THESONGS JACK WHITE TAUGHT US

OVER 20 YEARS INTO AN EXTRAORDINARY CAREER, Jack White’s range of influences shows no sign of getting any narrower. In fact, studying the credits for his forthcoming Fear Of The Dawn, the guests and samples are more diverse than ever: Q-Tip and Cab Calloway; the Manhattan Transfer and The Jesus Lizard’s Duane Denison. What might appear random eclecticism in the hands of many, however, seems infallibly coherent, a skill that makes White such a potent connector to the great music of the past.

In his cover versions, too, you can see that same kind of scholarship, energy and invention –a way of honouring tradition without being deferential to it. Hence this latest MOJO CD, compiled with the help of White’s Third Man label, draws together the original versions of 14 songs that have been covered by White solo or in The White Stripes, The Raconteurs and The Dead Weather, encompassing psych, country, metal, soul, garage rock and, of course, the blues. Plus as a bonus, listen out for a real Jack rarity, as he finds wisdom in the Dylan songbook for current troubled times.

1 THE WEST COAST POP ART EXPERIMENTAL BAND

A CHILD OF A FEW HOURS IS BURNING TO DEATH

To begin, an ultra-wired psych nugget from late ’60s Los Angeles. Jack White fronted The Dead Weather for a pretty faithful take in 2009; find it on the flipside of I Cut Like A Buffalo.