Sister Rosetta Goes Before Us

Original - Sam Phillips
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_1gEKfwe0k

Cover - Robert Plant & Alison Krauss
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jLG9ERQOdBw

Wow. Its Naptime at the HCRealms Arena! The "original" here seemed more like a poetry reading on amateur night at the local beatnik lounge. The cover was much better but no less sleep inducing.

Voting for.......Robert Plant and Alison Krauss.

What Songwriterz says

Robert Plant and Alison Krauss.

I'll take Sam Phillips. I prefer the acoustic sounds.

Oh, I liked. I listened to the original and thought to myself, it's going to be hard to top that. The cover did. Alison's vocals were lovely and the lush instrumentals gave it a nice exotic feel. Kind of felt like I was visiting a Gypsy camp. Robert Plant & Alison Krauss

Plant and Krauss win this one easily for me, and I'm the guy who loves bare stripped down acoustic performances. Sam Phillips does something nice, but it felt like there was something missing; Percussion. not drums per se, but nice spared mellowed percussion. Exactly what P&K gave us. Plus their scoring of the arrangement gives it a nice feel. I want to say it has a bit of a middle eastern taste to it which is very nice when added to a folk style song.

Krauss' voice is also sweeter on the ears and Plants backing vocals are subtle and they let the song be the song without going all Black Dog on it.

One of the prettiest songs I've heard in a long time.

Plant & Krauss

I wish I could find the Samantha Phillips studio version of this song so I could pit that against Plant & Krauss. Unfortunately this radio performance was the bet I could come up with but atleast I've made people aware of her.
My vote's for Plant & Krauss but don't blow Samantha Phillips off lightly.

Didnt love either, but they were overall OK songs. Ill go with Robert Plant & Alison Krauss.

I'm with DTM on this, to me the song is just OK. Performances great, but I don't love the song. Think just a matter of taste, but not a matter of the talents here.

Alison Krauss with the cover is my favorite. She could sing her scales, and I think I would still be enthralled for hours by her voice.

Krauss and Plant for me. Nothing wrong with the original; Krauss and Plant's version just sounded richer.

My thoughts EXACTLY --- and I salute you, RE, as much for the effort in attempting to find Sam's studio version as the choice of song.

Even if I hadn't seen and enjoyed RP on Letterman the other night, I'd still be voting for this haunting rendition of a wonderful song...

The Cover -- Robert Plant and Alison Krauss, though I do like Ms. Phillips' original as presented here very much indeed!