Remembering Joe Cocker, And A Special Voice That Has Brought Me To Tears

It was an evening with my daughter when she was about 6 months old. It was just the two of us. I was feeding her dinner in her high chair. I chose Joe Cocker's I Can Stand a Little Rain on vinyl for this particular random occasion. I went right for the B side, knowing full well that track 2 might speak to me.

"You Are So Beautiful" is a song originally recorded by Billy Preston and made popular by Joe Cocker. Cocker delivers a slower arrangement for his version and puts that genuine soul and passion into it that no one else can or ever will (it is so often imitated but never duplicated).

It's almost impossible to believe he did not write this song. It speaks from the soul. I felt like it was speaking from my soul on this occasion as I was staring into my baby girl's eyes. I was no longer listening to the song. It became a soundtrack for my life at this pivotal moment. It was an afterlife or dreamlike experience (the ghost of Christmas Past will take me back to this day if I ever go Scrooge). The next thing I know I'm weeping. Not crying, weeping (and I am NOT a crier). There are not many voices in recorded history that have this power over me. Thank you for the memory Joe Cocker. Thank you for reeling me back in before everything quickly unraveled. R.I.P.