Hope you all had a good holiday! I certainly enjoyed the time off. But now we're back!
Number .... 18? I hope.
Smokey Robinson: Second That Emotion
Current Knowledge: I'm 99% sure I know this one. But the one percent here is bugging me. My Uncle brought this song up over Thanksgiving break, and I totally doubted myself on whether or not I knew it. So now it's here on the list and we're about to find out for sure.
First Thoughts: Oh.. yeah, I absolutely know this song. Haha, whoops. I covered this with a band one time forever ago. I feel pretty dumb for not being able to remember. This is actually a great song. I love his voice, and I love the brass section. Motown will always be one of my favorites. How could it not be?!
Verdict: There's not much to say, now that I remember the song; I formulated opinions on this one ages ago! Nevertheless it's a cool tune.
For those unfamiliar as to why this is a notable day: Thanksgiving's Eve is like THE biggest bar night of the whole year. And I'm not booked anywhere... which means I get to go out and catch some of my favorite local bands! If you're not busy (and you aren't, tomorrow's a holiday!) I highly suggest you do the same. All the local musicians out there will appreciate it greatly.
I will leave you with this, as it is - in my eyes- a holiday that I am off to celebrate.
This Friday Feature goes out to a cover of a cover.
Emily Seal covering Hurt, as covered by Johnny Cash!
I didn't really have any expectations when looking for a cover of this one; I knew that there would be a lot to choose from, though. Being associated with both Nine Inch Nails and Johnny Cash encompasses a wide group of people. I listened to a bunch and I wasn't blown away at any point, until I clicked on this link.
Meet Emily Seal!
I had already decided on a different cover, but clicked on this last one just as a whim, and I am SO glad I did. I am absolutely in love with this girl's voice. Holy cow. If you haven't heard of Ron Pope, listen to something by him; he's a favorite of mine and she sounds like the female version of him in the best way. In this cover, Emily didn't miss a single note, and she has the most impressive amount of vocal control. She might have the coolest voice I've ever heard from a Youtube video. I can't stress to you enough how talented she is. If you only listen to one thing today, make it this cover.
More about Emily Seal: I'm not sure why this video doesn't have ten thousand views. It's better than any other cover I looked at. But I dug a little deeper and discovered that Ms. Seal is doing very, very well. She's a Canadian recording artist with a slew of nominations and awards already received, along with a lengthy list of accolades and accomplishments. She has a CD out, titled If You Keep This Up (which I will be buying once I finish writing this post), a killer website, and a Facebook page you can check out if you like what you've heard above, and how could you not?!
Not that Emily Seal needs my accolades here, as she has already earned herself plenty, but I can't help but give them anyways. She's living my dream at the moment, and she's absolutely earned the right to be there!
Current Knowledge: I don't know much about Ted Nugent's music. I do know that the first time I was on the radio, I played my segment and then the host interviewed Ted Nugent over the phone afterwards, so I basically opened for him. Also, a friend of mine plays bass with Derek St. Holmes all the time (he gets theses all expenses paid trips to Vegas and LA and Denver.... I hate him). I have a sneaking suspicion I know this song.... But I'm not 100% sure, and I know I've never heard the original, so here goes.
First Thoughts: Yep. I know this song. Dylan, the bass player referenced above, does this song all the time at bars. I had no idea this was a Ted Nugent song! And though Dylan is one of the best bassists I've ever met EVER, Nugent sings this waaaay better. He's actually got a cool voice. And I don't know who's playing guitar here (Nugent maybe?) but it's really, REALLY good. This is basically straight up rock 'n roll. Not surprisingly, the original version is far better than anything that's been done in any bar I've ever been to. The solos are way longer, more drawn out, and all around better. Yeah, this is awesome.
Verdict: I was pretty sure I knew this song, and I'm not surprised I liked this better than the bar covers I've grown used to. It's a badass rock and roll song with a ripping guitar solo that I will forever appreciate and never duplicate. I'm really diggin' it.
(And by the way, these headphones are making ALL the difference; best $25 I ever spent.)
Current Knowledge: I know a few Johnny Cash songs; my grandpa is quite the fan (and, in fact, the only person in my extended family who plays guitar). Ring of Fire is probably his favorite, and I know that one like the back of my hand. However, I was at a party over the weekend, and on the TV/radio station that was playing, the Nine Inch Nails song Hurt came on. I genuinely didn't believe the person who told me that Johnny Cash had covered this, or how it possibly could have sounded. So, here I am, about to find out.
First Thoughts: Maybe it's my headphone upgrade, but the guitar in this sounds really awesome. It's really clear and bright and right on the top of the mix....yeah, this is probably thanks to the headphones, actually. In regards to the song itself: it's actually a really weird version of this, honestly. This song seems to be written with a really strong vocal melody, and Johnny Cash was by no means young when he recorded this; his voice is distinct but not particularly striking in this. I think it's actually the lack of emotion in his voice that is the issue for me. The lyrics say that the speaker is more or less dying, and Cash's vocal seems a bit apathetic. Though I think I can see why he chose to cover it, there's a good story and a nice acoustic guitar part, which are Johnny Cash staples.
