Feb 262014
 

In the Spotlight showcases a cross-section of an artist’s cover work. View past installments, then post suggestions for future picks in the comments!

In the 1980s, there was one artist that Minneapolis became known for. And that was Prince.

But if you took the bus to the bad part of town, watching the blight and the snowy misery go by through fogged up windows, you would eventually spot a burned-out, abandoned, and graffiti-tagged little red Corvette: perched up on blocks, stuffed with liquor bottles in the back seat, and harboring a coffee can in the front filled to the brim with cigarette butts. If you opened the door, you would find a floor littered with cassettes. K-Tel. Kiss. Big Star. And if you ran the VIN number, you’d find the owner to be the Replacements.
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Jun 272012
 

Five Good Covers presents five cross-genre reinterpretations of an oft-covered song.

John wanted to write about an affair he had without letting his wife know. Paul suggested ending the song with the protagonist burning the house down. George thought the song needed something special, and spontaneously picked up the sitar he’d recently bought. Ringo laid off the drums and gave the song the gentler percussion it needed. Together, they crafted “Norwegian Wood,” one of the highlights of Rubber Soul and the entire catalog of the Beatles. Continue reading »