The White Stripes

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Jan 282009
 

Don’t know why I didn’t do this earlier. The White Stripes have been one of my favorite bands ever since I saw a video of them performing “Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground” on MTV surrounded by inanely dancing candy cane “fans”(here it is). Since then I’ve seen them live four times, and hope they reunited this year for another go round. While we wait though, many others are keeping their tunes alive.

The Dynamics – Seven Nation Army
Turns out there’s a cover or two for this song – who knew? Hell, everyone from the Flaming Lips to Duran Duran has tried it on for size. None match the bossa-nova funk of this slow-groove though. [Buy]

Aluminium – Why Can’t You Be Nicer to Me?
Richard Russell, founder of XL Records, and Joey Talbot, British composer, came together in 2005 to record one of the greatest tribute albums I’ve ever heard, an all avant-garde orchestral series of mostly-obscure Stripes tunes. The String Quartet Tribute this ain’t. They touch all albums from their first to their most recent at the time, even taking on b-sides and soundtrack contributions along the way. Click this link and get this album now. [Buy]

Long Goners – Ball & Biscuit
Jack White’s blues-rock barnstormer brings it all back home with some indie slide-folk. Lead singer Bernadette Seacrest has clearly learned much from the Stripes, having the presence of mind not to change the genders in the song as is so common (see Joss Stone’s horrendous “Fell in Love with a Boy”). Would the Stripes’ “Jolene” have made sense with “please don’t take my…woman”? This one’s from a hit-or-miss tribute disc called Indie Translations of the White Stripes. [Buy]

Chris Thile – Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground
This ex-Nickel Creek man brings his mandolin bluegrass and yelping falsetto to this fiddle and harmony-filled ditty. With such a rockin’ woodsy sound, a tune about leaves and dirt makes perfect sense. [Buy]

Nikka Costa – The Denial Twist
It was their third single from 2005’s Get Behind Me Satan and, many would argue, the most enduring (“My Doorbell” eventually got irritating). Costa’s version sounds similar to the swamp guitar original until the horns blast away all memory of the White siblings (read: exes) and Nikka’s wail forces its way to the front of the sound. [Buy]

The New York No Stars – The Big Three Killed My Baby
An appropriate song for this day and age, no doubt, as the big three are going down themselves. The original’s a classic Jack screecher, taken down here for some lounge-jazz that proves that the song does indeed have a melody. From yet another tribute album. [Buy]

Jack Johnson – My Doorbell
Johnson got a lot of blog attention for his twee cover of “We Are Going to Be Friends” on the Curious George soundtrack. It was bland and boring, sure, but not really objectionable; frankly, I would say the same is true for the original. A better tune, Johnson puts his laid-back pleasantness to, you know, chill use on this poppy confection, recorded for a radio show. [Buy]

Bree Sharp – We Are Going to be Friends
Like I said above, not a huge fan of this song. Many others are, however, and I can’t help remember with fondness its use in the opening of Napoleon Dynamite (video, in case you forgot). [Buy]

The Pistol Whippin’ Party Penguins – Hotel Yorba
It’s a live one, from the never-ending source of wonder that is archive.org. Sounds like a folk-bluegrass jam session, with lots of group singing and a fiddle solo! So, basically just like the original. [Buy]

Chan Marshall – I Want to Be the Boy
You probably know this little lady as Cat Power, and she’s been on a bit of a covers kick lately. She takes a break from her beloved vintage soul at a live show in ’03, interspersing it with typically self-effacing remarks about no one singing along. Only problem here: she does change the gender. And stops it early, which is a shame. Grr… [Buy]

Radiohead

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Aug 112008
 

I’m seeing Radiohead on Wednesday night, and that seemed as good an excuse as any for this week’s theme.
EDIT: My review of the concert here.

Easy Star All-Stars – Let Down
From the people who brought you Dub Side of the Moon, it’s Radiodread! You can probably guess the musical genre, but they’re surprisingly adept at bringing the Jamaican flavor to the music, throwing in horns and a big chorus on top of the backbeat guitar.

Jorge Drexler – High and Dry
You may not know the name of this Latin guitar master, but Oscar does. In 2004 his song from The Motorcycle Diaries made him the first person from Uruguay to win an Academy Award. Throw this cover in a film, and I’d vote for a second.

Nickel Creek – Just
Fast-paced bluegrass is what Nickel Creek does, and they do it well.

John Mayer – Kid A
This is Mayer in his acoustic “Your Body Is a Wonderland” guise, not the blues guitar god, but don’t hold that against this simple power-chord ballad.

Northern Kings – Creep
Wikipedia calls them a “Finnish symphonic metal cover band,” following in the footsteps of Lordi but with less elaborate costumes. They do everyone from Lionel Ritchie to Jethro Tull on their album Reborn and here they bring their epic goth to Radiohead. You may well hate it, but for a song that’s been covered a billion times, at least it’s different.

Christopher O’Riley – Arpeggi
A classical pianist, O’Riley has a whole series of Yorke songs in his repertoire, many of which can be downloaded at his website. This is a cover of the early live version of a song that would be revised for In Rainbows as “Weird Fishes / Arpeggi.” O’Riley says he prefers the early version for “the more minimalist/tone generative aspects inherent in the song structure.” Okay.

