Sometimes covering someone else’s material can be the most powerful demonstration of one’s artistry. Black Acid Soul, the debut album from the magnificent Lady Blackbird, with its stripped down renderings of soul deep cuts, was a case in point. Oh, and she can nail it live too.
Originally by swamp rock musician Tony Joe White, ‘Did Somebody Make A Fool Out of You’ (first released in 1973) is the subject of Lady Blackbird’s latest reinvention. She describes the song as “a cool sticky soul tune that had heartbreak, heartache and headache. I just thought it was bluesy and told a story that I and everyone else could relate to while musically being downtempo and bluesy.”
Blackbird and her creative partner Chris Seefried reconceptualise ‘Did Somebody Make a Fool Out of You’ as a tormented, piano-driven jazz number, powered by Blackbird’s characteristic phrasing and rasp.
Image copyright: Foundation Music Productions