Chopper Read’s version of ‘Plastic Jesus’, the 1957 folk song written by Ed Rush and George Cromarty and immortalised by Paul Newman in the 1967 movie ‘Cool Hand Luke’, has been released to benefit his wife and young son.
Mark Brandon ‘Chopper’ Read died on October 9, 2013 after a battle with liver cancer. He was 58-years old.
Chopper loved the song. ‘Cool Hand Luke’ was one of his favourite movies and the scene where Paul Newman sings the song was his favourite scene.
Read was such a fan of the song that he had the lyrics tattooed on his back. While he was fighting cancer one of the last things he did was record his own version of ‘Plastic Jesus’.
You can now add Chopper to a sizeable list of artists including Snow Patrol, Billy Idol, Jack Johnson and The Flaming Lips who have covered the song over the years.
All of the record company profits from the sale of the single go to Mark’s wife Margaret to help in the raising of their young son, Roy.
Mark Brandon ‘Chopper’ Read’s ‘Plastic Jesus’ is out now on iTunes through Public Opinion Music.