Verdict: I'm not really sure what to make of this. It's a really weird convergence between two distinctly different types of music. I wouldn't say I'd put this on again, but I can certainly commend Johnny Cash for picking a song that is so far outside of his usual genre and making it his own. That's something I try to do a lot of the time, so I can definitely relate, at least.
For those of you that may not know, I'm in the process of putting together a bit of a home studio! I have this weird control-freak tendency with my music; basically I want to be in charge of everything that happens, from the songwriting to the mixing, and I've spent enough time in real studios and in recording classes to do it on my own, at least, well enough to get a good quality demo put together. The thing is, music equipment is SO expensive, if you want good quality stuff. I don't want to cheap out too much, but I don't have thousands upon thousands of dollars to spend. Luckily, I have a lot of the necessary components already, and a lot of the things I still need I can get at a huge student discount (ie, Pro Tools). That still leaves me with a few things to find, however.
On a total whim, I turned to craigslist last night to see if anyone was selling something I could use. And lo and behold, a "retired" musician who once made electronic (read: dub step) music, was liquefying his studio. Among his listed possessions were a $400 microphone and $60 headphones. He was selling them both for a total of $300... and I talked him down to $250. And then he threw in some other stuff too!
If sold at their retail price (with tax, not even considering possible shipping charges), the total for all of that gear would be: $543.75.
I saved almost $300! And all I had to do was go to this guy's apartment in the middle of the ghetto and pick it up... heh. (at one point the thought of possibly getting murdered crossed my mind, but who stalks their prey using audio equipment sales?!) Fortunately I emerged unscathed, and I saved more money than I spent. You can't beat that! (and these headphones, by the way, are DYNAMITE. I can't wait to test out everything else!)
This week's Friday Feature goes to a cover of Casey Jones!
When I looked at Casey Jones initially, the only thing I could think about in terms of covering was that it would make a great acoustic song for a male singer with a country vibe. So, this week I set out to find someone who not only fit that mold, but did it justice.
Meet Michael Richardson. :)
There aren't a ton of covers of this song on YouTube, believe it or not. And of the handful of covers that do exist, most of them leave a lot to be desired. This one is an exception! Michael has covered this really really well. His voice is great, very well suited to the song. And he plays a Takamine (which I may be biased towards because I learned to play on one) that has a really nice sound, even though it's being played without any amplification, as far as I can tell. Not to mention he's a great guitarist to begin with! He has all the components necessary to do this song well, and it shows. I'm super thrilled to have stumbled upon this one.
More about Michael Richardson: All I could really find on this talented guy was his YouTube channel. But there's a lot on there to look at! He's got a bunch of instructional videos that have accrued thousands of views, and a really successful cover of Lime in the Coconut that I really liked. You can check out his channel here.
Thank you, Michael Richardson, for sharing this with the world!
So, this is a little backwards. A friend of mine and an incredible musician used to cover this one song every time I saw him play, and I loved it. But I never got around to asking him what it was, and he's moved away recently. It's long past time for me to look up what the heck this song is. The internet is so cool.
After a tedious Google search, and about an hour of trying to remember any of the lyrics in the right order, I found it! It's Stay With Me, by Rod Stewart.
First Thoughts: I mean, I've known this song for years without knowing ever hearing the original, so that in itself is satisfying. It's sung so high! My friend always sang it an octave down, apparently. And he always did it just with an acoustic guitar, so to hear it with a full band, and all the harmony and everything is so awesome. And the slide guitar! That's awesome too. I've always wanted to learn to play like that. And this breakdown at the end with the guitar and bass solos is just so good.
Verdict: The original is great. I finally know who sings this awesome piece of music. I have about seven hundred memories associated with this song, so I'm excited to have a name for it. Maybe I'm a little biased, but I love it!
A revisit to All Along The Watchtower- this time, the Jimi Hendrix version.
Current Knowledge: It was suggested that I revisit this one and take a look at the Hendrix version. It's supposedly superior to Dylan's, which wouldn't surprise me, because Jimi Hendrix is kind of the man. I like the song and I know it quite well at this point, so I'm pretty excited to hear this from a totally different artist.
First Thoughts: Oh, there's no contest here. This is WAY better. I can't emphasize that enough though text on the internet. This is the version I've heard covered in bars so many times, but like a thousand times better, cause, ya know, it's Jimi Hendrix. And not that it even needs to be said, because it's totally a given, but the guitar solo is just so damn good. It's like the kind of good that makes you want to stop playing guitar because that kind of skill is practically unachievable.
Verdict: I am so glad I listened to this. I liked the song before, but after hearing this version, I love it. This is one of the best songs that I've written about in quite some time on here. And I'd write more, but I have to go put this on in my car, crank the volume, and drive down the highway at 80 miles an hour.
This week's Friday Feature goes to Rachel Ann Cauilan,with her guitar cover of The Chain, by Fleetwood Mac!
The first Friday Feature ever was an a cappella group, so this week I decided I'd go in the opposite direction and do an instrumental. This is a tough song to play!
