Handy Man -James Taylor (1977) 3/5/22

In December of 1959, Jimmy Jones released a song that he and songwriter Otis Blackwell had written called "Handy Man."

It was rather distinctive--thanks to Jimmy singing the phrase "come-a-come-a-come-a-come-a-come-on, yeah, yeah, yeah," over and over in a falsetto voice...with Otis whistling in the background.

The song was a huge hit, reaching #3 on the Rhythm & Blues Chart and #2 on the Hot 100...while selling over a million copies.

In 1964, Del Shannon covered it with respectable results (#22 on the Hot 100).

But then, in 1977, James Taylor re-imagined "Handy Man" as a ballad. Billboard Magazine called it "fluidly soft and laid back throughout, with spice added by the background harmonies."

Those background harmonies were provided by Leah Kunkel...a very talented session singer (and a well-respected entertainment lawyer), who just happened to be the sister of Mama Cass Elliott!"

(Note: the James/Leah version was produced by Peter Asher of Peter & Gordon, who I mentioned a a few days ago as Paul McCartney's good friend, and brother to Paul's pre-Linda girlfriend, Jane Asher)

This time, "Handy Man" hit #1 on Billboard's Adult Contemporary Chart, and #4 on The Hot 100. James also won the Grammy for "Best Male Pop Vocal Performance."

It just goes to show that a "Great Song" is a "Great Song" regardless of the decade...the artist...OR the interpretation!

James Taylor/Leah Kunkel (1977):

Jimmy Jones/Otis Blackwell (1959):

Del Shannon (1964):