I Can Stand a Little Rain

I Can Stand a Little Rain
Studio album by Joe Cocker
Released	August 1974
Recorded	1974 in Los Angeles
Genre	Rock
Length	34:29
Label	A&M
Producer	Jim Price
Joe Cocker chronology
Joe Cocker (1972) I Can Stand a Little Rain (1974) Jamaica Say You Will (1975)

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[1]
Džuboks	(Favorable)[2]

I Can Stand a Little Rain is the fourth studio album by Joe Cocker, released in August 1974, and considered to be the singer's finest album in that decade.

In 1973, in the midst of uncertainty career-wise, Joe Cocker teamed up with Jim Price, a trumpet player turned producer, who had previously been member of Cocker's touring band.

"Jim rekindled my interest," Cocker said in an interview for "Blank Space" in 1979. "Jim called and played me 'You Are So Beautiful', he just came round the house and said, 'What's wrong?' And he played me 'I Can Stand a Little Rain,' which turned out to be the title of the album. The two things that kind of re-fired me into work again, and consequently drove me insane in the process."

I Can Stand a Little Rain found the singer working with top songwriters and session players, including Chuck Rainey, Cornell Dupree and Bernard Purdie, as well as future Toto founder members David Paich and Jeff Porcaro. Some of the writers, like Randy Newman and Jimmy Webb, ended up performing on Cocker's covers of their songs. The album is, however, particularly noticeable for the song "You Are So Beautiful", originally released on Billy Preston's The Kids & Me album. Ultimately, it went on to become one of Cocker's bigger hits, reaching No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100, proving this album to eventually become a hit.

The original idea was that of a double album but A&M didn't approve of it. The rest of the songs recorded during the sessions were released in April 1975 on Cocker's next album Jamaica Say You Will, which wasn't, however, equally successful.

In 2013 The Moon's a Harsh Mistress was re-recorded by Jimmy Webb in a duet with Joe Cocker. It turned out to be Cocker's final recorded performance.

Track listing

Side One

1. "Put Out the Light" (Daniel Moore) – 4:11
2. "I Can Stand a Little Rain" (Jim Price) – 3:33
3. "I Get Mad" (Joe Cocker, Jim Price) – 3:38
4. "Sing Me a Song" (Henry McCullough) – 2:25
5. "The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress" (Jimmy Webb) – 3:31

Side Two

1. "Don't Forget Me" (Harry Nilsson) – 3:19
2. "You Are So Beautiful" (Billy Preston, Bruce Fisher) – 2:41
3. "It's a Sin (When You Love Somebody)" (Jimmy Webb) – 3:49
4. "Performance" (Allen Toussaint) – 4:39
5. "Guilty" (Randy Newman) – 2:46

Personnel

• Lead vocals - Joe Cocker
• Guitar - Henry McCullough, Cornell Dupree, Jay Graydon, Ralph Hammer, Ray Palmer, Ray Parker, Jr.
• Bass - Chuck Rainey, Clydie King, David McDaniels, Chris Stewart
• Drums - Bernard "Pretty" Purdie, Ollie E. Brown, Jeff Porcaro, Jim Karstein
• Keyboards - Randy Newman, Nicky Hopkins, Greg Mathieson, Jimmy Webb, Jim Price, David Paich, Richard Tee, Peggy Sanduig
• Saxophone - Jim Horn, Trevor Lawrence
• Trumpet - Stewart Blumberg, Steve Madaio
• Trombone - Mayo Tiana, Jim Price
• Backing vocals - Merry Clayton, Venetta Fields, Sherlie Matthews, Daniel Moore
• Arrangements - Jim Price, Jimmy Webb

Production notes

• Produced by Jim Price
• Mostly recorded at The Village Recorder, West Los Angeles, 1973 (1, 7–10) / 1974 (2–6)
• Engineers: recording and mixing – Rob Fraboni and Nat Jeffrey, Joe Tuzen, Mario Aglietti, Rick Heenan, J.J. Jansen, Carlton Lee, Ken Klinger, Zak Zenor
• Mastered by Kent Duncan at Kendun Recorders, Burbank

Chart performance

References