song. I really could care less about Johnny Cash's Nine Inch Nails cover of "Hurt," as also Adele's "Make You Feel My Love." The Gourds "Gin and Juice" was a waste of page space for me - I don't get why that was great.
As I said, this was a pleasant diversion to read, and I'm sure others will find the exact opposite mix of songs they like and don't like. Padgett seems to have thoroughly researched each song, which I appreciate, and obviously included a diverse mix, some of which will please and some will not!

[Min · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cover Me, a blog maintained by book's author focuses on the world of cover songs.

The book samples a few of these stories. The introduction offers a history of the music charts, and the potential origins of the term "cover song"; a rendition from one "race record" to the "white charts", or a recording that outsells and thus 'covers' the previous efforts. The author shares two quotes of the famous performers and their opinion of a cover song. The opinions are interesting.

The rest of the book claims to discuss the greatest covers of all time, and all good readers know that is subjective. Then again, a few of my favorite songs are in there. The tales of how and why these songs were chosen by their remakers has a few interesting twists and turns, with a few rather straight forward. Learning how Elvis (or rather how his manager Tom Parker) handled royalties when he covered a song, and how royalties are handled normally I found educational. Now every time I hear a cover song, I will wonder about its story a bit longer, especially how the writer(s) feels about it.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

If I could give half stars, this would be a 3 1/2 star book. The strength of the book is in the sourcing. Padgett, in seeking out the stories behind the songs, does a great job of both finding people involved in the covers and, if unavailable, relevant interviews from the past. The best story is the one that was excerpted in Rolling Stone, the story of DEVO's cover of The Rolling Stones' "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction", but there are no duds here.

Padgett's prose is perfunctory, which is better than a style getting in the way of the story. Where the book is weakest is the critical perspective -- Padgett doesn't have a good rock critic's analytical chops, which sometimes leads to statements that just aren't fully accurate in characterizing styles and other aspects. That being said, this was a quick read and I learned some things and went back to listen to some stuff, which is the sign of a worthwhile music book.

[Nick Spacek · Rating 4 out of 5]

if nothing else, the story of whitney houston's "i will always love you" and the gourds' "gin & juice" are worth reading. i mean, the whole book is excellent and intriguing, and the inclusion of 'weird al' yankovic's "polkas on 45" is pretty demonstrative of how wide-ranging padgett's book can be, but those two chapters alone demonstrate the power of how a cover song can change things.

the former is powerful in how it came to be, and the background of what might have been is fascinating, whereas the latter is a tale of file-sharing, misattribution, and a song that raised a band's profile while simultaneously leading to its demise.

i'm usually none too fond of books which draw so much from previously-published interviews, but padgett's writing and research come together in a very readable way, and any one of these songs' profiles is peak music writing.

[MDNewbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thoroughly enjoyed this book. I've always enjoyed discussions about cover songs and this book gets right down to the nitty gritty. I learned so many interesting facts about the originals, the covers, the artists and the producers. Each chapter is an iconic song in mega detail (with the minor exception of about 3 songs that I had no interest in - Gin and Juice by Snopp Dogg and the cover by The Gourds - whatever. You figure that the author had to throw a rap song in the book somewhere just to cover all genres.) Highly educational and entertaining - easy to read because you can pick and choose the ones that most interest you.

[John Robertson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful book that details the history behind 19 of the most famous cover songs ever recorded. Each entry goes into the backstory of not only how the famous cover was made, often featuring interviews with musicians and the studio personal that were involved in the making of the cover version, but also the history of the original song. It was interesting to find how many iconic cover songs are not even the first cover of the original.

Great to read while having YouTube open so that you can listen to all of the songs mentioned, Cover Me by Rad Padgett is a worthwhile read. Now, I'm going back to listening the Gourds cover of Gin and Juice for the 100th time...

[Woody Chandler · Rating 5 out of 5]

How to do justice to this magnum opus?!? It was a MUCH quicker read than I had anticipated, due to its subject matter. I earned the first-ever "A" in Oxnard College's "History of Rock & Roll" course in 1995 & for no small reason - I turned onto rock & roll in the early-'70s & never looked back.

This book was like a course in musicology - diminuendo to crescendo & back to diminuendo. Slowly rising to its Johnny Cash climax & then quickly falling away to Adele. I knew a lot of these stories, but it was wild to see them in print.

How did one reviewer once put it? I laughed, I cried, I closed the covers & shelved [returned, in my case] the book. Ha!

[Anne Ku · Rating 5 out of 5]

Someone recommended this book, and I was glad to order it through my local library. Fascinating stories behind songs we know that are not written by the performers themselves. Some of these made the performers famous, like Bob Dylan’s “Make You Feel My Love” for Adele. Full of anecdotes and stories of historical significance for anyone that loves music. I learned a lot from reading this book and listening to the originals and covers. Look forward to checking out the author’s blog, from which this book came from.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of behind the scenes and industry intrigue in this compilation of views of major pop hits from the standpoint of fresh interpretations of originals. Sometimes this involves strange bedfellows -- techno pop recording of a country ballad, for example -- coming into new dimensions to good effect. And the book is meticulously organized so that the reader can sample (as I did) from tales of favorite artists and omit tales of those less favored. But for the true rock/pop aficionado, the best bet is to read Cover Me cover-to-cover. (Could not resist.)

[Benjamin Kahn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting book on the back story of various cover songs. The only slow point for me was a little too much Patti Smith going on about her religious beliefs. Otherwise, I really enjoyed the book, despite the fact that they're were a lot of covers songs that I'd never heard the original or the cover before. I also enjoyed the introduction when Padgett talked about the evolution of the cover song.

[Steve Portigal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic essays that describe to varying degrees the culture of the current time, the career of the original artist and/or songwriter, the contrasting culture and career of the cover artist, the process of recording the cover, and the impact on culture and the careers of those involved. Each essay is different, and is short enough to be very snackable but detailed and specific enough to give you some insight and opportunity to reflect on a particular aspect of music history.

[Patricia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I heard the author on "The 1A" radio show, so checked out the book. Some of the stories are fascinating, others merely OK. Unfortunately for many of the songs I didn't know either the cover nor the original, leaving me in the dark for those chapters. The chapters on Hound Dog, Respect, Polkas on 45, and Gin & Juice were entertaining and enlightening for me.

[pianogal · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was really good. Especially if you read while listening to the tracks. I knew most of these, but some of them - like Midnight Train to Georgia - I didn't realize the version I knew was a cover. Or that it was a cover of Cissy Houston - mother to Whitney. Based on the blog of the same name, there are a lot of good stories in this one.

[Du · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great color and illustrations to move the book along. Wasn't as impressed as I wanted to be with the narrative portion of this book, but nontheless, I am glad that I picked it up. It is funny to read the stories behind why a song excelled with a new performer, and what the original performer thought of the redo.

[Jennifer Pusey · Rating 4 out of 5]

For me this book was a lot of fun. If you are a musician or just love popular music this book is for you. I knew most of the songs, but even the ones I didn’t I enjoyed reading about. If you do read this book, keep your phone close by. I found myself on Apple Music looking up most versions of these songs and checking out several clips on YouTube.

[Gerrod Harris · Rating 2 out of 5]

Padgett makes a strong case for examining covers of great artistic and cultural significance in the introduction, however, the more you read of Cover Me, the further Padgett seems to stray from his intentions. While there are plenty of interesting anecdotes throughout the book, Cover Me rarely goes beyond the surface to examine the grander impact of the covers chosen.