Sheryl Crow, John Legend, St. Vincent, More Join Dawes for “I Love LA” at the Grammys

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Feb 042025
 
i love la grammys

The city of Los Angeles has been put through the wringer the past month and the fact that the Grammy Awards were able to be held there on Sunday seems like a minor miracle. The ceremony opened with a heartfelt introduction by host Trevor Noah acknowledging the city and its role in popular music. The show then kicked off in earnest with a supergroup paying tribute to the city. And they did so with what seems like the obvious choice: Randy Newman’s “I Love LA.”

The group was led by the Goldsmith brothers, Taylor and Griffin from Dawes, who both lost their houses, their childhood home and their studio in the fires. They were joined on-stage by a diverse group of musicians including John Legend, Sheryl Crow, St Vincent, Brittany Howard and Brad Paisley.

A few of the lyrics were changed, removing Newman’s trademark snark, and replacing it with a tribute to the firefighters and first responders as well as celebrating the resilience of the city. (I’m usually not okay with changing lyrics, especially when they completely de-fang a song, but they get pass on this one.) Enjoy the performance and if you can, make a donation to help the people most affected by the fires.

The Best Cover Songs of November 2023

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Nov 302023
 
best cover songs
boygenius ft. Ye Vagabonds — The Parting Glass (Trad. cover)

Every year, Phoebe Bridgers releases a surprise cover around the holidays to benefit charity. This year, she brought in her boygenius bandmates as well as vocal group Ye Vagabonds to cover “The Parting Glass.” It’s a traditional Irish tune, but their version pays specific homage to Sinead O’Connor, who covered it in 2002. Sales benefit the Aisling Project, an after-school project working with children and young people growing up in a disadvantaged area of Dublin. The beneficiary was chosen by the estate of O’Connor, who died in July. Continue reading »

David Byrne and St. Vincent Cover Stevie Wonder Deep Cut “Chemical Love”

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May 222023
 
byrne vincent bam

When we put together our 50 Best Stevie Wonder Covers Ever list last year, you know what song was never in contention? “Chemical Love,” off Wonder’s 1991 soundtrack for the Spike Lee drama Jungle Fever. Because, other than a couple random YouTubers, it’s the rare Stevie tune that basically no one has covered.

Until now. Continue reading »

The Best Cover Songs of March 2023

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Apr 032023
 
best cover songs of march 2023
Bria – When You Know Why You’re Happy (Mary Margaret O’Hara’ cover)

Bria’s “Where Have All The Cowboys Gone?” made our list of the Best Covers of 2022. The track was a sneak peak at her covers EP Cuntry Covers Vol. 2, and the full thing dropped a few weeks ago. It includes a wonderful version of this much more obscure song. Bria explains: “Mary Margaret O’Hara is a creative force and one of my favorite Canadian artists. I have been a huge fan of hers for quite some time and really wanted to try my hand at one of her songs for Vol. 2. She is a real queen of vocal improvisation. It’s a trait of hers that I’ve always admired, so I really wanted to explore that when recording this cover. The video for this track is special to us, a sort of collage of memory; fragmented footage of summer taken over the last two years is dispersed throughout shots of a vast winter scene, filmed while we finished the record up North with our live band.” Continue reading »

Watch New Beach Boys Covers by Brandi Carlile, John Legend, Beck, Mumford & Sons, Weezer, and More

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Feb 142023
 
new beach boys covers

Four days after the Grammy Awards, the Recording Academy returns to the Dolby Theatre in LA to stage an all-star tribute to The Beach Boys. All surviving bandmembers were present to watch a host of A-list artists tackle their hits and, occasionally, deeper cuts. The proceedings were filmed for A Grammy Salute To The Beach Boys, which will air later this year, but for now you can preview it with audience footage that landed on YouTube. Continue reading »

The Best Cover Songs of August 2022

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Aug 312022
 
Eddie Vedder – Long Shadow (Joe Strummer cover)

This month, Joe Strummer would have turned 70. In a few weeks, Dark Horse Records will release the compilation Joe Strummer 002: The Mescaleros Years. To promote it, director Lance Bangs filmed a video of Eddie Vedder covering the posthumously-released Mescaleros track “Long Shadow.” It’s a simple fireside performance, similar to Vedder buddy Neil Young’s lockdown videos, and hopefully will bring more attention to a lesser known non-Clash track from the Strummer catalog. Continue reading »

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