Los Angeles -
The Rolling Stones were warned by the experts not to release a cover of “Little Red Rooster” as their fifth-ever single in 1964. They were told that blues music such as this Willie Dixon standard first recorded by Howlin’ Wolf in 1961 was commercial death. It would bomb. Of course, the single immediately soared to the #1 spot of the British charts.
So too with Ray Charles who faced vehement opposition to releasing a country-music album, a decided break from his R&B pop standards. Of course, his 1962 “Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music” was a critical and commercial success. It also broke new ground with a Black man succeeding in a genre that was not then very receptive to people of color.
So yes, listen to the experts when they say, “Don’t do it.” Understand, however, that they are often too close to their subject matter to see beyond the status quo.
Image courtesy of Amazon Music.