Feb 182022
 

Musically speaking, Yoko Ono (“ocean child” in Japanese) is still predominantly recognized as a primal screamer, an avant-garde provocateur, and an agent of harsh, visceral noise as a kind of feminist weapon. She’s accepted, in such terms, as a key influence in the development of female-fronted alt-rock along the lines of grunge and the riot grrrl movement, with Kim Gordon of Sonic Youth, Courtney Love of Hole, and Kathleen Hanna of Bikini Kill having all spoken of her importance to them. Her shrieking, confrontational sound may, indeed, be considered her signature style. But it’s also a stereotype. One that’s been reinforced in Peter Jackson’s recent Get Back documentary, where Yoko’s to be seen, in footage from 10 January 1969, leading Beatles John, Paul, and Ringo in an impromptu freak-out session by wailing and howling into George Harrison’s recently vacated microphone.

Death Cab for Cutie frontman Ben Gibbard is all too aware of the blinkered perspective many people have of Yoko’s music, doubtless aggravated by the fact that her songs still never get played on the radio. It’s this that’s driven him to curate Ocean Child: Songs of Yoko Ono, a tribute album to coincide with the New York-based artist’s 89th birthday. He’s all about doing justice to her more underappreciated musical achievements here, contending that “the tallest hurdle to clear has always been the public’s ignorance as to the breadth of Yoko’s work.” He’s aware, at the same time, that the dust has long settled on previous collaborative efforts born of similar concerns, from the Every Man Has a Woman Who Loves Him tribute record of 1984 (for Yoko’s 50th birthday), to remix projects Yes, I’m a Witch and Open Your Box in 2007, and Yes, I’m a Witch Too in 2016. This is not to forget tribute album Mrs Lennon: Songs by Yoko Ono in 2010, consisting solely of female Brazilian artists.

Gibbard, then, resumes the good fight previously fought on albums that pitched Yoko as a versatile songwriter variously relevant to the genres of new wave, experimental pop, Brazilian pop, and dance music. Over 14 tracks, he aims to convince listeners of her particular skills in composing melodies “as memorable as those of [the] best pop writers,” as well as lyrics of “poignance, sophistication and deep introspection.”

And you know what? He makes you wonder.
Continue reading »

Dec 142020
 

Follow all our Best of 2020 coverage (along with previous year-end lists) here.

best tribute albums 2020

It’s hard not to look at everything in 2020 through the mirror of the pandemic, and a few of the records on our list can be traced directly to it. One artist used her time in lockdown to cover every song on Radiohead’s The Bends, while another did the same thing with Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On. An indie label pulled together a tribute to one of the many great artists tragically taken by this goddamn virus, Fountains of Wayne’s Adam Schlesinger. Hal Willner’s long-in-the-works T. Rex tribute album wasn’t supposed to have anything to do with current events, but Willner, too, died of COVID-19 in the spring.

That being said, the majority of the albums on our list have nothing to do with the news. Any year’s a good year for covering obscure Neil Young songs. And if you want to try to tie 28 different bands covering Blink-182’s “Dammit” to 2020, good luck. Even the klezmer-cabaret artist who recorded an album covering the recently deceased released it March 13, just before she’d unfortunately have many more names to add to her list.

In a way though, the whole concept of the covers record is appropriate for a bleak year. They’re all about paying tribute in some way or another, lifting up influences or even guilty pleasures, honoring those that came before. You can listen to these through that prism if you like. Or you can just take a break from thinking about such things and listen to 28 covers of “Dammit.”

– Ray Padgett, Editor-in-Chief

The list starts on the next page…

NEXT PAGE →

Mar 312020
 

Check out the best covers of past months here.

best cover songs march 2020
Adam Green – All Hell Breaks Loose (Misfits cover)

Misfits go mariachi! Adam Green, best known as one half of the Moldy Peaches, plays “All Hell Breaks Loose” like it was “Ring of Fire.” He writes: “In The Misfits and in his glorious solo work, Danzig bridged punk and metal with the blue-eyed soul music of the mid-1960’s like The Righteous Brothers and The Walker Brothers. I’d had an idea for a while to do a Scott Walker / John Franz style production at punk speeds, and the Misfits song ‘All Hell Breaks Loose’ seemed like the perfect vessel for the experiment.” Continue reading »

Mar 122011
 

This March, we pit 64 Beatles covers against each other in what we call Moptop Madness.

Yesterday’s winners: Johnny Cash, “In My Life” and Nick Cave, “Let It Be”

It’s a battle of loud versus soft, dissonant versus harmonious today. Junior Campbell’s light-hearted “Drive My Car” faces Siouxsie and the Banshees’ gothic “Helter Skelter.” Then, Deerhoof’s spastic “The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill” meets Elliott Smith’s smooth “Because.”

Listen to each pairing below, then vote for your favorite. For added sway, try to convince others to vote your way in the comments. Voting closes in 24 hours. Continue reading »

May 012010
 

Cover News is a weekly feature keeping you up to date on the goings-on in the world of cover tunes, tribute albums, etc. At the bottom we showcase the submissions we’ve been sent in the past week (send us yours)! As always, follow Cover Me on Twitter for the latest news.

