Joe Cocker’s true genius lay in his rare ability to take someone else’s music and use his raw and powerful voice to make it uniquely his own.
Joe Cocker was one of rock & roll’s most gifted and influential artists. With his distinctive, soulful voice and his singular talent as a song stylist, Cocker’s true genius lay in his rare ability to take someone else’s music and make it uniquely his own, captivating the imagination of millions of listeners.
While Cocker was a songwriter himself, his interpretations of classics like “Feelin’ Alright” and “The Letter” redefined those songs, crafting their definitive versions and introducing them to new audiences. His iconic take on “With a Little Help From My Friends” was so transformative that it became a signature of Woodstock and an anthem of its era. Cocker’s raw and powerful voice was a rare instrument of pure passion – gritty and ravaged while also heartbreakingly tender – and his greatness was also showcased in his electrifying stage presence, which made the legendary Mad Dogs & Englishmen Tour in 1970 among the most celebrated moments in rock & roll history.
As a young singer, Cocker performed in pubs in his hometown of Sheffield, England, before releasing his first single in 1964 and forming the Grease Band in 1966. By 1968, “With a Little Help From My Friends” hit Number One in the U.K. and made him a star, and his career soared further with hits like “Delta Lady” and “Cry Me a River.” Despite personal and professional struggles over the years, Cocker continually rebounded, releasing the emotional “You Are So Beautiful” in 1974 and the Grammy-winning “Up Where We Belong” in 1982. Over his forty-year career, Cocker released 23 studio albums and toured extensively, reinventing himself while staying true to his intense, emotive style. He released his final album, Fire It Up, in 2012 and passed away from lung cancer in 2014.
Ranked among Rolling Stone’s “100 Greatest Singers of All Time” and honored with an OBE in 2007, Cocker’s impact on popular music is immeasurable. Billy Joel once said about Cocker, “In my opinion, no one has come even close to him as one of the great primal rock & roll vocalists of all time.”