Wilson Pickett - 'Hey Jude'

I've always considered Wilson Pickett the best screamer in the history of soul, R&B, and rock.  He lays into “Hey Jude” like he just accidentally chopped his foot off with a hatchet, while the horn section cooks and Duane Allman, who was just beginning his career as a session musician, tears off one of the most brilliant and in-your-face guitar solos you’ll ever hear.  It’s a terrific performance, on a classic album.  If the rest of the album was jingles for breakfast cereal and Big Pharma, Wilson and company would have still made a heartfelt album.

Fortunately, Wilson fills out the album with a bunch of other songs that, while they can’t (what could?) compare with “Hey Jude,” are excellent in their own right. His voice is a miracle, his screams make Joe Cocker sound like a pee wee leaguer, and in short he turns in a whole slew of superb performances, demonstrating his mastery of phrasing and the entire genre.

Putting Pickett, Allman, the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section (the so-called Swampers), and some great horn players together in the studio was a stroke of genius on Atlantic Records honcho Jerry Wexler’s part, and it paid off in a royal flush.

Fun fact: at one point during the sessions, Duane Allman dosed the water cooler with mescaline.

'Hey Jude' was recorded In October 1968 at FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama.

Wilson Pickett on vocals
Duane Allman on lead guitar
Jimmy Johnson and Albert S. Lowe Jr. on rhythm guitars
Jerry Jemmott and David Hood on bass
Barry Beckett on piano
Marvell Thomas on organ
Roger Hawkins on drums
Gene "Bowlegs" Miller and Jack Peck on trumpet
Joe Arnold and Aaron Varnell on tenor saxophone
James Mitchell on baritone saxophone
The Sweet Inspirations ("Cissy" Houston, Sylvia Shemwell, Myrna Smith and Estelle Brown) on backing vocals

For the freeload, what are some of your favorite cover versions, that to you, are better than the original hits?