The Arcade Fire

This Week’s News

The latest Cover Commissions brings us an ethereal “Political Science” by We Are the Willows.  Check in next week to vote on May’s Cover Commissions!  [Cover Me]

On April Fool’s Day, I tricked our Twitter followers with a claim that Matt at You Ain’t No Picasso had posted a bunch of Arcade Fire covers.  Inspired by the joke, he did just that two weeks later.  You’re welcome, internet.  [YANP]

We already knew Bettye LaVette’s album tackling “The British Rock Songbook” would be amazing.  “All My Love” confirms it.  [Spinner]

The Flaming Lips released their Dark Side of the Moon tribute on vinyl a few weeks ago, promoting it with an acid-trippy “Breathe” on Jimmy Fallon.  [The Music Slut]

We’ve posted Via Tania’s cover of “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” back in January.  Now she’s back, in front of a mountain, with a ukulele Fever Ray cover.  [Filter]

Keller Williams makes the short list (very short) of Jam Band Artists Non-Jam Fans Can Enjoy, so his Thief covers album should me fun.  [Glide]

Bon Iver covered Peter Gabriel for Record Store Day.  He then covered Tom Petty just for the hell of it.  [Each Note Secure]

Girl in a Coma (nice Smiths reference) has released the third and final volume of their Adventures in Coverland series.  Listen to the tunes online and then pick it up on vinyl.  [Blackheart]

If you want to destroy my sweater, hold this thread as I walk away.  [Stereogum]

It’s a few weeks old, but Josh Ritter covering “Moon River” is worth any delay.  [Daytrotter]

Florence and the Machine wants to get into your pants with this Mario Winans cover.  [Billboard]

The AV Club continues their series of exclusive cover videos and includes a tantalizing list of to-be-posted songs.  “Who will cover Journey’s ‘Faithfully’?” the site asks.  Any chance the answer is “No one”?  [The AV Club]

This Week’s Submissions

Christopher Bryant – Frank Sinatra (Cake)  [more]

Christopher Bryant – Going the Distance (Cake)  [more]

Christopher Bryant – Italian Leather Sofa (Cake)  [more]

Christopher Bryant – Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps (Cake Farrés/Davis)  [more]

Deerhoof – Hitch Hike (LiLiPUT)  [more]

Grand Mal – Rich Girl (Hall & Oates)  [more]

Grand Mal – Winter In (Gene Clark)  [more]

Grand Mal – You Should Be Ashamed (Emitt Rhodes)  [more]

The Hecklers – Rock N Roll Is Dead (The Rubinoos)  [more]

Peter Pracek – Kokomo Me, Baby (Mississippi Fred McDowell)  [more]

Peter Parcek – Showbiz Blues (Fleetwood Mac)  [more]

Passporte Royale – Airplanes (B.O.B.)  [more]

Passporte Royale – Born Free (M.I.A.)  [more]

Lindsay Ray – Daydream (Wallace Collection)  [more]

Snow & Voices- Mistress (Red House Painters)  [more]

Tarentem – Rockin’ All Over the World (John Fogerty)  [more]

VARN Industries – The Gambler (Kenny Rogers)  [more]

We Are the Willows – Political Science (Randy Newman)  [more]

We Are the Willows – Make the World Go Away (Eddy Arnold)  [more]

835 – Only an Expert (Laurie Anderson)  [more]

Email your cover for inclusion!

Silence Is Golden

 Posted by at 3:00 pm  No Responses »
Jan 182010
 

Music is about making noise kind of by definition, so the number of songs extolling the virtues of silence is surprising. In truth, the only sonically accurate piece about silence is John Cage’s 4’33”…but it’s hard to find covers of that one that differ much from than the original, for obvious reasons. If you’re unfamiliar with the piece, go get educated, then come back and listen to some slightly louder songs.


Action Camp – Enjoy the Silence (Depeche Mode)
Telling someone to enjoy the silence kind of undercuts the message. “Hey you! Are you enjoying the peace and quiet? Well, are you??” [Free EP Download]

Christopher O’Riley – I Better Be Quiet Now (Elliott Smith)
O’Riley takes Smith’s advice, shutting his trap for a soothing piano instrumental. [Buy]

The Tremeloes – Silence Is Golden (The Four Seasons)
Frankie Valli and the gang originally put this out as a b-side to “Rag Doll.” They should have given it its own release; in 1967 the Tremeloes took it to number one in the U.K. [Buy]

Stanford Harmonics – The Sound of Silence (Simon and Garfunkel)
A cappella Simon and Garfunkel? Yawn. Well give it a chance, because this very strange interpretation incorporates all sorts of unexpected genres like ambient and chillout electronica. [Buy]

Everclear – Our Lips Are Sealed (The Go-Gos)
The Vegas Years is an unusually good title for a covers album. Everclear’s top-40 alt-rock sound works pretty well with this one, a guilty-pleasure hit itself in its time. [Buy]

Sonic Youth – Loudmouth (The Ramones)
Kim Gordon’s favorite band is the Ramones, so on their 1991 live album Hold That Tiger they closed with four covers, none of which are quiet. [Buy]

Benjamin Costello – No Surprises (Radiohead)
Because suicide is one way to get some peace. [Buy]

No Age – It’s Oh So Quiet (Björk)
This seems to be No Age’s answer. Too quiet? Well we’ll fix that! [Buy]

Jet Pack – Don’t Speak (No Doubt)
Jet Pack may not speak, but on this killer surf-rock instrumental they don’t exactly shut up either. [Buy]

Deerhoof – A Kind of Hush (Herman’s Hermits)
There’s probably a reason more covers don’t just randomly omit words, but it certainly is unique. [Buy]