Song: If
Artist: Telly Savalas
Original artist: Bread
So far in this blog I have tended to concentrate on songs I like – well, at least one
version of each of the tracks mentioned. This latest chapter has relevance in the context
of successful cover versions, but I will own up and say that I don’t much care for either
version of David Gates’ “If”.
The original, which Gates recorded with his band, Bread, was a bit too sickly for my
taste. It topped the US Easy Listening chart for three weeks in 1971. I’ve seen it
described as “haunting” – it certainly gave me the creeps.
The one by Telly Savalas (TV cop Kojak to you and I) is enough to bore the
undergarments off listeners in my opinion. But I may be alone in thinking that way.
There is no questioning its popularity. It hit the top spot in the UK charts in March 1975.
In doing so “If” became the UK No 1 with the shortest title ever. Pub quizzers take note.
Savalas narrates rather than sings his version maybe that’s why I think it sounds dreary.
Judge for yourself (see link below).
