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With his rasping voice and gruff looks, singer Joe Cocker makes an unlikely rock star at first glance. But the 1960's icon has done it all, performing in his own magical mystery show during the 60's and enjoying mainstream success with his solo albums and collections of Beatles covers. Joe Cocker's trademark gravelly voice is capable of conveying a wider range of emotion than one might suspect after first hearing it, making his versions of hit songs deeply affecting. Joe Cocker got his start as the leader of a soul band, and he can still shout "get up!" with the best of them, while also toning it down on his nuanced ballads, like his cover of "You Are So Beautiful." The biggest accusation that critics can level against Cocker is that the man is a covers artist, but you can make the same charge against many of the world's greatest soul singers. Joe Cocker has never claimed to do anything other than bring his own interpretation to some of the great songs of his era, and many artists (The Beatles, The Rolling Stones) were so impressed that they were more than happy enough to let him. Joe Cocker is one of Sheffield, England's most famous sons, and as a teenager he got his start singing in the local pubs. This is how he earned himself the nickname "The Sheffield Shouter." In the early 60's, Cocker opened for the Stones under the name Vance Arnold & the Avengers. After the exposure, Joe Cocker got his big break when he released his shuffling, soul-stomping version of "A Little Help From My Friends" as a single. The track also includes some wailing guitar solos from Jimmy Page and, with that, Cocker had found his niche. Joe Cocker is one of the few artists to have performed at both the original Woodstock Festival, and at Woodstock '95. Joe Cocker's live album Mad Dogs and Englishman, which documents his manic multi-musician rock n' roll road show extravaganza, is considered one of the best live albums to come out of the 60's. Joe Cocker continued to attract fans in the 1980s, as his cover of "With a Little Help From My Friends" was the theme for The Wonder Years.

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