Meet the lady who has done it justice, Rachel Ann Cauilan. :)
I listened to the song an extra handful of times before browsing Youtube, and there's a lot of intricate stuff going on in the guitar parts for sure. I wasn't totally sure I was going to find a decent cover anywhere. But it didn't take me too long to come across this really awesome rendition. Not only did Rachel play the entire song pretty much perfectly, her guitar tone is absolutely stellar, which isn't something you find a ton of on the internet, unfortunately. And she says she only learned it the night before recording it! I've been playing guitar for seven years and never would I be confident enough to post something I had only learned that recently, which makes this all the more impressive. Rachel, you are a hell of a player.
If you're interested in hearing more from Rachel, you can check out her Youtube channel here, which includes covers Blackbird and California Dreamin', both favorites of mine. You can also visit her wordpress blog, tumblr, and twitter pages.
Thanks for sharing your guitar skills with the world, Rachel!
Current Knowledge: I've covered two Dead songs in my life. Shakedown Street with an old band, and Friend of the Devil. I was under the impression that The Grateful Dead was a band for hippies and crazy stoners before I heard Friend of the Devil, which is twangy and literally the opposite of Shakedown Street. This has left me very confused about the identity of this band, but two songs isn't an ideal sample size. So I figured I'd add a third.
First Thoughts: This is way more like Friend of the Devil than Shakedown Street. If I didn't know better I'd have guessed that The Eagles wrote this or something, save for the weird little key shift in the middle of the verse. That's not to say I don't like it. I actually do, but I'm pretty surprised that this is the sound of one of their greatest hits. And it's super long, but from what I remember that's a thing with this band. They did include the word cocaine in the hook, so maybe there's something to be said for that.
Verdict: What did I just listen to? Because I'm not really sure it was a Grateful Dead song. Knowing Friend of the Devil has kind of prepared me for something out of the range of what I expected, but that's pretty darn far from it. I guess I categorized them closer to Pink Floyd than The Eagles. Wikipedia to the rescue: "The band was known for its unique and eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, folk, bluegrass, blues, reggae, country, improvisational jazz, psychedelia, and space rock." I am floored by this. They have so many styles that it's like they don't have a style at all. The verdict here is that I don't know anything about The Grateful Dead, I guess. On the matter of the aforementioned tune, though: it's good. I think I like Friend of the Devil better, but that's almost certainly my folk preference shining through here.
Mercedes Benz by Janis Joplin was like the second song on my list. Since listening to it, I have very much taken a liking to it. So much so that I've added it to my regular set list (Since it's a cappella, all I had to do was learn the words!)
A couple weeks ago I played an open mic downtown at a bar called Buffalo Iron Works. It's one of my favorite venues downtown and the open mic is relatively new; I was ecstatic about it's debut, to be honest. Attendance was lacking though, simply because the word hasn't gotten out yet about it. The host, who I'm good friends with, told me I could play as long as I wanted (probably because he knew he was getting out of playing himself). People always get on my case about playing for free and how it's hurting me in the long run, but I love it too much to ever turn down an opportunity. Mercedes Benz was like the fourth song I did.
Now, performing is kind of like a drug. It's not for everyone, but the few that get hooked on it are insatiable. I am one of the (lucky?) few. The catch to this is that you can feel pretty vulnerable up on a stage with a room full of people staring at you, critiquing you whether you like it or not. To play with a guitar is one thing; the guitar can be altered to cover a missing word, and vocals can fill in for a forgotten guitar line - I've done both. It provides a sense of security in a lot of ways. But to take away the guitar altogether is a very different experience. You're totally exposed. If you make a mistake, there is absolutely no hiding it. It's you, your voice, and a room full of potential critics - like American Idol auditions, except these people lose nothing by being totally honest in their thoughts. The point I'm trying to make is that singing totally a cappella in an environment like a bar is a risky and intimidating thing to do, and is something I would usually avoid.
But alas, someone requested I do some Joplin, and I figured now was the time to test this out.
There were maybe twelve people in the bar but they managed to give me a standing ovation anyways. I must've done an okay job. :) Honestly it was my best received song of the night, which was pretty surprising to me. Plus one for doing my homework and actually looking up this song, finally.
In conclusion - Mercedes Benz has earned a permanent spot on the set list, and I've played it at every gig since. Sometimes it pays to be a little risky, I guess.
I love Halloween, I won't lie. So I decided it was only fitting to do a Friday Feature based on an appropriate tune, despite not ever mentioning it on the blog (I already love this song),
Don't Fear the Reaper, as covered by Joshua Path!
I love this tune. I always have. And I was totally shocked to turn to the internet and be disappointed over and over with the covers people have uploaded. Nobody could sing it, nobody could play it. I was about to change songs when I stumbled upon this gem.
Meet Joshua Path.
I don't have enough nice things to say about the way this has been executed. Where the original song is edgy and uptempo, this cover is haunting and light. It's sung flawlessly, and has an incredibly high level of production, which is nothing but beneficial here. Taking out the percussion and slowing it down really smooths out the sound in a way that gives it a ton of dimension and room to appreciate the lyrics. And the harmonies are phenomenal, really, especially the ones written in for the "I'm your man" line. I think that's what made it for me. It's an incredible rendition. Words really don't do it justice; please please please take the time to listen to this. I promise you won't be disappointed.
