You’re everything I need/
You are so beautiful to me.

Joe Cocker is one of the best cover artists ever. There are a couple other artists in contention: Nina Simone, Roberta Flack, The Byrds, Tori Amos. The ability to take a good song and interpret it in a different way so as to sound like a completely different song is a great talent. Joe Cocker is one of the best. Here he covers Billy Preston’s “You are So Beautiful”, but really, this is the definitive version.

The accompanying piano in “You Are So Beautiful” is great. The arrangement is unique and elevates the song. It is hard to create a unique piano arrangement that is noticeable in popular music: most are pretty standard. This is different. Very elegant. Cocker’s vocal styling does the rest.

At different times during the song he sings loudly and softly and the vocals are borderline over-melodramatic (especially the last note) but Cocker cuts it off at just the right time. The message is simple: you are beautiful, and you are everything that I want and need. This is a classic love song.

Lyrics You Are So Beautiful
You are so beautiful
To me
You are so beautiful
To me
Can’t you see
You’re everything I hoped for
You’re everything I need
You are so beautiful
To me

You are so wonderful
To me
You are so wonderful
To me
Can’t you see
You’re everything I hoped for
You’re everything I need
You are so wonderful
To me

You are so beautiful
To me
You are so beautiful
To me
Can’t you see
You’re everything I hoped for
You’re everything I need
You are so beautiful
To me

Songwriters: Bruce Carleton Fisher / Billy Preston