"The Letter" was written by country songwriter Wayne Carson and first recorded by The Box Tops in 1967. Previous mixes included that version as well as versions by Al Green and Aretha Franklin. This week includes versions by Lou Rawls, Bob Marley & The Wailers and the famous live version by Joe Cocker.
The Box Tops lead singer Alex Chilton was a teenager when they recorded "The Letter". From his later band Big Star this mix includes a demo version of "Big Black Car".
Also featured here is Lee Hazlewood's "Houston", with covers by Bobby Bare and Dean Martin.
One other song repeats here: Radiohead's "Black Star", the original and a live cover by Gillian Welch.
The rest: Common's witty "Orange Pineapple Juice", Vernon Burch's bouncy "Get Up", Troy Rainey's primitive "Tricky Tee Rap", Michael Jackson's Quincy Jones-produced "Off The Wall", Twilight's lush "Still Loving You", Fela Kuti's hypnotic "Shakara (Oloje)", Masta Killa's Wu-Tang Clan-assisted "Iron God Chamber", the old country tune "West Virginia Gals" by Al Hopkins & His Kuckle Busters and the bittersweet "Lately" by Stevie Wonder.
