# Why do people think Joe Cocker is good performer? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 20, 2008, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-think-joe-cocker-is-good-performer/438429 "2008-02-20T21:17:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![DudleyGarrett](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d9b06d/32.png) [@DudleyGarrett](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DudleyGarrett)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2008, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-think-joe-cocker-is-good-performer/438429/1 "2008-02-20T21:17:59Z")
I’ve heard a LOT of Joe Cocker in my life. To me, he kills everything. He never stood out to me as being musically talented. His voice is raspy. He has really strange mannerisms when he sings, and he has bad teeth. Can anyone shed some light on this for me? ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2008, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-think-joe-cocker-is-good-performer/438429/2 "2008-02-20T21:28:10Z")
One of the best interpreters of rock songs there is. The “raspy” voice gives some character and emotion to his songs. Listen to his Mad Dogs and Englishmen CD to see. On stage, his performance is a bit odd, but his voice makes up for it. One of the half dozen best male singers in rock. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2008, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-think-joe-cocker-is-good-performer/438429/3 "2008-02-20T21:29:38Z")
Because he’s got an amazingly expressive voice. Ditto **Reality Chuck** ’s _Mad Dogs and Englishmen_ recommendation – it’s a desert-island album for me. ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2008, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-think-joe-cocker-is-good-performer/438429/4 "2008-02-20T21:31:27Z")
It’s all about the emotion. ---
**Author:** ![3acresandatruck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/3/e79b87/32.png) [@3acresandatruck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/3acresandatruck)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2008, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-think-joe-cocker-is-good-performer/438429/5 "2008-02-20T21:32:49Z")
[QUOTE=DudleyGarrett] He has really strange mannerisms when he sings [/QUOTE] That reminds me of the first time I ever saw him - a performance on the Ed Sullivan Show. My dad saw all those contortions and asked me what was wrong with him. I told Dad maybe he had some form of palsy or something…I had no idea; I’d only heard him on the radio prior to that. As far as the raspy voice and all, I guess that’s part of the charm. I firmly believe he _owns_ “With a Little Help From My Friends”. Nowadays, I can scarcely listen to it without channeling Cocker ala Belushi. ---
**Author:** ![Kuboydal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecb155/32.png) [@Kuboydal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kuboydal)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2008, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-think-joe-cocker-is-good-performer/438429/6 "2008-02-20T21:33:06Z")
I’d rather listen to someone who was affected by the music than a disinterested but more able performer. Joe Cocker freaked out during every song. Who cares what his teeth look like, he was authentic. ---
**Author:** ![PharmBoy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/74df32/32.png) [@PharmBoy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PharmBoy)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2008, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-think-joe-cocker-is-good-performer/438429/7 "2008-02-20T21:34:04Z")
I think he’s one of the most under-rated '60s performers. His voice IS raspy; so was Janis Joplin’s. No one can sing “blue-eyed soul” like Joe. I’m with you in one respect - I can’t watch him sing. He’s great to listen to, tho. ---
**Author:** ![woodstockbirdybird](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/woodstockbirdybird/32/7905_2.png) [@woodstockbirdybird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/woodstockbirdybird)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2008, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-think-joe-cocker-is-good-performer/438429/8 "2008-02-20T21:38:27Z")
I’m with the OP. I’ve never been a fan of artists who equate straining and being over the top with soul (Janis Joplin, Michael Bolton), and I’m even less enamored of white British “blues” musicians now than I was 20 years ago. I find the guy boring and unlistenable. ETA: And I’ve never enjoyed his “interpretations” more than the originals he was covering. ---
**Author:** ![Kuboydal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecb155/32.png) [@Kuboydal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kuboydal)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2008, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-think-joe-cocker-is-good-performer/438429/9 "2008-02-20T21:44:03Z")
Michael Bolton has soul? ---
**Author:** ![woodstockbirdybird](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/woodstockbirdybird/32/7905_2.png) [@woodstockbirdybird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/woodstockbirdybird)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2008, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-think-joe-cocker-is-good-performer/438429/10 "2008-02-20T22:48:12Z")
No, he equates straining with soul. ---
