Bonnie Raitt: I’ll admit it, things are a little fast and loose over here at Hidden Track. Cheating may occur. Perhaps there is a serious advantage here because this live version actually includes the original artist. Raitt originally covered the tune on her fourth album titled Streetlights.
Video of Bonnie performing the tune with an all-star cast:
Dave Matthews Band: I don’t know about you, but I consider myself a pretty serious setlist geek. If you’re into that sort of thing and are remotely interested in the history of Dave Matthews Band, you gotta check out antsmarching.org ; It is on that site that I learned that this song is the second most covered song by DMB, behind only All Along The Watchtower. However, this classic has not graced a live stage in over 6 years. I have selected a very old recording, the second ever known performance of the tune.
Hot Buttered Rum: Don’t let the crowd noise at the beginning of this track make you skip it, because it is a great rendition once it gets going and the crowd quiets down. The only time performed by these guys, they welcome Millicent Cummings to the stage to contribute both guitar and vocals. I dig the volume control for the 3rd verse.
Keller Williams: This is one of the earliest known Keller Williams shows (Well, one of the earliest with a setlist on kellerwilliams.net). Whether you like his looping shtick, his performances with full bands or none of the above, there is little to argue about his pure talent as a singer and guitar player. I recommend checking out the whole show for some early raw Keller.
Max Creek: Wow, 2 weeks in a row someone is in Cover Wars? That must be some kind of record (4th edition). While doing the research for these Cover Wars pieces, Mac Creek shows up a LOT because they have been around for so freaking long and have covered a lot of songs. I believe we’ve got the keyboardist Mark Mercier holding down the lead vocals duties on this take.
Strangefolk: What I love about Strangefolk is that they took this tune and made it their own. Man, I’m starting to sound like the judges from America’s Best Dance Crew…no I don’t watch that show. Anyway, from the opening intro it just sounds like Strangefolk. I love these old shows before Reid Genauer split for graduate school.
Susan Tedeschi: Ahh yes, another rendition where the narration makes a bit more sense, at least in the terms of the gender you know…Pretty soulful stuff right here especially when the ‘Sugaree’ portion kicks in. Derek Trucks you are a lucky man.
Some video with Susan and Sonya Kitchell:
Tea Leaf Green: Only time played, coming at you from a Radio Broadcast last year. This version features Tea Leaf Green sans drummer and with Tim Carbone of Railroad Earth on the fiddle.
So that’s all we got for this one. Now, it’s 3am and your children are safe and asleep. Who do you want covering Angel From Montgomery? I’m DaveO and I approve this message.
10 thoughts on “Cover Wars: Angel From Montgomery Edition”
Can I do a write-in entry?
Ben Harper & Tom Freund from the album Pleasure & Pain in 1992.
http://www.sendspace.com/file/nkshw3
That’s tough. TLG’s is incredible, but Keller and Bonnie Raitt are right up there.
Do you khow who is singing on the Dave Matthews one?
That’s Boyd Tinsley, the fiddle player from DMB on lead vocals, with Dave on backup, that’s the way they always performed the tune I do believe…
Susan or Bonnie for sure. None of the others really come close. (Boyd, TLG…really?)
That said I’m going with susan.
I love this song. Gotta go with Bonnie. The Keller version is really good too, and Strangefolk.
I actually have a different version that Dave Matthews performed with Tim Reynolds. I like that one better than the one here.
I was hoping to vote for Tea Leaf Green playing “Angel From Montgomery” acoustic on my radio show (6-12-07 linked above), but after an honest listen to all 8 of the versions you’re streaming in the cover-wars, Susan Tedeschi is the stand-out vocal performance! Damn girl!! Incredible vocal nuances and so much feeling, plus a fine backing band. I also liked the backing music Strangefolk played on their version.
On TLG’s, note “the flies a-buzzing” color that Tim Carbone (Railroad Earth) adds on violin. He made the fiddle buzz for that line.
I can see why DMB stopped playing this.
SUSAN T for the win! Everyone listen to her version. -Dgold
If Tea Leaf doesn’t win this then this voting system, along with that by which we have elected our current president, is flawed.
SHOOT sining COUNTRY twang is HOW you get your wings to be an Angel ? I guess that Heaven won`t allow any one but them there white Americans to get in? Knock Knock If you be sportin Tony lamas and a steston will think about it?Maybe
MARCH 5 1971 a LITTLE SONG WAS FIRST PUBLICLY SUNG IN ULSTER IRELAND ” THERES A song bird who sings in a tree by a brook ooohhh ooohhh”
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