Joe Cocker

From the beginning of his career (in 1960 in a band with three of his school buddies) people took notice of Joe Cocker because of his distinctive voice, his energetic playing of air guitar on stage, and his often emotional interpretations of the songs he covered.

Born and raised in Sheffield, England, Cocker's early gigs in local clubs featured the skiffle music that dominated British music in the early '60s -- a blend of blues, folk, jazz and country. His first band, The Cavaliers broke up after a year, and Cocker formed a new group and adopted the stage name, Vance Arnold.

"Vance" and his group, The Avengers, opened for The Rolling Stones at a 1963 Sheffield gig. He landed a record deal in 1964, and recorded the first of many subsequent covers of The Beatles. A young session guitarist named Jimmy Page (pre-Led Zeppelin) played backup guitar on "I'll Cry Instead" which Decca Records launched with a major promotional campaign. Nevertheless, the record was a flop, and the Decca deal dissolved in less than a year.

Joe Cocker's Big Blues was born in 1964, recorded an EP, and became the house band at a London club. In 1965, Cocker took a break from music altogether, but was back in 1966 with the Grease Band, which broke up when Cocker landed his second record deal as a solo artist.

Cocker co-wrote his next single, "Marjorine" with his former Grease Band mate, Chris Stainton. It charted in the U.S. but it was his 1968 cover of the Lennon-McCartney (mostly McCartney) song, "With A Little Help From My Friends" that pushed Cocker into the commercial mainstream. His performance at Woodstock in 1969 cemented the deal.

Throughout the next decade, more success followed with covers of songs like "Midnight Rider," "Delta Lady," "Feelin' Alright," "The Letter" and more Beatles material like "Something" and "She Came in Through the Bathroom Window." His gravelly voice and energetic machinations on stage won favor not only with audiences but with the artists whose songs he covered.

Between 1969 and 1971 Cocker toured with the large ensemble group Mad Dogs and Englishmen, led by Leon Russell and consisting of three dozen musicians and vocalists. After a falling out with Russell, Cocker took another leave of absence from music, returning in 1972. He is still recording and performing more than 50 years after his first public performance.

His catalog consists of more than three dozen studio, live, and video releases. He won a Grammy in 1983 for his rendition of "Up Where We Belong" with Jennifer Warnes. He is on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the Top 100 greatest singers.

Cocker's formula for those decades of success? "It's all a matter of hearing what I like and seeing if I can make it fit into my style."

Joe Cocker Discography

Live Albums
Mad Dogs & Englishmen (1970)
Live in LA (1976)
Space Captain (1976)
Live in New York (1981)
Joe Cocker Live (1990)
Vance Arnold & The Avengers (1999)
Standing Here (2001)
The Complete Fillmore East Concerts (2006)
Live at Woodstock (2009)