Darkness, Darkness

Rare three way match!

Original - The Youngbloods
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-CYWbfFoXY

Cover 1 - Robert Plant
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDBvY13FE64

Cover 2 - Lisa Torban
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=giOP1o7Mre4

I would have done this a long time ago, except I kept getting sidetracked by everybody's suggestions. This is probably a good thing as I probably would have overlooked Lisa Torban's haunting cover.

Credit Soxolas for indirectly reminding me that I had the Youngbloods on my short list.

Got to keep my freak flag flying, ya know!

I had the great pleasure of seeing Jesse Colin Young and the original Youngbloods perform, before Jerry Corbitt exited to go solo. They were a terrific band and I never understood why they didn't enjoy a greater degree of success, the kind that was enjoyed by the Lovin' Spoonful.

Admittedly, the Spoonful had a number of catchy singles. Today, the Youngbloods are best (and deservedly) remembered for "Get Together." But "Grizzly Bear" should have fared better, IMHO. And there are some real gems on those first two RCA albums ("All Over the World" remains a personal favorite).

Congrats to RE for putting together this three-way. The older I get, the more my respect and appreciation for Robert Plant continue to grow. His cover version of "Darkness, Darkness" is just one more reason for me to feel that way. As for the cover by Lisa Torban, this is my first hearing of it --- and that's another example of why these threads are so terrific. A very nice version indeed.

That said...

The Original -- The Youngbloods, please!

The winner's the Youngbloods. It's the real standout among the three. If we're ranking, #2 goes to Lisa Torban and #3 will be Robert Plant.

I'm too lazy this morning to go searching, but I'm sure I have this on a 45. Is it the B side of get together? Don't remember. Anyway, I prefer the Original by The Youngbloods

Original - The Youngbloods

This isn't Plant's forte, he's last.

Youngbloods and Lisa Torban are very close here. I'll give the nod to Torban to keep it from being a blowout.

The Youngbloods.

I'm a huge mark for Robert Plant so there was no way I was going to leave him out of this match. That's why I let it be a three way.

Never the less, I admit that the other two are a bit better then his version.
A bit, I still have no problem jamming to the R.P. version.

Of course the Youngbloods version is the gold standard.