John Vanderslice – Karma Police
A few years ago Stereogum commissioned covers of every song off OK Computer to celebrate its tenth anniversary. The whole thing is downloadable here (track-by-track notes here), but this off-beat drum machine take is a highlight, with some of the hardest-rocking acoustic guitar you’re likely to hear this side of the D coming in halfway through.

Gnarls Barkley – Reckoner
Cee-Lo’s voice is perfect for this song, which they’ve been doing in their sets as of late. A higher quality source (soundboard) than most others circulating.

KT Tunstall – Fake Plastic Trees
The introspective quiet-but-whiney female thing got real old after Vanessa Carlton and Alanis Morisette in the 90’s, but this song works well in the style.

Gillian Welch – Black Star
Country songwriter Welch makes brings sweet harmonies and guitar work to this one, avoiding any temptation to make it all Nashville honky-tonk.

Sa-Ra – In Limbo
From the electronic-ey tribute album Exit Music: Songs for Radioheads, Sa-Ra brings a funk element to all the synthesizers. More fun in one song than all of Kid A.

Calico Horse – Idioteque
I would have thought this song was uncoverable. I would have been wrong. It sounds perfectly natural in this quiet, drum machine free guise.

Apr 092008
 

I’ve talked smack about Beatles covers several times on this blog, finding many that either try to ape the original and of course fail, or try to be different but just make you want to listen to the originals. While I wouldn’t go so far as to say I prefer any of these to the originals, I’m glad I’ve discovered each one of them. As with most of the Beatles’ earlier albums, the track list is a little fuzzy, being different on the British and American versions. In this case though, they just cropped a couple songs off of the US album. What, are we not good enough for Doctor Robert or I’m Only Sleeping? So we went with the original tracklist, giving you a little extra bang for your proverbial buck.

Nickel Creek – Taxman
Of all the Beatles songs to turn into bluegrass, Taxman doesn’t seem like the most obvious choice, but Chris Thille and co. make it work with lots of rapid-fire mandolin and a fiddle solo.

Richie Havens – Eleanor Rigby
As he often does, Havens changes the rhythm on the vocals a bit, with a voice you can’t tune out. More unusual for him is the jazz phrasing and heavy production.

Suggs – I’m Only Sleeping
Horn-infused neo-reggae, it eclipses the more straightforward covers of this one with an African sound and funky drumming

Ronnie Montrose – Love You To
Slow and spacey at the beginning, echoey sitar soon combines with 80’s drumming and screaming electric guitar solos (what Montrose is known for).

Marina V – Here, There and Everywhere
The opera voice can be a little much at first, but once you get used to it the plunky piano suits the melody quite well. I wish that unmemorable string section wasn’t there to clutter things up though.

Sebadoh – Yellow Submarine
Nothing if not interesting, this one opens with a quote about a “psychiatric disorder” that is surprisingly apropos. It sounds like an insane asylum, where the inmates got a hold of a couple drum kits and a drunk fourteen-year old. It might give you a headache, but so would any of the dozens of for-children covers I could have posted too.

The Livid Kittens – She Said She Said
Another loud one here, it’s a little more traditionally “music” as a kind of punk take with electro overtones. Definitely the best band name I’ve heard in a while too.

Roy Redmond – Good Day Sunshine
Redmond does his best Wilson Pickett impersonation here, and that’s in no way a bad thing. Blaring horns, belting background singers, and voice-cracking screaming by Redmond takes the soul all the way.

The Charles River Valley Boys – And Your Bird Can Sing
Off one of the earliest Beatles tribute albums, Beatle Country is also one of the best, adding slide guitar, banjo and everything without losing the heart of the originals as so often happens with genre-themed tribute discs. These boys got on their game fast, releasing this song the same year the original came out.

Elliott Smith – For No One
Smith has done a shitload of live Beatles cover, but his voice is perfect for this one, mourning and resigned. Strummed acoustic is all this song really needs, those his little scat singing halfway through is a nice touch.

Dr. Sin – Doctor Robert
Billed as Brazilian’s best hard rock band, in honor of their name these guys did a whole album of doctor-themed songs, Listen to the Doctors. It’s more interesting than I would expect a metal cover of the Beatles to be, with punchy drums and yes, a lengthy guitar solo.

Doug Kilishek – I Want to Tell You
Thanks to Brian from Coverville for cluing me into this one, it’s a hard-driving rocker that makes its punches then gets out, clocking it at just over two minutes.

Ryan Montbeau Band – Got to Get You Into My Life
Never heard of these guys, but I like their sound, jammy without making me fall asleep like most jam bands. It’s plows right ahead, never losing it’s energy with long musical “exploration” that so often kills potentially good songs live. Download the full show here.

Stereo MC’s – Tomorrow Never Knows
Another one that gets the “interesting” classification, it’s a electro-dance remix-like version (though not actually a remix, as the vocals are not the original). Loads of nice covers of this one abound, but this is by far the most unique.