“I’m feeling mighty lonesome, haven’t slept a wink, I walk the floor and watch the door and in between I drink, black coffee.”
If this opening line from the original Sarah Vaughan version of “Black Coffee” released in 1949, is the first ear-worm that pops into your brain when you think of this song, don’t worry, you would be among the majority. And, it is down this rabbit hole you would be sent searching for cover versions from the most sultry of sirens including Julie London, Peggy Lee, and Rosemary Clooney. Fine versions all.
But, that was then and this is now. Joe Bonamassa and Beth Hart will soon be releasing their version on another superb platter of carefully curated cover tunes of the same name. Hailing from the Ike and Tina Turner and Humble Pie family tree, this version of the song – as Johnny Cash would say – “kicks like a mule and bites like a crocodile.” This is certainly not your grandmother’s cup of black coffee. Straight no chaser, please.