Ben Easton, Author at Cover Me

Ben Easton

Ben Easton is a keyboardist, composer and writer who lives and works in Brooklyn, NY. He’s a member of The Academy Blues Project (ABP), a rock quartet with whom he has recorded and produced six records. As a solo performer, Easton can often be found behind the keys at Sid Gold’s Request Room — NYC’s flagship modern piano bar — playing Live Piano Karaoke sessions from a repertoire of ~2,000 popular songs. Once, while stopped at a red light in Nashville, he received an unprompted, but nevertheless welcomed, wink and toothsome smile from Little Richard through a tinted car window. Favorite covers record of the moment: To Love Somebody - The Songs Of The Bee Gees 1966-1969.

The Secret Sisters Share Americana-Tinged Fiona Apple and Strokes Covers on New EP

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Jul 222021

When it comes to covers, The Secret Sisters have quite a track record. The Americana duo, comprised of sisters Laura and Lydia Rogers, have featured the songs of their forebears prominently alongside their own from the start of their career. The pair’s self-titled debut record saw them covering the likes of George Jones and Nancy Sinatra. And though their last proper feature here at Cover Me — a raucous take on Johnny Cash’s “Big River,” produced by Jack White — appeared around the time of their initial record’s release way back in 2010, The Secret Sisters have offered up a cavalcade of increasingly progressive covers since: among them, Simon & Garfunkel, Brandi Carlile and even PJ Harvey. Continue reading »

Kurt Vile Offers a Blissed-Out Take on the Velvet Underground & Nico’s “Run Run Run”

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Jul 222021

Kurt Vile & The Violators have shared a new version on The Velvet Underground & Nico’s “Run Run Run.” The cover comes from the forthcoming tribute record, I’ll Be Your Mirror: A Tribute to the Velvet Underground & Nico, produced by the late, legendary Hal Wilner and set for release September 24. Continue reading »

Andrea von Kampen Dusts Off The Beach Boys’ “Don’t Talk (Put Your Head On My Shoulder)”

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Jul 152021

Andrea Von Kampen Don’t Talk (Put Your Head On My Shoulder)

Singer-songwriter Andrea von Kampen is a Nebraska native with a catalog of independent releases dating back to 2015. Her songs are inspired by the scenes and voices of her home state: the still, natural beauty of its landscapes; the incisive works of fellow Nebraskan writers like Willa Cather. Given von Kampen’s firmly rooted sense of place, its a welcome surprise to find her latest single journeying from the landlocked Midwest all the way to sunny Southern California — a West Coast Art-Pop trip of sorts. Continue reading »

David Crosby and Sarah Jarosz Record Stirring Cover of Joni Mitchell’s “For Free”

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Jul 122021

When he’s not busy picking fights with next-gen rockers, David Crosby continues to make singular, beautiful music. The folk rock legend has had a prolific run of five solo album releases since 2014, many of them in collaboration with a cadre of younger, progressive, genre-roving musicians — among them, members of Snarky Puppy, Becca Stevens, Cory Henry and his own son, producer James Raymond. Crosby pushes forth with an open mind and spirit (and another cross-generational collaboration) on his latest release: a stirring cover of Joni Mitchell’s “For Free,” featuring singer-songwriter Sarah Jarosz on duet vocals. Continue reading »

Paul McCartney Calls Tenacious D’s Wacky Beatles Cover “Fantastic”

Posted by Ben Easton at 9:04 am 1 Response »

Jul 092021

Rock Gods commune among us on the Internet these days. In a brief but cheery post shared to his official Facebook page earlier this week, Paul McCartney gave his hearty seal of approval to fellow (comedy) rockers Tenacious D’s latest release: an off-the-wall cover of The Beatles’ “You Never Give Me Your Money / The End.” Continue reading »

Lucy Dacus Covers the Song Her Pastor Tried to Make Her Delete

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Jul 072021

Indie rock guitarist and singer-songwriter Lucy Dacus recorded a nostalgic cover of Snow Patrol’s “Chasing Cars” for Sirius XMU Sessions ahead of the release of her new record Home Video, which features a myriad of songs that mine her childhood experiences (and literal teenage journal entries) for inspiration. In a conversation with Esquire around her song “VBS” (a.k.a. Vacation Bible School), Dacus recalls how Snow Patrol’s often-shunned hit song — an ur-text of ‘00s indie-pop — become an inadvertent light for her as a young listener. Speaking about a particularly strict pastor-counselor, Dacus said, “He had us all get our iPods out and delete all the songs on them that weren’t Christian music. But I fought for ‘Chasing Cars’ by Snow Patrol.” Continue reading »