More on Joshua Path: He's a guitarist/vocalist based out of LA. His sound has been described as “Early Beatles, couched in a sound similar to the Goo Goo Dolls, along with intelligent and creative storytelling not unlike Bob Dylan” by Music Connection Magazine, which I can agree with and then some. He has an impressive bio full of accolades and a sixth CD out, titled, Between Heaven and Jonestown. If you'd like to hear more from him (I certainly do), his website is here: http://www.joshuapath.com/. Thank you, Mr. Path, for doing justice to a phenomenal song that I was certain no one could do.
This is a music review blog. It's not supposed to be for pop music, but I have to make an exception here and talk about T-Swift.
She released 1989 just the other day, and, so far, I have been able to avoid it. If I may be candid, back in the day I was quite the Taylor Swift fan, when she was still a country singer. But I have watched her abandon her talented singer/songwriter roots and devolve into a less-than-appealing cookie cutter pop artist, releasing only songs that I can't stand. But, alas, I figured I'd give her one more chance.
The song I've seen most quoted on the internet so far is Out of the Woods. The title sounds thought out, and like it might have some substance. So I sat down and listened to it with a full open and non-judgmental mind.
It was so bad. :(
The chorus is just clusters of words repeated over and over in monotone, with a lot of synth and drums to make it dance-able. The verses are lacking in substance and all traces of the Taylor Swift that first graced the music scene are completely gone. It sounded so fake and over produced and, not that I was expecting a miracle, I was pretty let down.
And that's what's bugging me. I spend so much time writing myself, and I know how much effort it takes to write a song that's good, verses any song on 1989. (I listened to nearly all the rest in hopes I might find a diamond in the rough. I did not.) All of the good music is being pushed off the radio in favor of this grossly mass-produced pop garbage that is only appealing to teenage girls. And this is a very common complaint about music these days. But good music is still being made! I hear it all the time in some of my favorite artists and on Pandora. If the demand is high and the content is there, why isn't the good stuff on the radio? Why do record labels think they can push this stuff onto the world without retaliation? Because they already are, and they have been doing it for years.
As an indie artist, this is sad, and disheartening. But the upside? Record labels are losing their power thanks to the rise of the internet. An artists can do everything on their own now, with enough work. So, there will never be a lack of bad pop music on the radio, because record labels can still sell it, for now. But their is a back door to this horrendous onslaught of crap, thanks to the advances of music technology. Thanks to YouTube and Spotify and Bandcamp and SoundCloud and Reverbnation and every other site that is used by independent musicians, good music is still out there and available to the world, no matter what is playing on the radio.
And I think (or fervently hope) that in time, record labels will embrace this shift, and bring back the kind of musicians that deserve to be in the spotlight, rather than just industrializing the one thing that isn't supposed to be made generic.
Music isn't for selling, it's an art form, damn it.
Current Knowledge: I think I have heard Fleetwood Mac before. On my Pandora station. But I'm not totally sure, and this song title doesn't sound familiar. Then the other day, a friend of mine was talking about her newfound Fleetwood Mac obsession, so I decided to put it on the list.
First Thoughts: This is cool. It's haunting and twangy in a really cool way. It actually reminds me a little of Helplessly Hoping, which I adore. Maybe I just have a thing for harmonies, because that seems to be a trend with the songs I'm favoring. It starts off pretty withdrawn but it builds up really nicely into a pretty powerful rock ballad. And the bass solo in the middle is a nice divide and break into the instrumental. This honestly sounds like a song I would play with the windows down driving really fast if I wanted to feel like a badass.
Verdict: I really like this. It's carefully straddling the line between twangy country and rock, but it isn't county rock, ya know? I don't know how else to describe it. It's got all the grit you could want and it builds really nicely, but I would love to see it done with just acoustic guitar and vocals, too. I think that would be interesting. Overall, though, this is a cool tune.
In looking at all this classic rock and surrounding myself with people who value this sort of music, it's no surprise that the technical aspects of musical instruments comes up pretty often. This is something I know even less about when compared to "good music". So, here's something that's a bit off the usual beaten path.
Story time. Over the summer I was gifted a guitar.
This is Precious. She was a gift from a very generous friend, and I love her dearly. As I have recently joined a band, having a real nice electric guitar has been absolutely necessary. This particular guitar is a 2006 Elliot Easton model (The guy from The Cars) Gretsch, a solid body in the color of Cadillac green, with a Bigsby tailpiece (that's the whammy bar!) and Gretsch Humbucker pickups. When musician friends of mine see said guitar, the pickups are very often the first thing that get brought up. I know Humbucker = good. But why? What's the difference between them and any other kind of pickups? Don't they all do the same thing?
I did some research, and I'm gonna attempt to break this down in a way that makes sense to someone who has no idea what I'm talking about. Nobody ever explains this stuff to me without making me feel dumb or by using terminology I've never heard. So I'm gonna lay this out in total layman's terms, so that maybe someone else of the less-formally-educated-but-still-musical group can understand what the heck is going on with pickups and why people play favorites.
