Editorial Reviews

There have been several compilation CDs of Bruce Springsteen covers, Rhino's Cover Me: Songs by Springsteen probably being the most famous. If I Were the Boss: The Songs of Bruce Springsteen has a few of the most celebrated (and commercially successful) Springsteen covers, most notably Patti Smith's "Because the Night" and Manfred Mann's Earth Band's "Blinded by the Light." It differs from other CDs following this theme, however, in its emphasis both on British covers (though exceptions were made for tracks by Smith and Greg Kihn) and songs that were written before the mid-'80s (and largely recorded before then as well). That makes room both for some unusual interpretations, and for some of the earliest Springsteen covers to be released anywhere. The August 1974 release of "If I Were the Priest" on a solo album by Hollies lead singer Allan Clarke, in fact, is (according to David Wells' excellent liner notes) the very first release of a Springsteen cover version, made all the more interesting by the failure of the composition to be included on an official Springsteen album, though it's not that great a song. Other items of interest for being covered at a time when Springsteen had yet to reach stardom include Manfred Mann's Earth Band's original 1975 rendition of "Spirits in the Night," the Hollies' 1975 single "Sandy (4th of July, Asbury Park)" (one of the finest Springsteen covers ever done), and Allan Clarke's faithful interpretation of "Born to Run," doomed to obscurity when it was issued at the same time as Springsteen's own recording of the song.

While none of the other tracks on this 19-song CD are as historically significant as the ones cited above, and not all of them are all that good by any means, certainly there are some unexpected and offbeat entries that even Springsteen aficionados might have never heard. Rhonda (no last name) sounds like a female singer backed by the Who on her gender-altered 1978 single "He's the One"; Dawn Chorus & the Blue Tits' girl group-oriented cover of "I'm Going Down" is fronted by future Radio One DJ Liz Kershaw; and the Chuck Berry-styled "From Small Things (Big Things One Day Come)" was specifically given to Dave Edmunds by the songwriter himself. There are a bunch of unlikely suspects taking a crack at the Springsteen catalog, including Alvin Stardust (at "Growin' Up"); Welsh rockabilly revivalist Shakin' Stevens' attempt at "Fire"; and a version of "The Fever" by Dean Ford, formerly lead singer of British pop/rock '60s hitmakers Marmalade. There are, naturally, also some cuts that are essentially novelty discs, those being the Flying Pickets' a cappella arrangement of "Factory" and Louis Clark & the London Philharmonic Orchestra's "Dancing in the Dark." Needless to say, this CD doesn't come close to being the definitive single-disc compilation of notable Springsteen covers; there are too many such tracks that were excluded, and one CD couldn't hope to fit on even the notable covers of songs that Springsteen wrote but never released on his own records. It certainly does, however, include some of the more interesting and little-known Springsteen covers, and is packaged with a lighter, more humorous touch than many compilers would bring to such projects. Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide

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