Don Covay – Mercy, Mercy

The first thing I noticed was the guitar part at the beginning. I thought to myself, the style sounded familiar. Two people came to mind, and I can’t believe I guessed it. The two people that I thought of were Curtis Mayfield and Jimi Hendrix. After researching the song, I was batting 500…it was Jimi Hendrix, but 2 years before he was The Jimi Hendrix.

I read about Don Covay and how he wrote Chain of Fools for Aretha Franklin and more songs in the ’60s through the ’80s. Covay wrote the number 1 hit for Chubby Checker called Pony Time and also co-wrote Peter Wolf’s first solo album in the early eighties with good success.

Covay was the son of a Baptist preacher. He began his musical career singing gospel with his family’s group, the Cherry Keys. Following his father’s death, the family relocated to Washington, D.C., where Covay’s musical interests expanded into the soul/R&B genre.

He was a great songwriter. His songs have been covered by Gene Vincent, Wanda Jackson, Chubby Checker, Connie Francis, Steppenwolf, The Daughters of Eve, Bobby Womack, the Rolling Stones, Wilson Pickett, Small Faces, Grant Green, Bonnie Raitt, and Peter Wolf.

The song peaked at #35 on the Billboard 100 in 1964. The Rolling Stones covered this song on their album Out of Our Heads in 1965. It was the lead-off track of the album.

Curtis Knight: Jimi Hendrix, and I all used to live in the same apartment building – around 81st Street [near the A1 Studio] … Don Covay came around shopping for a record deal. He used to go down to the Harlem clubs looking for somebody to use … on songs he was looking to sell to Atlantic [Records]. He’d say, ‘I got this tune I want you to help me with … come on down to the studio … Can you sing this part? Can you play this part?

Steve Cropper:  I hadn’t worked with Don [Covay] yet, but I asked Jimi to show me that great lick he played. [Later] Jimi took my guitar and started playing that sucker upside down. I laughed and told him, ‘I can’t learn that lick by looking at it that way.

Mercy, Mercy

Have mercyHave mercy, babyMmm, have mercyHave mercy on me

Well, I went to see a gypsy and had my fortune readShe said, “Don, your baby’s gonna leave you”Her bag is packed up under the bed and I cried

Have mercyHave mercy, baby, yeahHave mercy, yeahHave mercy on me

I said if you leave me, baby, girl, if you put me downWell, I’m a goin’ to the nearest river, childAnd jump (jump) overboardAnd drown, but don’t leave me (jump, jump, jump, jump)

Have mercyHave mercy, baby, mercyYeah, have mercyHave mercy on me

Well, now, hey, hey baby, hey, hey nowWhat you tryin’ to do, huh?Hey, hey, baby, hey, hey nowPlease don’t say we’re through

I said if you stay here, baby, I tell you what I’m gonna doI’m gonna work two jobs seven days a weekAnd bring my money home to you (bring it, bring it)

Well, I said mercy (mercy), mercy (mercy)Mercy (mercy), mercy (mercy)Mercy (mercy)

…

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Author: Badfinger (Max)

Power Pop fan, Baseball, Beatles, Alternative music, old movies, and tv show fan. Also anything to do with pop culture in the 60s and 70s... I'm also a songwriter, bass and guitar player. Not the slightest bit interested in politics at all.

27 thoughts on “Don Covay – Mercy, Mercy”

      2. I’m listening to it now…he is great as always in that one. I might add it really quick!

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  3. What’s not to like here! As much as I know the song I didn’t connect with the Delbert version until now either. Also was aware Jimi did some session work but no clue he did this, amazing you picked that up.

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    1. I didn’t either until MY mentioned Delbert…I added it a few minutes ago. It’s a sliding technique on guitar that not many guitar players did at this time. Listen to The Wind Cries Mary and others…you can hear it.
      Funny I mentioned Jack Bruce did it on his bass work as well last week…way different sound though.

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  5. I had heard of Don Covay, most likely in connection with Aretha Franklin’s “Chain of Fools,” a song I always loved, but didn’t realize how many other artists covered his songs – that’s a quite impressive list.

    “Mercy, Mercy” is a great song and I feel an ideal fit for the Stones. While I listening to Covay’s original, I could literally hear Mick Jagger sing it. I bet that’s because I probably heard it by the Stones before at some point. Sometimes I think my brain gets jammed from music overload! 🙂

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    1. This is another song I picked up from Wolf’s biography. It’s cool that he co-wrote an album with him. Covay was a great songwriter…

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    1. I didn’t know much about him Glyn until I read the Wolf book. I’ve heard his name but didn’t know much about him…but yes he did.

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  8. The Delbert McClinton version was a bit too slow for me, but I do like the Don Covay and the Stones take on this. Very interesting about Hendrix being involved in the original recording and playing his guitar upside down and I guess that may have been because he was a lefty.

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  9. not a bad one, new to me. That’s quite something having Jimi play guitar on it! And good ear on you for recognizing it, I wouldn’t have (maybe just a little too laid back for me guessing Hendrix). He seemed to have a good career but I don’t think I’d seen his name before.

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    1. If you listened to The Wind Cries Mary and other songs like that….you can hear it. Mayfield also did that.
      Every time I read a music bio…I always get names I’ve never heard of much.

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      1. Yep, the first notes have that Jimi feel, but languid. The Stones up-beat it in the Brit Invasion style of the time, Delbert slow souls it down. The song works all three ways.

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  11. Pingback: Don Covay – Mercy, Mercy – MobsterTiger

  12. This has a nice groove to it. I could hear Mick Jagger singing it even before I listened to the Stones’ cover – their voices are quite similar, especially the way he emphasises the second syllable on ‘mercy’

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