~
First things first: pickups. Sticking strictly with electric guitar (Acoustic is a whole other ball game), the pickups are what sit under the guitar strings and pick up their vibrations and turn them into sound. In the picture above, they're the two rectangular gold boxes with little black lines and gold dots in em. In a few words, there's a coil in there, and a magnet, which interacts with the strings on the guitar by vibrating and creates a voltage in the coil, which is translated into sound. (I still don't totally understand how this works. All that's important is pickup = sound interpreter.) The main difference between pickups is the sound they create, not surprisingly. And there are several different types.
Single Coil
My first electric guitar (a black Fender Squire that was also a gift and came from one of those $100 guitar/amp box sets, and looks a lot like the picture below) had single coil pickups. They look like this.
This was essentially the first type of pickup created, and is as it sounds; a single coil with two horseshoe shaped magnets in it under the plastic case. Characteristically, these pickups create a sound that is twangy, bright, and cutting. However, different variations on the single coil pickup have been created for different guitars. A Stratocaster guitar (the black guitar above is a Stratocaster) is the brightest and twangiest sounding, while a telecaster (below) style pickup is a bit rounder and warmer sounding, but punchier.
There are variations of these for other brands and guitars, but they all tend to fall somewhere between these two styles. The drawback to single coil is that they tend to make a bit of a buzzing sound; think of the hum you often hear when a guitar is plugged into an amp but not being played. Modern technology, however has helped to create "noiseless" versions of them. These pickups are most popular on Fender brand guitars.
P90
A P90 pickup is very similar to a single coil. They often look like this:
From the outside, they're wider and are thicker than a single coil pickup, though it is just a single coil inside. This coil, however, is much wider. It allows the pickup to "hear" more, resulting in a bigger sound that isn't as bright or twangy. It can also produce a higher output, which means it can get louder, and boosts the mid-range tones of the guitar. This gives them a lot of versatility. They come in a couple different designs and colors, but they work just the same as a single coil. (A note: I don't see these used nearly as much as single coil or Humbuckers.)
Humbuckers
These bad boys look like the ones on Precious. But they can also look like this:
The difference here is that each pickup contains two coils instead of one. The two opposing coils are designed to "buck", or cancel, the pesky aforementioned "hum", hence the name. Aside from doing that, adding a second coil increases the output of the guitar, so it can get even louder, and really cuts back on some of the higher frequencies. Guitars with these pickups sound warm and powerful, which is exactly how one would like their guitar to sound on many occasions. The name humbucker has become the blanket term for all guitar pickups with two coils, though it is possible to have a double coil pickup with no humbucking action.
Which brings me to my next point. There are still a TON of other things that can effect the sound of the guitar. How many times the coil was wound, the type of magnet used, the placement of the pickup on the guitar, what company made the pickups and for which guitar they were made, the way the guitar was built, the kind of strings, whether the pickup covers are on or off, the brand of guitar, the amplifier, etc, etc. There are even distinctions between active and passive pickups, an active pickup having a battery powered circuit to create a "hotter" or louder sound, though most pickups are passive. People often create their own custom setups involving all of these parts. And it all comes down to what sounds good to a particular person. There are generic universal ideas about what sounds good, and then there are the needs of the individual musicians playing their guitars. Sometimes a guitarist is going to want a bright tone with a lot of treble. Sometimes a guitarist wants to be as loud and as powerful as possible. Most of the time, the guitarist wants to sound how they think is best, and that's usually somewhere in between all of these things. It's all about preference.
Hopefully I've shed some light on the subject at hand (I learned a ridiculous amount; the internet is a beautiful thing). I know it's a bit off topic from what I usually post, but I think it really adds to the knowledge base I'm acquiring here (hint: that means there will be more stuff like this, cause I liked doing it a lot).
I'll leave you with this, an awesome example of most of what I've just explained. Even a totally untrained ear can hear the differences, and it's not hard to see that both humbuckers and single coils have their place in the guitar world.
Current Knowledge: I don't know anything about Neil Young. In looking up which song I should listen to, in less than 15 seconds I inadvertently discovered that I know at least three other songs of his, and that he was the "Young" in Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young. Some days I feel like I'm making musical progress, and then there are days like today, where I feel as ignorant as I did on day one. Ugh. This song is one I am not familiar with, and I was such a big fan of Helplessly Hoping that this song is nonetheless being held to high expectations. First Thoughts: Oh god, the harmonica. I have a secret love affair with harmonicas, so already this song has like three extra points starting out. But I don't really care for his voice... what? I'm surprised with myself. I didn't think that going to be my beef with this. The lyrics are really poetic, though, and the harmonica has won me over. It's sad and soulful and suddenly I have the urge to cover this very badly.
Verdict: I'm still reeling over the fact that I wasn't totally wowed by his voice. But I guess that holds true with tons of artists from that day and age; it was more about the songs back then, I think. (ie, my entire sentiment towards All Along the Watchtower). Pushing those thoughts aside - the song itself is great. This is exactly like something I would cover (I actually got compared to Neil Young once and had no idea how to respond. Now I understand) so that will very likely be in the works. But hey, here's to learning some stuff today.
This Friday Feature goes to Chebacco, with their cover of Helplessly Hoping!
It's no secret that I absolutely love this song, which means finding a cover that would do it justice would prove very difficult. There are tons of people who can do the harmony exactly as its written, so that's not what I was looking for. I wanted to see someone capture the feeling of the song really well.
