William Shatner's second album almost featured Bill Clinton and David Bowie

2004 was a banner year for cover songs of classic tunes. In Australia, Shannon Noll's rendition of Moving Pictures' 1981 ballad "What About Me" became the best-selling song of the year. Simultaneously, Spiderbait's cover of Lead-Belly's "Black Betty," popularized by Ram-Jam, propelled the Victorian band to the top of the singles chart for the first time.

Elsewhere in the world, nu-metal band Limp Bizkit, sporting backwards baseball caps, released a perplexing but popular cover of The Who's "Behind Blue Eyes." Meanwhile, Californian ska-pop-punk band No Doubt achieved significant success with a relatively straightforward cover of Talk Talk's "It's My Life." As unexpected as these successes were, they paled in comparison to the opening track of William Shatner's 2004 album, "Has Been."

Yes, that William Shatner. He is a celebrated actor, best known for his role as Captain James T. Kirk in the "Star Trek" franchise, and also an occasional musical artist. As early as 1968, Shatner covered Bob Dylan's "Mr. Tambourine Man" and The Beatles' "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" on his debut album, "The Transformed Man," giving them rather eccentric interpretations.

Thirty-six years later, in 2004, Shatner re-entered the studio to record his second album, this time with the acclaimed musician Ben Folds producing. Folds recalled, "The whole thing was like a two-week whirlwind. We had Joe Jackson in one day, Henry Rollins the next. Aimee Mann and I did a song together. It was pretty crazy."

Almost every song on "Has Been" was a new song written specifically for Shatner. But there was one cover song that Folds was determined to make happen: Pulp's 1995 indie-rock anthem, "Common People." Shatner was less sure. "He was against doing 'Common People' to begin with. He didn't want to do it," Folds said. "I said, 'Look, this song isn't popular in America. Nobody knows this song. It's one of the greatest pop songs ever written, and I think you and Joe Jackson would kill it.' So, he grudgingly agreed. But after he sang it, he loved it."

The song became the undisputed highlight of the album, landing at number 21 on the 2004 triple j Hottest 100 list and becoming a career-defining moment for Shatner's musical endeavors. Even more exciting was Folds' initial plan to involve some heavy-hitting guest artists. "That song went through a lot of iterations guest-wise," he recalled. "My original idea was to have Weezer as the rhythm section and Bill Clinton playing saxophone."

"Weezer seemed to be on board, but Rivers, the lead singer, was on some sunny island somewhere. I'm serious, I'm not making this up. We were waiting for Rivers. Bill Clinton had also said he was up for it," Folds said. "I told Shatner, 'If you call Bill Clinton yourself, I bet he's a 'Star Trek' fan, and he'll definitely do it.'"

Folds received a call from Shatner while at a shoe store. "He said, 'Benny, I've spoken to the President,'" Folds recalled. "Initially, Clinton had some concerns. He didn't want to be laughed at. He didn't want to sound terrible. He wanted it to be a sincere gesture because he loves music, and he likes Shatner. He said, 'Okay, tell Ben not to make me sound like garbage.'"

Everything seemed to be progressing towards a remarkable recording until things started to unravel. "We were waiting for Weezer. Bill Clinton had to go and promote his best-selling book, 'My Life.' So, his publicity tour started, and then all the windows of opportunity started closing."

Folds remained determined and started making more calls. "I contacted David Bowie's manager, not expecting it to work, I was just reaching, because it was Shatner. I thought, 'This guy can open doors,' you know? As far as I know, Bowie was considering it because he thought it was funny. I also talked to Wayne Coyne from the Flaming Lips, and Wayne said, 'No way. Absolutely not. I hate 'Star Trek.' I'm not a fan.' I was just calling around, trying to talk people into it."

Ultimately, British musician Joe Jackson joined Shatner on "Common People." When his powerful vocals combined with Shatner's spoken-word delivery at the song's climax, it sounded like a stroke of genius that had been planned all along. Folds said, "Joe Jackson was supposed to be involved in other things, and when 'Common People' had problems getting off the ground, I just asked Joe if he would drop what he was doing and do 'Common People' instead."

"Joe Jackson at home is like in a punk band, that's what he really does, even though he's a great songwriter and everything else. When he got into that song, I was blown away. I could tell stories about it forever because it was so crazy," Folds continued. "Joe Jackson warmed up his vocals for eight hours before he sang. Bill was like, 'Who does this guy think he is?' I said, 'He's a genius. Don't worry about it.'"

Folds had envisioned the song ending with a large gospel choir joining in on the song's climax. But some of the devout groups he approached didn't seem to approve of the endeavor. "I was trying to convince a gospel choir that this song, even though it's secular, even though it's with me, is pure enough to sing. But I had trouble."

The problem was never resolved, but Folds had a plan. "I couldn't find a gospel choir. I was at a show, and I had the audience sing it for me during the show, and then we put it in the recording. So, all those 'Common People' parts at the end are from a show in Kentucky."

In a career spanning nearly 40 years, Ben Folds has produced many different records. He became an alternative rock icon with his 90s band Ben Folds Five, he's collaborated with musicians ranging from Kate Miller-Heidke to "Weird Al" Yankovic, and until earlier this month, he was the artistic advisor to the National Symphony Orchestra in America.

But even for Ben Folds, being involved in Shatner's quirky 2004 album was a truly special experience. "You rarely get to make a record that's never been made before and will never be made again."