Quirky singer Janelle Monae is never one to shy away from the unexpected, and has made some great choices when it comes to cover material, from Prince to Charlie Chaplin. That trend continues with her recent live take on the Jimi Hendrix classic “Little Wing.”
Monae played the song earlier this week at a show in Mexico, where she dominates the song with some fiery vocals, including some soulful wails. Her guitarist competently handles the six-string solo, but crowd noise obscures a lot of the notes. Check it out below:
Hendrix’s original “Little Wing” can be found on his 1967 album “Axis Bold as Love.” It’s been covered many times before, by everyone from Eric Clapton to Santana to Sting to, um, Skid Row. It was famously turned into a scorching instrumental in the late ’80s by guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan.
Monae is planning on releasing two full-length albums this year. In the meantime, you’ll be hearing her on the radio everyday for the next few months; she sings the hook on fun.’s No. 1 single “We Are Young.”