Gloria: A Life In Covers
Classic versions through the decades
THE DOORS
Around two dozen versions of Gloria were released in the 60s, but it was The Doors’ live reworking of the tune, aired throughout the latter part of the decade, that helped to secure its legacy. The band spaced out the verses to accommodate frontman Jim Morrison’s wacky, stream-ofconsciousness ad-libs, which…
PATTI SMITH
…paved the way for punk-poet Patti Smith’s quintessential mash-up. Officially titled Gloria: In Excelsis Deo, this 1975 version saw her combine the tune with her religion-themed poem Oath and the unforgettable opening: “Jesus died for somebody’s sins/ But not mine.” Bold and brilliant.
JIMI HENDRIX
Little Richard’s former sideman reimagined the spit-and-sawdust garage nugget as a near-nine-minute odyssey into fretboard nirvana, all howling solos, bent notes and a mid-song spoken-word breakdown. When it was posthumously released as a single in the US, the cover respectfully acknowledged it was “written by Van Morrison”.
SCREAMIN’ JAY HAWKINS
If this shock-rocker felt boxed-in by his macabre image (as he explained to author Nick Tosches in 1984), he didn’t help himself by still brandishing his trademark skull-and-snake-adorned sta on the sleeve of 1985’s
Live album with the Fuzztones. The set’s breakneck take on Them’s masterpiece, though, spoke to his true talent.
EZRA FURMAN
The former rock’n’roll revivalist turned art-punk innovator specifically covered Patti Smith’s version of Gloria on her tour this year. While she’d begin the song with the New Yorker’s searching poetry, though, there’s no doubting that the chunky, ragged chords of its conclusion were drawn directly from Them and 1964.