Take Cover - April 2009

Covers are one of the foundation-building aspects of rock n' roll. They're a way artists can find those like them, bands begin to play with each other, and songwriters to learn the basics. They can also act as both a treat for fans, and a way for a musician to express his influences and his own tastes. A really good cover is one that isn't an exact copy of the original, but doesn't miss the essence of what makes the song great in the first place. However, there is no formula to follow.

Cover songs can be a straight up replay (Patti Smith's "Gloria", originally by Them) or a completely different sound (Joe Cocker's "With A Little Help From My Friends", originally by The Beatles). They can be an honest retelling (Jeff Buckley's "Hallelujah", originally by Leonard Cohen), or a self-important ego-play (Green Day's "Working Class Hero", originally by John Lennon). They can be worse than the original (Sheryl Crow's unfortunate "Sweet Child O'Mine"), or a major step-up (Ike & Tina Tuner's defining "Proud Mary"). They can be a decade-crossing cover (The Black Crowes' "Hard To Handle", originally by Otis Redding, 25 years earlier) or one legend borrowing from another almost simultaneously (Jimi Hendrix's "All Along The Watchtower," originally by Bob Dylan, only 9 months apart).

If I had to go back and make a Rob Gordon-style Top-Five, All Time, Desert Island list of my favorite covers, I'd drive myself insane. So here 10 of the covers I'm listening to at the moment, or were in the front of the brain, and their [original versions] so you can decide and compare. I like doing this cover thing, and this is a good April 2009 Playlist.

CAKE - Ruby, Don't Take Your Love To Town
Alright, Kenny didn't write it. But Kenny owned it. It's been covered by everyone from the Killers (ugh) to Leonard Nimoy (Spock) to Right Said Fred (are you kidding me?). But John McCrea and Co. have the uncanny ability to choose covers that fit seamlessly into their unique sound and catalog. This is just a gem.

Deer Tick - Still Crazy After All These Years
DT is hipster folk rock, and this song is surprisingly true to the original. See? You can cover/sound like Paul Simon and have me not hate you.

Elton John - Honky Tonk Woman
Fully approved on one Suburban roadtrip up to Boston, this might be the best cover on this list. It's a true-to-the-genre-known-as-honky-tonk cover of the Stones song. It might be one of the most famous Stones songs, but honestly, Elton should have co-oped it, and never put on that Donald Duck costume. Thanks to Burger [pictured] for this one.

Faces - Jealous Guy
These guys were the world's best bar band in the 60's and 70's, and they covered everyone; from Bob Dylan to Del Shannon. They famously covered "Maybe I'm Amazed" by Paul McCartney, but this Lennon solo song is their best in my opinion. They loosen it up, insert a different kind of heartbreak (drunken longing) into the singing, and rule it.

Jenny Lewis - Handle With Care
Another profession of my love for this flame-haired goddess. A slightly more uptempo cut of the supergroup's biggest hit. And she puts together her own supergroup with Conor Oberst (Bright Eyes), M. Ward (She & Him) and Ben Gibbard (Death Cab). A must have.

Jim James - Make It With You
Taking an incredibly cheesy 70's soft-rock ballad and making it a heartfelt is no easy feat. But Jimbo makes it work, with the help of his old friend reverb, and a very full sounding acoustic guitar.

The Black Keys - She Said, She Said
Making this pop-perfect Fab Four song into a dirty southern blues walker seems effortless when The Black Keys do it. A great example of taking a song, and making it your own. I still remain amazed how much sound just two guys can put out.

The Strokes - Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)
Another Marvel Team-Up style cover, with the Original Hipsters enlisting the vocal help of a soulful Eddie Vedder, and Josh Homme from Queens of the Stone Age as a second drummer. Its a spacey/funky/rocked-up taken on Marvin's emotional plea for peace with the planet.

The Who - Summertime Blues
This is a perfect example of taking a song, seeing a different side to it's lyrics and sound, and without changing a single word, making it better. Townsend and his crew take the skiffle-rific, "aw shucks" teenage frustration song, and make it angry. It's dirty, noisy, rough, loose, and a real teen-angst anthem. This song made me want to be in a band, and somehow made me think I could, it's so simple, but so raw.

William Shatner - Common People
This one's a curveball. You probably don't know the original, although it's one of the most famous songs in Britain, so listen to that first. It's your classic 90's non-Oasis alternative britpop. But in 2004, Ben Folds took it, and reworked it with a indie-rock symphony into something very different, while remaining true to the original. Shatner adds his trademark pregnant pauses, and it works. It really fucking works. The two songs almost compliment each other more than they compete. You'd never think you'd enjoy talking this much. Thanks for Ambrosia for this one.