Sia has a long-term commitment to the welfare of animals, by being vegan, vocally committing to various causes, and contributing to art in the field. For her latest single, in conjunction with Humane World For Animals, she has covered Peter Gabriel’s “Solsbury Hill.”
The area between Gabriel’s adopted home near Bath in England and the city of Salisbury is not industrialized but not completely agriculturized either. That means there are many well-preserved Iron Age Monuments, including Stonehenge, the best-known of them all. The song, indeed, was inspired by a potential agricultural development that threatened that Celtic, mysterious, world. Gabriel’s connection with that world was emphasized by a spiritual experience on the eponymous hill, close to his home. Of course, it is also widely interpreted as Gabriel railing against Genesis, the band he recently left, for wanting to move away from the mysterious, Celtic-influenced world of Prog Rock, to more modern pop sensibilities. Gabriel has championed many diverse music streams over the years, but in 1977 he was not ready to abandon the prelapsarian world before disco and punk.
An embrace of the mysterious, world before the fall, and modern agriculture’s effect on the planet. Sia has chosen carefully here, in conjunction with her partners. Her version does embrace modern pop sensibilities though, with super producer Greg Kurstin’s big electronic synthesisers filling the soundscape. Her vocals are, inevitably, more earthy than Gabriel’s upper-class accent but they suit the theme well. The official feed receives a donation to the Humane World for Animals, but it is also worth checking out her appearance on Kimmel, where she embraces a more complete vision of the message she wants to get across. Sia has expressed her hope that she can duet with Gabriel on the song at some point, so let’s continue to watch closely!
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