Cover Me, Alabama Shakes: Adam Raised a Cain

Last weekend I had the honor and pleasure of joining The Jersey Girls on their delightful podcast, For the Love of E Street. (The episode isn’t out yet, but if you’re so inclined you can keep an eye out for it at whichever podcast hub you frequent. Check out their back episodes while you’re there!)

In preparation for our chat, co-host Donna Mintz did some blog recon and took me to task for neglecting one of her favorite covers: Alabama Shakes’ performance of “Adam Raised a Cain” from Bruce’s MusiCares tribute in 2013.

Now this particular rendition has been on my covers-to-cover list for so long that it was on Row 8 of a four-digit-long roster. It’s one of my favorites, too–an absolutely kick-ass performance.

So why haven’t I featured it until now? Partly because over the years, I’ve skewed more toward lesser-known, international, or amateur artists to spotlight performances that might otherwise fly under the radar.

But to be completely honest, it’s also because I worried that if I featured this particular performance, I was going to feel compelled to say something blasphemous, something that would spark a barrage of angry comments. But… I’ve worked on my self-restraint, and I think I can keep it in check.

So this is for you, Donna! And for everyone else, if you haven’t seen this before: buckle up.

Wow.

Okay, I was wrong. I can’t hold back. I have to say it.

That is the absolute best performance of “Adam Raised a Cain” I have ever seen by anyone–original artist included. Brittany Howard owned that song. It’s like Bruce wrote it with her in mind to sing it.

And they did it right in front of Bruce and the E Street Band!

Damn, that took guts. Even Bruce seemed blown away by it.

There, I said it. Bring on the hate mail if you must, but I feel better now.