**Author:** ![devilsknew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4da419/32.png) [@devilsknew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/devilsknew)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2008, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-think-joe-cocker-is-good-performer/438429/11 "2008-02-21T00:01:59Z")
I think Joe is a folk singer and storyteller in the old tradition. It’s the story that he feels… it’s flowin chi, babee-- flowin chi. His voice is his body. ---
**Author:** ![TWDuke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e495f1/32.png) [@TWDuke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TWDuke)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2008, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-think-joe-cocker-is-good-performer/438429/12 "2008-02-21T00:35:17Z")
Tom Waits is a storyteller with a raspy but expressive voice. Joe Cocker always brings to mind what the old folks call “straining at the stool.” Like woodstockybird, I put him in the same class as Michael Bolton and I was shocked (shocked, I tell you!) to discover that some people prefer his Beatles covers (fucking _ **Beatles** _, man) to the originals. ---
**Author:** ![Purd\_Werfect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e47c2d/32.png) [@Purd\_Werfect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Purd_Werfect)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2008, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-think-joe-cocker-is-good-performer/438429/13 "2008-02-21T00:44:46Z")
What an odd coincidence - thanks to the live Wilco thread elsewhere in this forum, I’m listening to a radio station streaming out of Chicago, and they just played “She Came in Through the Bathroom Window” as covered by Joe Cocker. I’m not a Cocker fan, but that particular song I liked better than the original. (It’s not one of my favorite Beatles tunes.) It’s all relative, but I’m surprised to see Janis Joplin characterized as straining. She did often seem to be going to the edge, but I think that’s exactly what she was shooting for. She’s one of my all-time favorite raspy voiced singers, along with the aforementioned Tom Waits, who is a minor deity at the very least. Who the hell’s Michael Bolton? \<-rhetorical question. ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2008, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-think-joe-cocker-is-good-performer/438429/14 "2008-02-21T00:59:21Z")
FYI I also like Kenny Rogers, whose voice is very gravelly. He can sure interpret a song well. ---
**Author:** ![Talon\_Karrde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Talon\_Karrde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Talon_Karrde)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2008, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-think-joe-cocker-is-good-performer/438429/15 "2008-02-21T03:03:41Z")
I haven’t heard much from him other than his Beatles covers, but I definitely don’t think they stand up to the originals. They definitely had their moments though. ---
**Author:** ![Kuboydal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecb155/32.png) [@Kuboydal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kuboydal)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2008, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-think-joe-cocker-is-good-performer/438429/16 "2008-02-21T03:23:45Z")
I would consider myself a Tom Waits fan, but I consider him to be an actor/performer type. His extemporaneous monologues are planned in advance and repeated verbatim both live and in the studio. I doubt Cocker planned out his freakiness. ---
**Author:** ![solkoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/919ad9/32.png) [@solkoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solkoe)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2008, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-think-joe-cocker-is-good-performer/438429/17 "2008-02-22T02:39:50Z")
Who said a singer needed range to be good? There are lots of bad singers out there (AKA Neil Young) but they make their success by being bold and being great interpreters of material. Someday, I’m gonna make it too!!! ---
**Author:** ![mambocrow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc348/32.png) [@mambocrow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mambocrow)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2008, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-think-joe-cocker-is-good-performer/438429/18 "2008-02-22T03:56:51Z")
Mr. Cocker always had a rocking band to provide accompaniment. That’s what I liked about him anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2008, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-think-joe-cocker-is-good-performer/438429/19 "2008-02-22T04:05:07Z")
Cocker’s cover of “The Letter” has been one of my favorite songs since I was about 10. I still think that’s an awesome version, and I’ve liked everything else I’ve heard from him. [QUOTE=TWDuke] Like woodstockybird, I put him in the same class as Michael Bolton and I was shocked (shocked, I tell you!) to discover that some people prefer his Beatles covers (fucking _ **Beatles** _, man) to the originals. [/QUOTE] Hey, if Ringo’s singing on “With a Little Help from My Friends” moves you, more power to you, but I think Cocker’s version offers a lot more in terms of singing and orchestration. ---
**Author:** ![TWDuke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e495f1/32.png) [@TWDuke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TWDuke)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2008, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-think-joe-cocker-is-good-performer/438429/20 "2008-02-22T04:25:32Z")
Yes, it offers **more** , I’ll give you that. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-think-joe-cocker-is-good-performer/438429.md?page=2)