A Lot to Cover

The countdown is on. We are one week away from Election Day, so I must be here to talk about politics, right? Right? Bueller?

Nope, I'm taking a break to write about something a little lighter. The past month has been rough. In addition to all the election BS everyone is dealing with, my dad was in a motorcycle accident and has been in the hospital for over two weeks. Add some extra personal stress and anxiety and... Well, it's just not been a great time for me.

There are a few things in life I can always count on to make me feel better. My hubby. My friends. My family. My pups. And music.

I love music.

Lately I've been focusing on covers, largely thanks to a trial of SiriusXM during which I could listen to their online stations, including the new Covers channel. I fell in love with that channel. Hard. My trial ended just over two weeks ago and I'm still not over it. I'm mourning the loss of my channel. I've tried creating sort of a covers station on Pandora, but I don't think it understands what I want (though it, too, has shown me some awesome songs).

I've written in defense of covers before, thanks to Glee. I've even written about Christmas covers. So it should come as no surprise to anyone that I'm obsessing over cover songs yet again.

Today I want to share my five most recent cover obsessions. (FYI, just because they're recent obsessions doesn't mean the covers themselves are necessarily recent. I say this so no one goes, "Pfft, that's not new!" Yeah, I know it's not. Shut up.)

So, in no particular order...

1. KHS, Sam Tsui, Madilyn Bailey, Alex G - Send My Love: This collaboration of awesome Youtube artists Kurt Hugo Schneider, Sam Tsui, Madilyn Bailey, and Alex G is one of MANY Adele covers out there, yet it stands out to me as one of the very best. Not only are the vocals amazing (a cappella is my weakness!), this is probably the craziest game of patty cake you'll ever see.

Favorite Moment: The vocals drop out around 2:22 for some intricate hand clapping. When they come back around 2:38... Perfection.

2. Disturbed - The Sound of Silence: I'm a big fan of oldies, and I have a hard time with a lot of modern covers of songs I fell in love with as a kid. However, this Simon & Garfunkel cover is a definite exception. David Draiman's voice and delivery really bring out the intensity of the lyrics, stirring up visceral emotions and rekindling my love of this 60s hit.

Favorite Moment: Hard to choose, but I'll say right around 1:48 when Draiman starts belting out the words. His voice is so beautiful it hurts.

3. Twenty One Two - Love Yourself: Twenty One Two consists of a drummer and a singer/guitarist, both from Sweden. I'm a huge fan and all of their covers rock (in fact, their cover of Lukas Graham's "7 Years" just won MTV's best cover of the month), but this one holds a special place in my heart. I hate to admit it, but I love this song in general. If you're like me, you probably got into it on the radio and then found out it was Justin Bieber and sort of hated yourself a little. Well, fear not! This cover means you can love the song without having to love the Biebs. Also, it was the first of their songs to come up on XM's Covers station (and you always remember your first love).

Favorite Moment: Probably the first time they start the chorus (1:13-ish), just before you find out about a slight modification in the lyrics. The impact is greatest when it's unexpected.

4. Pentatonix ft Jason Derulo - If I Ever Fall in Love: I've been a fan of Pentatonix since they were on The Sing-Off, and I've been following Jason Derulo since the days of MySpace (you know, when people still used it and thought Facebook was a "ripoff" of it). When I showed Hubby the carpool karaoke clip with Jason showing off his training, he was amazed to learn that he can really sing (not just "pop crap"), so I had to share this song with him as well. Shai's original is... well, it's something. Don't get me wrong, the vocals are pretty sweet (holy falsetto, Batman!), but the style of the early 90s didn't do the original any favors. This is a rare case where I think the cover is way better than the original.

Favorite Moment: 2:36. Falsetto FTW.

5. Postmodern Jukebox ft Haley Reinhart - Creep: Scott Bradlee's Postmodern Jukebox is a thing of wonder. "We take pop music back in time," says their Facebook page. Sounds simple, but the arrangements are anything but. PMJ takes a song and gives it a makeover, a whole new life. (I can't explain it any better than that, so just check out their Youtube channel, OK?) This Radiohead cover is a fan favorite, thanks in part to the incredible voice of Haley Reinhart, who I have a HUGE music crush on. (If she sounds familiar, you might have heard her version of "Can't Help Falling in Love With You" from the Extra Gum commercial. Oh, and I guess she was on American Idol. So. Yeah.)

Favorite Moment: I truly love this entire song, and if I could wrap myself inside Haley's voice like a burrito, I probably would. But my favorite part begins at 4:03. Not only is Haley singing her freaking heart out, but listen to the instruments in the section that follows. Scott Bradlee is going nuts on the piano (his arrangements are insane!), and the whole thing just comes together in the most spectacular way. I adore it.

Covering Christmas

You might recall that I'm a bit of a music freak. You might also remember that I've already written a post about cover songs and how they aren't necessarily as terrible as everyone assumes. And it's also possible that you've read that I love me some Christmas music. Yes? OK.

