With apologies to Los Bravos and Jimmy Ruffin, Big Maybelle’s cover of “Black is Black” is my favorite version of the song.
Big Maybelle captured the rock ‘n’ roll spirit of Los Bravos’ rendition of the song and the soulful sensuality of Ruffin’s and added several dollops of raw power. She did the same thing on her cover of ? and The Mysterians’ “96 Tears.” Those tunes are the class of “Got a Brand New Bag,” which was released in 1967.
Big Maybelle’s soulful cover of The Beatles’ “Eleanor Rigby” is interesting. On it, she utilizes the loveliness of her voice rather than the explosiveness. Her rendition of “That’s Life” is mighty good, too.
I wouldn’t trade my old Okeh and Savoy records by Big Maybelle for “Got a Brand New Bag” — it’s too uneven — but I’m delighted to own the album.