Meet Chebacco :)
If I were to see this song performed live by the original artist, this is how I'd want to see it; sitting around a kitchen table, void of any extra effects or staging of any kind. It's simple, it's soulful, and these guys have done it right, in my opinion. Not to mention their harmonies blend beautifully. All three of these individuals can sing, clearly, the guitar playing is spot on, and they all look like they mean what they're singing. The simplicity of it is what really got me; there's nothing to it, which is exactly why it works so well. Thank you for perfectly capturing how I envisioned this song performed!
Very regrettably, I could find almost no other information on this trio of talented musicians, other than that their names are Andrew James, Alex Gallant, and Derek Rice. If I hear from them, I will certainly let you know where you can find out more. I myself am very curious and hope there is much more than this, because it's wonderful.
Bob Dylan: All Along the Watchtower (for whatever reason, this person has left us a picture-less video for this track, but this is the best recording, I promise.)
Current Knowledge: I cover Don't Think Twice It's Alright almost every time I play a gig, but embarrassingly enough that's pretty much the only Dylan song I know. However this particular song is covered by my musician friends very, very often. So I've heard it, and I know how it goes, but I've never heard the original version, and I'm extremely curious.
First Thoughts: Oh, how this riff reminds me of Wednesday nights and bad decisions. Regret and nostalgia all rolled into one. I've heard enough of Dylan to know that I would not be a fan of how he sang this, but part of me thinks I have heard drunk guys at various bars do it better, which is kind of messing with me. That sentiment is wrong on a lot of levels, but that's how it goes with Dylan songs. The lyrics are what's important. I would, however, like to see this guy try and audition for any vocal based show from this century, cause he'd be laughed right out of the audition line.
Verdict: Folky-er and lighter and less in tune vocally than what I've heard so many times before. I'm very curious into what the Hendrix version is like, now, because I think that might be closer to what I'm used to hearing. I think I'll have to review that one separately though, as it's practically a totally different song.
Current Knowledge: Like a million and a half people have asked me about this song in one way or another. I'm not a big fan of having one of the most common female names of the 21st century, so I never looked this one up mostly out of spite. Not a fan of my name, not gonna bother with the song; this was the mindset. Nauseatingly petty, I know. Begrudgingly, I am about to change this.
First Thoughts: Agh. It starts out so awesome. It sounds hard as heck to play, honestly. The melody riff is so catchy, and the song overall falls somewhere between folk and... Caribbean sounding, maybe? It goes back and forth between so many parts, it's hard to discern what style the Allman Brothers are supposed to be based off this song alone. (Wikipedia says they're American Rock.. whatever that means.) Is this a jam band? Because this is definitely a jam band song. Everybody gets a solo for three minutes! And at the halfway point I've decided there are definitely no words to this song. Which I don't mind, I can certainly appreciate a good instrumental. I can't argue that it's not great as a musician. As a listener, though, by minute five I'm definitely a bit bored. Someone, somewhere, loves every second of this 7 minute song, I'm sure.
Verdict: It's a really technically difficult jam song, basically. Jam bands aren't really my thing, but as far as lyric-less songs go, it's solid. I am nowhere near good enough at the guitar to attempt this, so there's a lot to be said about the skill it would take to cover this one, for sure.
One last thing.. why in the world is this called Jessica? Because it drags on and is almost boring after five minutes? (That's only my worst fear as a human being) Or because it is a technical masterpiece and requires a cultured palate to appreciate it?
We're gonna go with the latter. ;)
Current Knowledge: I was supposed to learn this song for a band I unwittingly agreed to be in about a year ago, but the band was absolutely terrible and I quit after the fifth rehearsal, long before I got a chance to listen to this song. I did and still do cover The Dock of the Bay, but that's as far as I ever got into Otis Redding Territory.
First Thoughts: Oh man. So. Much. Soul. This is the kind of song that people fall in love in movies to. I love the organ parts they've snuck in there; I think the organ is underappreciated in music on the whole. And not that I would ever contest the fact that Otis Redding can sing, but dang. Dude's got some pipes. This part where it picks up is so awesome. It's funky and soulful and everything that is good about music.. and over with way too soon. I wish this was way longer.
Verdict: I like Dock of the Bay so much that I expected to like this. It's great. To me, this is what a classic piece of music embodies. Everything about it is good. It's like the turkey at the Thanksgiving dinner of good music: everything on the table is delicious, and not everyone will like the same things, but some dishes nobody can pass up. (I really like this song, if you haven't noticed).
For your amusement (and because I had a brilliant moment of clarity as to why it sounded so vaguely familiar), a pop culture reference to this awesome song:
Here it is! The first Friday Feature, with the DOT's covering Addicted to Love:
I spent quite a bit of time perusing the internet for a solid cover of this song. I had been coming up short for a while. Florence and the Machine kept appearing in my searches, which I thought was a mistake at first. But apparently she covered this song a while back, which has seriously bolstered it's popularity on the internet. Her version is actually amazing and I like it way better than the original. But I decided that to post a cover of a famous artist covering a famous song would defeat the purpose of this feature, so I decided to find someone covering this cover. (Cover doesn't even sound like a word anymore, I've said it so much. Ugh.)
