27 October 2020 - Lena Katina - All The Things She Said/ Ya Soshla S Uma

 Here, we are once again pushing what a cover is.  Why?  

You might recall that this song was originally recorded by Russian duo t.A.T.u.  And this is a faithful cover of the song....... by someone who was half of t.A.T.u. So, can it be considered a cover?  Here she is, performing the song live in Milwaukee.

We are calling it a cover because of the deep reinterpretation of the song Katina has recently undertaken.  This version (with the Russian lyrics) is an acoustic take on the song at a different pace.... and she truly makes the song her own.

26 October 2020 - Poppy - All The Things She Said

 Poppy has become an odd and interesting mix of pop, electronica, and metal.....

...which makes her unusually well-suited to cover the biggest international hit by Russian duo t.A.T.u, and, while making it both heavier and poppier (no pun intended), still manages to remain faithful to the original.

The story behind this cover is that it's a song Poppy has covered live for quite some time, and it was well-received - because she sings the hell out of it.  Here she is performing it several months before the single release and right before the entire world learned how to spell "COVID-19".  

6 October 2020 - A "Ripple" Special

Perry Farrell's voice is definitely not Jerry Garcia's, and yet this cover of a Grateful Dead classic is one of my favorite covers of all time.  This version brings a trippy, and not earthy, flavor that is wholly appropriate to the song.  

Norah Jones, on the other hand, makes the song a country standard.  I found this version to be unexpectedly appropriate as well.

I don't usually jump right into the special posts like I did, but "Ripple" is a classic song that allows us to put the spotlight on beautifully written lyrics.  There are some who believe it to be inspired by the Bible - Psalm 23, to be precise.  It's an instantly recognizable song, and one that is easy to sing along with.... as Wilco demonstrates here by turning the song into an audience sing-along.

 

Let's wrap up this special with an ironic cover.   The first two lines of the song are:

If my words did glow with the gold of sunshine
And my tunes were played on the harp unstrung

So it's appropriate to close this with a harp cover.  It's instrumental, but you'll be singing along.

15 September 2020 - Lush - Hey Hey Helen

Since we posted about Lush today on Wicked Guilty Pleasures, I figured it was fitting to put a cover by them over here.  This cover, of an ABBA classic song about divorce and separating, was featured on their US debut Gala, but this version was from a Peel session, which sounds more real to me.  

In contrast, here is the more ethereal studio version, which is also good.

3 September 2020 - The Dandy Warhols -The Last Time

The Dandy Warhols do a pretty faithful cover of Bittersweet Symphony The Last Time here.  There's not a lot to say, except that the band clearly feels a lot of influence from The Verve Rolling Stones.  

(If you want to be in on the joke, go here and read all about it)

28 August 2020 - Throwing Muses - Cry Baby Cry

Yesterday, I featured a Beatles cover by The Breeders, and I was quite clear about my two favorite bands, and how that was a dream supergroup for me.

Let me be abundantly clear.  Throwing Muses was (and is) my favorite band.  This has not changed.  Kristin Hersh has one of the most unique voices in music, and while the band is better with Tanya Donelly on guitar and 2nd vocal, they're still pretty great.  This band got me through a lot of hard times.  I take the unpopular-among-Muses-fans opinion that their 1988 album House Tornado is not only their best album, but the best album ever produced - and it is not an easy listen.  

The last single the band released before Tanya left to form Belly was the song "Not Too Soon", which featured Tanya on vocal.   This song was its B-side - a Beatles cover that had the same title as a Muses song (on their Chains Changed EP)  - and it is absolutely beautiful.  Kristin takes the clear lead vocal here, but both voices shine through - and it makes the song arguably richer than the original.  

27 August 2020 - The Breeders - Happiness Is A Warm Gun

The Breeders originally started out as a side project from The Pixies (Kim Deal) and Throwing Muses (Tanya Donelly).  At the time, if you were to ask me what my two favorite bands were, I would quite quickly say "Throwing Muses and The Pixies".  This was my own personal supergroup!

Their first album, Pod (also featuring Josephine Wiggs from Perfect Disaster) was a lo-fi masterpiece.  Donelly left the band after Pod and the follow-up EP Safari, when she went to front Belly and the Breeders were becoming a full-time gig.....

.....but she still comes back from time to time.  This performance from 2013, of a song from Pod, is simply a good, fun time - but also a Beatles cover.