Rhino’s Got You Covered: Saigon Kick, Paul Young, Simply Red, and Donny Hathaway

It’s Wednesday, so it must be time to take another dip into the Rhino catalog and trot out a new quartet of cover songs that you may or may not have heard before. Let’s get started, shall we?

•    Saigon Kick, “Dear Prudence” (1992): This Beatles cover originally made its debut as a bonus track on the Japanese release of the band’s 1992 album THE LIZARD, but it’s never been available elsewhere in any official capacity until now.

•    Paul Young, “Across the Borderline” (1997): Originally recorded by co-writer Ry Cooder for the soundtrack of the 1982 film  The Border, where vocal duties were handled by Freddy Fender, the song – a collaboration between Cooder, John Hiatt, and Jim Dickinson – got a boost in profile when Willie Nelson both covered it and utilized it as the title track for his 1993 album ACROSS THE BORDERLINE. In other words, Young’s in good company.

•    Simply Red, “Mellow My Mind” (1998): Mick Hucknall has covered more than a few songs throughout his career as frontman of Simply Red, but he’s one of the very few artists who’s ever opted to take a shot at this Neil Young track from 1975’s TONIGHT’S THE NIGHT.

•    Donny Hathaway, “What’s Going On” (1972): Given the level of tension that exists in America at the moment as a result of the tragic and horrific events in Minneapolis, this just seemed like a perfect song to spotlight, and Hathaway’s version of Marvin Gaye’s signature tune actually gives the original a run for its money...and that’s saying something.