Cover Culture: Jimmy London / Paul Simon – Mother & Child Reunion

COVER VERSION VS ORIGINAL SONG

Since the early 1960s and even prior, numerous iconic Jamaican hits were derived from popular foreign songs. The original pop and soul tracks were frequently embraced by audiences on the island, leading reggae artists to create their own renditions. Some of these artists gained fame by covering chart-topping songs, turning these adaptations into timeless classics. For instance, American artist Bill Withers recorded the Grammy-winning song Ain’t No Sunshine, which Horace Andy later adapted, while Dennis Brown’s rendition of Black Magic Woman originally came from Fleetwood Mac. These two examples represent just a small fraction of the many covers that have emerged over the past sixty-five years. Since the advent of these adaptations, both Jamaican and international reggae musicians have persistently reimagined pop and soul hits, continuing this tradition into the present. You’re welcome to listen to both the original and the cover versions to determine which one resonates with you the most.

JIMMY LONDON

During his time recording at Randy’s, Jimmy London cut a version of Mother & Child Reunion, the solo tune by Paul Simon. Unlike his cover of Bridge Over Troubled Water, this wasn’t such a daring move. Simon’s song already leaned heavily on reggae, which was still a rare thing for international pop at the time. Because of that, the Impact All Stars didn’t have to reinvent the song’s backbone. They could ride something very close to the original riddim. What makes Jimmy’s version special is the texture. It’s less polished, more grounded in the riddim, and it sounds like a band locked in during a live session. That gives it a truer early-’70s reggae vibe than the smoother original. The song was released on the Impact! label in 1972.

PAUL SIMON

Paul Simon was already a fan of Jamaican music long before he recorded Mother & Child Reunion. Instead of copying the sound from afar, he decided to go straight to the source. So, he travelled to Kingston, the same city where Cliff had cut the anti-war track Vietnam, and Simon wanted to tap into that atmosphere. The session took place at Dynamic Sounds Studios, backed by Jimmy Cliff’s band. On top of that, Cissy Houston added background vocals. The riddim was laid down before Simon had written any lyrics. That was unusual for Simon, who normally wrote songs the other way around. He had once tried to give Why Don’t You Write Me a Jamaican feel, but he later felt it sounded like a weak imitation.