There are two by a cappella groups, two jazz versions, a ukulele-and-vocals version, and one by a sitar-and-tablas duo. Then come a bunch of versions that stand out from the YouTube pack in some way, either by being really good or being really unusual. (As I wrote in my 350 Jersey songs entry on the song, the band formed at Rutgers University in New Brunswick in 1969 had another, smaller hit, “Jimmy Loves Mary-Anne,” in 1973 and broke up in 1974.) This is followed by Lurie’s version with Yonge Guns, and a solo version by him, and then covers by the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Kenny Chesney. I start with Looking Glass’ original version. So there are a ton of very straightforward versions on YouTube.

One of the things about “Brandy,” I think, is that it’s so perfect that musicians don’t want to make changes to it. But I want to share only versions that I feel are special: Ones that are by well-known artists, or that put an interesting new spin on the song. Probably, actually, there are more than 100. There are more than 15 takes on “Brandy” on YouTube, of course. It turns out I could, though I stopped at 15. The cover of Looking Glass’ 1972 single, “Brandy (You’re a Fine Girl).”Ī new a cappella version of the 1972 Looking Glass hit “Brandy (You’re a Fine Girl)” - featuring the song’s writer and original lead singer, Elliot Lurie, and the Yonge Guns vocal quartet (see second video, below) - got me thinking: Maybe I could put together a post like I did for another New Jersey classic, Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive,” with 20 notable versions of the song.

Brandy have you ever single cover