“Early Morning Rain,” a 1966 song by singer-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot, was covered by Elvis Presley in 1972 and his version includes some sparkling harmonica playing by Charles Ray McCoy, a regular sideman for Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn, and Bob Dylan.
10: Early Morning Rain (Gordon Lightfoot) Here, however, we look at ten of the most surprising Elvis Presley cover versions. Presley, who was only 42 when he died on August 16, 1977, listened intently to the songs suggested for him and had a superb instinct for picking winners. And while he would record many definitive versions of songs such as “Hound Dog” and “Suspicious Minds,” there is no shortage of surprising Elvis Presley covers of songs more often associated with artists like The Beatles and Carpenters. His co-writing credits were limited – and some were there just for publishing and rights purposes – but he was a master at selecting good songs. Though Elvis Presley recorded more than 700 songs, he did not pen any of them himself.
