Joe Cocker
Joe Cocker (born
John Robert Cocker,
20 May 1944, in
Sheffield, England) is an
English rock/
blues musician.
He started his musical career in the city of his birth
Sheffield, England in some minor bands at the age of 15: the first band was the Avengers (under the stage name Vance Arnold), then Big Blues (
1963), and then
The Grease Band (
1966). His first single was the first of several
The Beatles covers, "
I'll Cry Instead".
After minor success in the
UK with the single "
Marjorine", he entered the big time with a groundbreaking rearrangement of "
With a Little Help from My Friends," another Beatles cover, this time from the
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album, featuring lead guitar from
Jimmy Page, which topped the
UK singles chart in November 1968 for one week.
In 1969 he appeared at the
Woodstock Music Festival [
1]His performance included the following tracks# Delta Lady# Some Things Goin' On# Let's Go Get Stoned# I Shall Be Released# With a Little Help from My Friends
Cocker then had a second UK
hit with the
Leon Russell song "
Delta Lady". He had further success covering Beatles tunes in 1970 with his version of "
She Came in Through the Bathroom Window" off their
Abbey Road album. Though his British success proved difficult to sustain, he enjoyed several chart entries in the
US with "
Cry Me a River" and "
Feelin' Alright" by
Dave Mason. In
1970, his cover of the
Box Tops' hit "
The Letter", which appeared on the live album
Mad Dogs & Englishmen, became his first US
Top Ten hit.
In
1969 he was featured on
The Ed Sullivan Show. Onstage, he often exhibited a physical intensity as he sang, flailing his arms around and playing an
air guitar, ocassionally giving superfluous cues to his band.
In the beginning of
1970s he had problems with drugs including alcohol. He managed to make a comeback in the
1980s and
1990s with several hits, including:
*"
Up Where We Belong", (
Academy Award winning song written by
Buffy Sainte-Marie and sung with
Jennifer Warnes for the motion picture
An Officer and a Gentleman);
*"
You Are So Beautiful";
*"You Can leave Your Hat On"
*"When The Night Comes";
*"N'oubliez Jamais"
*"
Unchain My Heart"
Cocker performed the opening set at
Woodstock '94 as one of the few alumni who played at the original
Woodstock Festival in
1969, and was very well received.
He continues to tour sporadically.
He is sometimes known as "The Sheffield Soul Shouter".
*
With a Little Help from My Friends (1969)
*
Joe Cocker! (1969)
*
Mad Dogs & Englishmen (1970)
*
Joe Cocker (1972)
*
I Can Stand A Little Rain (1974)
*
Jamaica Say You Will (1975)
*
Stingray (1976)
*
Greatest Hits (1977)
*
Luxury You Can Afford (1978)
*
Sheffield Steel (1982)
*
Civilized Man (1984)
*
Cocker (1986)
*
Unchain My Heart (1987)
*
One Night Of Sin (1989)
*
Joe Cocker Live (1990)
*
Night Calls (1992)
*
The Best Of Joe Cocker (1993)
*
Have A Little Faith (1994)
*
The Long Voyage Home (1995)
*
Organic (1996)
*
Across From Midnight (1997)
*
Greatest Hits (1998)
*
No Ordinary World (1999)
*
Respect Yourself (2002)
*
Ultimate Collection (2004)
*
Heart & Soul (2005)
*Joe was a friend of the family of
Jarvis Cocker of
Pulp fame, and babysat for him, although the two are not related.
*In 1976, Cocker performed "Feelin' Alright" on
Saturday Night Live.
John Belushi joined him on stage doing his famous impersonation of Cocker's stage movements. [
2]
*Dropped out of High School and never obtained the equivalent of a high school diploma.
* Joe Cocker: The Authorised Biography by J. P. Bean (2003) ISBN 1852270438
*
The Official Website of Joe Cocker*
Joe Cocker (Fansite) *
Fansite at Myspace.com*
Joe Cocker's career on A&M Records with gallery, international discography*
Photos taken by photographer
Linda Wolf, one of the two official photographers of the Joe Cocker, Mad Dogs and Englishmen Tour, 1970
