WE DO THE MASHED POTATO AND THE FUNKY CHICKEN

With “…Friends” Like This

Posted about 1 year ago

One of the most electric moments of the watershed three-day Woodstock rock festival, held in upstate New York during August 1969, was raspy-voiced British blues singer Joe Cocker's astonishing cover of the Beatles' "With a Little Help From My Friends." The one caveat: Cocker sang the song with such fire and frenzy that the words were next to unintelligible.

What people don't realize is that Cocker boldly rewrote the Lennon-McCartney lyrics, tailoring them to his own inimitable style. Only now do we have access to the words he was singing during this once-in-a-lifetime performance - displayed here in a clip from the 1970 concert documentary "Woodstock." Enjoy!

Comments (22)

  1. brittanybf says

    Starring Joe Cocker for Probiotics. :)

    Permalink posted 06/26/2008
  2. Joxley says

    I wonder what it says if you play it backwards...

    Permalink posted 06/26/2008
  3. Spike says

    Totally my kind of humor.  Who does his hair?  He'd be good as a waiter carrying a tray of cocktails.

    Permalink posted 06/26/2008
  4. Augusts1 says

    WOW! That's an intense reinterpretation. I was seriously laughing my ass off out loud. Thanks Mike, I needed that! I'm loving these vids that have visual misrepresentation of the lyrics. TFF!

    Permalink posted 06/26/2008
  5. vannatta says

    LOL!!!  That's amazing... thanks Mike!

    Permalink posted 06/26/2008
  6. TynansAnger says

    Now I'm starting to wonder if the Wonder Years got paid for product placement.

    Permalink posted 06/26/2008
  7. sonical says

    This is fantastic!! There are some really creative people out there.

    Looks like something a guy did a few years ago called with Fall Out Boy.

    It's for Fall Out Boy. The Embed didn't work but here's the URL:

    http://www.mtv.com/overdrive/?id=1539536&vid=77677

    Permalink posted 06/26/2008
  8. msquared64 says

    awesome, I love it

    Permalink posted 06/26/2008
  9. annieander says

    Truth be told...I never knew that the backup singers were men.  But now that I see them...yeah, they do sound like men, but if you had asked me before, I would have said the singers were women.  Huh?

    Permalink posted 06/26/2008
  10. P-Theory says

    Thats brilliant!!

    Permalink posted 06/26/2008
  11. Mike the Knife says

    brittanybf: Product placement? (See "Wonder Bread.")

    Joxley: "Satan is my vocal coach."

    Spike: Hair by Osterizer... 

    August: You're (ha!) welcome...

    vannatta: De nada!

    TynansAnger: It's their bread - and butter.

    sonical: The madness is epidemic!

    msquared64: Me, too!

    annieander: Men or woman...wow!

    P-Theory: Mega!

    Permalink posted 06/26/2008
  12. Rawkkiddoh says

    I never tire of seeing footage from woodstock........the real one

    Permalink posted 06/26/2008
  13. Mike the Knife says

    Rawkkiddoh: I don't mind the tampering here, either.

    Permalink posted 06/27/2008
  14. Jonh Ingham says

    Wonderful! Of course, if you're from Sheffield he's making perfect sense.

    Permalink posted 06/27/2008
  15. Rawkkiddoh says

    I feel like I am missing something

    Permalink posted 06/27/2008
  16. Mike the Knife says

    Jonh: Oh those wacky regional accents!

    Rawkkiddoh: Well, whatever it is, it should become clear in the subtitles. Or muddled.

    Permalink posted 06/27/2008
  17. HelenMarie says

    I have tears!  That was one of the funniest video's I've ever seen.

    Permalink posted 06/27/2008
  18. contrabandwidth says

    Man, it's so funny I could actually see any of those companies using it to sell their product.  If you can sell muual funds to boomers with classic rock, why not use this one.  Too funny!

    Here's a couple heavyweights taking on another heavy weight:

    Permalink posted 06/27/2008
  19. Mike the Knife says

    Sunny: I made you cry? I have mixed feelings about this. (heh, heh)

    contra: Lemmings! Pre-SNL Belushi and Chevy. Awesome.

    Permalink posted 06/28/2008
  20. dermahrk says

    AHAHAHAHA! The funniest post I've seen in a long while. Thank God fer YouTube and M the K!

    Permalink posted 06/28/2008
  21. ZenPop says

    Great post... I got suckered in by your intro... waiting for the revelations... ('cause I never really got Joe C.... what's the big deal?)

    ...well... ha! THAT was pretty funny!

    Permalink posted 06/28/2008
  22. Mike the Knife says

    dermahrk: It's a pisser all right.:-)

    ZenPop: No tricks, just a treat!

    Permalink posted 06/28/2008

Comment on this Post

Login using email and password below.

Forgot Password?

Don't have an account?
Join MOG. It's Free!

© 2006-2009 Mog Inc. All Rights Reserved