So here I am, browsing through all these covers of covers, when I stumble upon one by an a cappella group. I had seen plenty of guys on a white-walled backdrop trying to pluck this out on an acoustic guitar that I was totally starved for something different, so I eagerly clicked on the link.
And then I was thoroughly impressed.
I was in an a cappella group my first year of college, so not only does this speak to me on a nostalgic level, but I also know how difficult it is to pull something like this off. But the DOT's do it flawlessly! Their lead singer for this arrangement absolutely nails it (especially with the solo in the beginning, I got chills), and the harmonies are so on-point it's ridiculous. I think what really impresses me though is how far this song has come from the original 80's tune. I never would have thought to arrange this as an a cappella song after hearing it the first time, but I'm really glad these girls did, because it's a really, really cool version. Hats off to you.
A bit more about the DOT's: they're an all female a cappella group based out of UCSD encouraging women's empowerment through music, which are all things I can totally get behind. They have some rave reviews on their website, and their repertoire has everything from Eminem to Aretha Franklin. And the name, DOT? It stands for Daughters of Triton, which sounds like the coolest name for an a cappella group ever. If you're reading this from the west coast, I recommend you go listen to them if you get the chance. If I wasn't 2,000 miles away, I certainly would. You can check out the DOT's further at their website if you want to know more.
Edit: These lovely ladies shared this post on their Facebook page! Check it out here.
I've come to a bit of a conclusion lately. This blog has been totally for my own personal record of this project I've been doing. Nobody else is reviewing old music; it was reviewed when it was brand new, and that was long before blogs were around. At the same time, however, I am a huge proponent of today's new music. People love to complain that new music will never stand up to the classic stuff of yesteryear, but I have always disagreed, despite my background. I honestly believe many musicians are just as talented today as they have been in the past, but I can't disagree that some of the older music has a bit more substance than today's pop hits (i.e., Turn Down For What by the illustrious Lil John and his partner in music crime, DJ Snake, doesn't exactly have the je ne sais quoi required for an iconic musical work as compared to, well, anything I've reviewed here so far).
The solution? For this blog: covers.
YouTube is awesome because you can browse thousands of covers of any given song by thousands of artists all over the world. People get famous off of YouTube - I mean, I met my EP producers through YouTube, too, and they've opened so many doors for me. It's a hell of a website. Though it is often a breeding ground for unfortunate sounding covers, it's also proof that there are boatloads of talented people out there, covering equally as many great songs.
So! On Fridays, I plan on posting a cover of a song that I've reviewed in the past. It's the best of both worlds, really. Melding the old with the new, plus adding something to this blog that gives a few other people a reason to take a look at it.
Today is Thursday, so this starts tomorrow! Check back then for the very first Friday Feature. :)
Current Knowledge: I know my dad likes this group. He never really played any of their stuff for me, and it always seemed a little bit out of my wheelhouse to investigate on my own. This particular song, however, came on my Pandora station the other day, and I purposely skipped it so I could sit down and write about it the first time I hear it. Pandora is usually pretty good about catering to my tastes, so I have high hopes for this song!
First Thoughts: Three notes in and I'm sold. I love this. These might be the best lyrics I've ever heard, in all honesty. And the harmony is absolutely perfect. I can't explain it to you without telling you to listen to it. The only other thing in the song is acoustic guitar, and it's very understated, but the finger picking gives it a nice rhythm to fill in for the lack of percussion and/or bass or anything else. But seriously, the lyrics. They're incredible. It's one of those songs where you know it's telling you a story but it could mean like a dozen different things, very Hotel California-esque. I love it. I don't have enough good things to say right now.
Verdict: I think I've already said everything I needed to. This song is flawless, and Pandora was right on the money.
This where I can give a little bit of credit to my musical tastes. I've spent so much time being negative about all that I haven't heard that I think it's really important to point this out. I haven't been living under a rock my entire life, and there's a bunch of artists that I do in fact listen to regularly that fall under the you-have-to-hear-this category. In fact, if YOU haven't listened to any of these artists, get thee to a radio/YouTube/Spotify/whatever, right away.
Anyways, here are ten of my favorite artists that would otherwise be on this blog, ordered from "I like this" to my favorite artist ever.
10. Elton John
Bizarrely enough, "Rocket Man" is one of the first songs I ever learned on guitar. My dad actually played his stuff over the years, albeit infrequently, and I never forgot it. Favorite Song: Your Song
9. Queen
When I was in 8th grade I played the violin, and the middle school orchestra took us all to Toronto to see We Will Rock You, which is basically Queen, the musical. I loved it. From there on out, Queen has always been one of my favorite bands. Favorite Song: Somebody To Love
8. The Band
I didn't listen to The Band until I started dating my current boyfriend of a year and a half. They are his absolute favorite, and he covers their stuff all the time. I always liked their songs when he covered them, so I started listening to the original stuff. It's awesome. Favorite Song: The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down
7. Led Zeppelin
In a very similar vein with The Band, I didn't listen to much Zeppelin either until my current boyfriend. However he rarely covers them, but the local bands we have gotten to know always do. I took on a mini-version of this project and listened to a lot of Zeppelin two summers ago to avoid the embarrassment of not knowing something by everyone's favorite rock band. Favorite Song: The Ocean
6. Billy Joel
I don't know how I know so much Billy Joel. I think I've picked up a different song or two by him every couple of years, resulting in really knowing a large portion of his discography. I cover a bunch of his stuff too. Favorite Song: Only The Good Die Young
5. Bonnie Raitt
This woman is basically my idol right now. If I could be anyone, I'd want to be her. I love pretty much everything she does, but her guitar skills are so good that she's really tough to cover flawlessly. Favorite Song: Papa Come Quick (for now.. this will be different in a week, I'm sure.)
