Cover Story #1: Band of Gold - Freda Payne
I remember where I was when I first consciously heard this song, about a decade ago - in an AirBnB in Bruges on a friend's stag do, when another friend put it on his Bluetooth speaker and it sent shivers down my spine instantly - it's been one of my favourite songs ever since. I love the distinctive intro riff, the bass is incredible, the anguish in Payne's voice is palpable, it really is Motown firing on all cylinders, even though it wasn't actually released on Motown due to producers / co-composers Holland-Dozier-Holland leaving and forming their own label.
The lyrics are pretty tragic, about a new bride being rejected by her new husband - apparently the song has been claimed as a gay anthem due to the inferred reason for the rejection being his homosexuality.
There aren't a ton of covers on Spotify for this song, my highlight is probably Marcia Griffiths' reggae version (the best vocal interpretation after the original IMHO) or a disco version by Sylvester. The cover by the Australian band The Reels has a quite different feel but isn't really to my taste.
The most famous versions are from two singers who I really struggle to keep apart in my head, Belinda Carlisle and Bonnie Tyler, despite the only things them having in common is that they were big in the 80s and both their names start with B. Anyway neither of their versions is particularly exiting, they're just 80s-ified versions of the original.
There are also a couple of country versions by Charly McClain and Sandy Posey, which are pleasant but not particularly exciting. More recently, Kimberley Locke did a dance version which is a bit too OTT for me.
There's also a version not on Spotify from Anna Nalick which is from the Desperate Housewives soundtrack that is decent.
Bonus track not on Spotify, the Anna Nalick version
None of these versions live up to the original for me, but it's one of my all-time favourite songs so it was always going to be tough to beat.