one way you can judge the creative explosion of the music that was released in 1968 is by the number of other artists who cover, copied, or copped their songs. this week i feature songs that were released in 1968 that were quickly covered by someone else later in the year.

everyone has heard jimi hendrix's "all along the watchtower," but not as many people know dylan's original folksie version released earlier in the year. hugh masekala's "grazing in the grass" was a 1968 jazz instrumental until the friends of distinction added lyrics and sang their version later in the year.

after hearing louis armstrong's delightfully sweet "wonderful world," years later the ramones tapped into its subconscious angst with their version.

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Born in West Virginia, a long-time resident of Canada and currently living in the UK, singer-songwriter Lobelia is no stranger to making her way in new lands.  She applies that adventurous spirit as a musical pioneer, forging a new path for independent artists everywhere by her own life example.  Join us on Lyrical Venus as she talks about touring sustainably, booking gigs and being genuinely interesting on Twitter, motherhood as a musician and the importance of using all your talents to live a happy life, rather than trying to fit into a traditional idea of what being a musician looks like. 

Lobelia's latest project, a covers album titled "Beautifully Undone", is sparse and lovely, her rich voice wrapping like warm honey around each song and claiming them for her own.