4. The Eagles
As I mentioned a while ago, my dad used to play The Eagles at the dinner table. As a result, I am thoroughly versed in their material and equally as nostalgic whenever it gets played. Favorite Song: Hotel California
3. Nirvana
This might seem a bit out of place in this list, but I am a HUGE Nirvana fan. The alt rock band I was in during high school always wanted to cover them, so I learned a ton of their stuff and got really into it for a while, and I never really stopped listening to them. And it's really fun to catch people off guard when I, a small, unassuming white girl, play any of their songs. Favorite Song: Lithium
2. The Beatles
Fortunately, one band I got into early on and always enjoyed happened to be one of the most iconic bands of all time. I've always loved The Beatles and I always will. Blackbird was actually the first song I ever learned on guitar in one sitting, and now I cover like a half dozen Beatles tunes. Favorite Song: Let it Be
1. Jim Croce
I could write a dissertation on this man. He's not as well known as many of the artists on this list, but he's my absolute favorite. My dad loves him as much as I do, and it took me years to figure out who this guy was, the man who could take credit for being the main soundtrack to my childhood. For those of you that may be unfamiliar with him, he died in a plane crash when he was 30 right as he was breaking into the mainstream. I know every single song he released and I'm a little bitter about the fact that there will never be any more. He would have been as big as Dylan had he survived, in my opinion. If you've never heard of him, do yourself a favor and google search him, and listen to his hits. You won't be disappointed. Favorite Song: A Long Time Ago
Current Knowledge: I know nothing about Robert Palmer. Nothing. Which is probably because I generally don't like eighties music much. People tell me I should listen to him pretty often (people in bars here LOVE 80's music), but I have yet to do so. Nobody has ever given me a specific song, so I honestly just googled "Robert Palmer best song" and this is what came up. Fingers crossed it's a good one!
First Thoughts: First off, it appears I found the music video for this song. I highly recommend you watch it.. This is literally the most uncomfortable looking piece of cinematography I have ever seen in my entire life. Robert Palmer looks like someone my Dad works with deciding to try out some karaoke for the first time. And none of the girls are even trying to play their instruments, which really adds to the fact that they look terrifying. It's pretty rough. But! I like the song! The vocals are really really great, and it's actually quite catchy. It definitely has the 80's vibe that usually turns me off of this kind of music, but it's actually very well written, lyrically and musically. And the driving rock beat helps a lot in my opinion. I'd definitely listen to this again.
Verdict: If you want to actually appreciate this song, by all means do not watch the music video. It seriously takes away from the music, and the music is great. At this point I've listened to this song like four times and I actually really like it, which is not something I can say about most songs written in this time period. I might have to look into some more stuff from this guy. A brief glance at the sidebar of YouTube tells me this weird ugly-girls-and-a-karaoke-singer thing is a theme with some of Robert Palmer's music videos, so I don't have a lot of great things to say about his cinematic choices. But I can say that, for once, the crazy people from the bars have made a good suggestion here. This is a pretty cool tune.
Current Knowledge: This one is actually quite new to the list. My boyfriend brought it up at an open mic we were at together while someone was playing it. He was absolutely horrified that I didn't know this song, so I figured I'd take the initiative for once and actually look it up within a week of promising I would. Apparently this was in Back to the Future, but literally every 50's rock song sounds exactly the same to me.
First Thoughts: As predicted, this sounds exactly like every other 50's rock song ever. Not that it's bad, it certainly isn't. (The original is way better than the guy who was singing at the open mic, that's for sure). Maybe because I've heard so many bad covers of these kinds of songs I've been desensitized to them, but I really don't have anything profound to say about this. Except for the fact that one of these lyrics (He could play a guitar just like ringing a bell) was recently in a song released by Ed Sheeran, my most favorite musician of all time. The song is called Nina. I never understood the lyric before, but now that it is most definitely a shout out to Chuck Berry, it makes way more sense.
Verdict: I don't have much to say about this one. It was okay. I'm glad I can cross it off the list, but I definitely don't feel like I accomplished too much here. I think I've just heard too many songs like this to feel like I heard something new. I'm excited about the insight it gave me about Nina, though. That was unexpected. Maybe I just have to re-watch Back to the Future to appreciate this.
I was out with some friends last night, and on the drive home someone put on "Comfortably Numb" on their iPhone. I didn't want to act like I was the most excited person the world had ever seen in that moment, because then I'd have to admit that I learned this song not two days ago. But I was so excited. The odds of that happening are pretty slim! And even though that was a very small thing, I felt like this was paying off just a little.
Below is just some food for thought, something I saw this morning that I thought was really nice.
