Norma Fraser - The First Cut is the Deepest (1967) / by Joel Goodman

The best version of this Cat Stevens-penned song wasn’t Rod Stewart’s, and it definitely wasn’t Sheryl Crow’s. That honor belongs to Norma Fraser, who recorded it for the legendary Studio One label (AKA the Motown of Jamaica) in 1967. This has made it to a whole heap of compilations through the years, most notably the Studio One Soul comp issued by Soul Jazz Records. Soul Jazz was cool enough to upload a playlist of most of the tracks on that record, so don’t stop with this tune.