Because of the nature of Christmas music, there are a LOT of covers out there. Most traditional songs don't really have an identifiable "original" version, and newer songs are still covered left and right because... well... Christmas! In other words, you can't swing a dead cat without hitting a Christmas cover. And that's OK. 

Personally, I think there are some songs that are just meant to be covered, especially in the world of Christmas carols. A  new take on a song can be a wonderful thing, and in some cases, it might make a less tolerable song something you actually enjoy listening to. 

That being said, here are a couple of my favorite Christmas covers and what makes them so delightful.

1) "The Twelve Days of Christmas" as performed by Straight No Chaser. I previously wrote that the only version of this song I can listen to more than once a season is John Denver & The Muppets. Since that was written, though, I have discovered the magic of Straight No Chaser. (In fact, Hubby and I just saw them live this week for the first time! What an epic show they put on, too!) If you're looking for a traditional version of this song, then this isn't the version for you. But, if you're looking for a fun, goofy, new spin on it, you need to give it a listen. Now. On a related note, their version of "Wonderful Christmastime" with Sir Paul is also a great cover; not that I don't love the original, but there's something about a capella that just gets me, man.

2) "The Little Drummer Boy" as performed by Bing Crosby and David Bowie. Hubby and I were in the car last weekend and I heard the beginning of this song and went to turn the radio down, saying, "Yeah, I just can't get into this song. It's not one of my favorites." And then I realized it was the Bing and Bowie version and turned it back up going, "Except for this version, because this version is epic!" Hubby laughed and told me I couldn't even hate something right, which I decided to take as a compliment. Anywhoozles, before this special existed, if you had told someone that Bing Crosby and David Bowie would be doing a duet together, most peoples' heads would have exploded from the sheer insanity of the idea. And then it happened. I'm pretty sure some heads did explode, but the song that resulted from this strange pairing is beyond what anyone could have imagined.

3) "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen/We Three Kings" as performed by Barenaked Ladies featuring Sarah McLachlan. OK, this is technically two songs, but whatever. The point is that BNL took a couple of fairly traditional (and maybe a bit stuffy) Christmas songs and made them pretty freakin' cool. Partnering up with Sarah was a pretty genius move, too. Her vocals give back a touch of the traditional feel without going completely backwards. I love it.

4) "My Grown-Up Christmas List" as performed by Michael Bublé. I'm pretty sure he just makes everything sound dreamier. Other versions tend to get on my nerves, but Michael can bring it home like no one else. 

5) "All I Want For Christmas Is You" as performed by Mariah Carey featuring Jimmy Fallon & The Roots. Is it still a cover if the same artist is performing it? Whatever. The point is that this version makes my heart happy and makes me feel warm inside. If this doesn't say Christmas, I don't know what does.

And there you have it! 

What Christmas covers make the season merry and bright for you? Let me know so I can add them to my Christmas playlist! :)

Cover to Cover

As we've already established, I'm a bit of a Gleek.  I have no issues admitting this, since it's part of who I am, and I can't really control what I like or don't like.

So while watching last night's episode, I couldn't help that I was practically drooling when Jesse showed up for a duet of Adele's "Rolling In The Deep" with Rachel.  Seriously.  My husband kept laughing at me because I couldn't take my eyes off the screen, and I was in my own little happy world of Glee-ness (which sounds dirtier than it is, I assure you).  

Of course I had to find the song on youtube this morning to indulge myself again, and found TONS of nasty comments on it.  "You have murdered this song, so let's murder Glee," one says.  Another says, "Ohh god..They Burned tortured and killed that song."  

Now hold on a minute, kids.  First, I have to tell you that I LOVE Adele and her original version of this song.  Her voice is amazing, and she rocks anything she sings in a big way.  But does that mean I'm not allowed to gush over the Glee version?

When I was a kid, I remember my dad telling me that if an artist or band did a cover of a song, they had better put their own twist on it, or else it wasn't worth doing.  Indeed, if all covers were done exactly like the original versions, there would be no point at all.  Booooooring.

And though the original version is better 99.9% of the time, remakes can be amazing, too (UB40's "Red, Red Wine" anyone?)!  The whole point of the cover is to take an already established song and breathe new life into it, or pay homage to it in some other way.  To compare an original and a remake is like comparing apples to oranges.  Sure, they're both tasty, nutritious fruits, but I love them both.  And there's nothing wrong with that.   

Are some covers crappy?  Abso-fucking-lutely.  Madonna's "American Pie" makes me want to gouge my eardrums out.  And while many have tried, there is no version of "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" that holds a candle to Judy's (though, I do love the version by Israel Kamakawiwoʻole').  It happens.

So when someone says that Glee has "ruined" a song, I just have to wonder how they figure it has been ruined.  It's their own take on the song, and while you don't have to like it, it's just not right to say that it's terrible because it's different from the original version.