Gavin DeGraw honored his mother, Lynne, with an a capella version of the Sam Cooke classic, “You Were Made for Me” at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City Thursday night (Oct. 13).
“I love you mom,” he said as he waved to his mother in the balcony.
Earlier in the evening, the New York native performed “You Make My Heart Sing Louder” — his mom’s favorite song off the new record, Something Worth Saving. In a sweet moment, explaining the band doesn’t perform it often, but did it because she was in attendance.
DeGraw’s heartfelt performance of the lyrics “as sure as there are stars above/you were made for me” — was a touching tribute, and got us thinking of all of the times DeGraw interpreted the music of others. Here are five examples:
“You Were Made For Me,” Sam Cooke
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“You could have made this a Netflix night,” DeGraw humbly tells the audience after this performance at the Santander Performing Arts Center in Reading, Pa. Why would anyone do that when he’s in town?
“Let it Go,” James Bay
DeGraw really is having a nice moment on this tour, covering another musician who is quite fond of hats — James Bay — before sliding into “Soldier,” from his 2011 album, Sweeter. Here he is in Nashville, honoring soldiers and their service during a brief musical break.
“Walking in Memphis,” Marc Cohn
Even when he doesn’t know the whole song, DeGraw pulls it off with those soulful vocals, as he did in this Belgium show.
“Tracks of My Tears,” Smokey Robinson and the Miracles
This performance on NBC’s Last Call is DeGraw at his finest. Seated at a piano, he delivers the ache of the song in this stripped down moment.
“She’s Always a Woman,” Billy Joel
It was something special when DeGraw opened for Billy Joel, so naturally this talented New Yorker did the Piano Man with this lovely version of “She’s Always a Woman.”
Gavin DeGraw is currently on tour with Andy Grammer and Wrabel. The tour lands at the Starland Ballroom in Sayreville, N.J., on Monday (Oct. 17).