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I LOVE cover songs.
Let me rephrase that: I LOVE cover songs that are done right.
How do I know when a cover song is done right?
Let me answer this question by first talking about BBQ. I live in Texas which means almost every restaurant offers it. But not every restaurant does BBQ right. Some people think that if you slap some sauce on a slab of meat you get BBQ. But the best BBQ cooks have a method that includes skill and creativity offering the diner something unique but also familiar. These are not only the restaurants that do it right, but they have the customers to prove it.
The same is true for cover songs.
So, what is a cover song? It is a reinterpretation of a track previously written and/or recorded by another artist.
In addition, a cover song is NOT a tribute song, which is a near-exact copy of an original song with the same style and instrumentation but different vocalist. Basically, a tribute song is LAZY. Here’s why: A reinterpretation requires the musician to think creatively and to be a creator in the process. Any musically talented person can mimic another musician. However, musical talent by itself does not draw the listener in. Creativity is what people appreciate about art, regardless of its form.
For this reason, I’m not a fan of tribute bands. If I want KISS, then I’ll listen to KISS! The only way a tribute act is relevant in my world is if the original artist is deceased or no longer performing. Then and only then would watching a tribute act be somewhat worthwhile.
But a cover song done right? Well, now we’re talking BBQ!
A cover song done right is one that can stand on it’s own apart from the original.
Let’s take, for example, Johnny Cash’s version of Trent Reznor’s Hurt. Many people think that Hurt is Cash’s song but what they don’t know is that the original version was played in the grunge/electronic style of Nine Inch Nails (Reznor’s band). However, because Cash breaks the song down to its foundational elements, the listener experiences the anguish of the piece in a totally different way.
Hear the song in video:
Another great example of a cover done right is Chris Cornell’s version of Michael Jackson’s Billie Jean. Before Cornell put his mark on the song, I never paid ANY attention to the lyrics of this highly popular pop track. But after listening to Cornell’s bluesy, melancholy version, I discovered that Billie Jean is a tale about a man who, after engaging in nothing more than a sexual fling with a woman, wants nothing to do with the child they created together. WOW. I guess due to Jackson’s slick dance moves and “A-hee-hee’s” I didn’t capture the sad truth in the lyrics themselves.
In closing, great BBQ is more than a combination of meat and sauce. It’s a unique experience made possible by the creative and thoughtful hands of the cook. Likewise, a cover song done right offers the listener a whole new experience with what used to be just “a cool song.” There are many other examples of a cover done right. Feel free to share you favorites in a comment!
And if you want great BBQ in Texas (namely in Abilene where I live), check out Harold’s BBQ located at 1305 Walnut Street Abilene, TX 79601 (Phone-(325) 672-4451). It’s a staple for local business in town and THE BEST stop for BBQ in the Big Country. You have to get the jalepeno cornbred and the Damn Hot Sauce. It’s Awesome!
In everything we take in there’s the run of the mill and there’s something above and beyond. A few examples off the top of my head start in sports. Do you remember any of the starting lineup of teams that don’t make it to championships? Probably not, unless you’re a die-hard fan of a certain team and know their lineups because you follow them regardless of whether they won the title or not (I’m in that boat; I know the starting lineup and backups from the Chicago Bears for the past 2 seasons and they didn’t even go to the Super Bowl). Then there’s food. If not for a few wonderful experiences at some nice upper-crust steak restaurants, I wouldn’t know anything about a cut of meat other than the sirloin and the prime rib at best. Fortunately, I’ve been able to taste some great finer cuts like lamb, fillet mignon, 2″ thick cuts of steak and others. Deep cuts, stuff not only every restaurant’s menu. That’s what I’ve been presenting these past 3 weeks on The Appetizer. You might know the artists’ names, even a song they did a while back. But unless you’ve adamantly followed them, you probably haven’t heard the tracks I’ve been serving.
Our first week was a presentation of some of my favorite songwriters’ music including Bruce Springsteen, Feist, Iron & Wine, Otis Redding, Tracy Chapman, Jason Mraz, Fiona Apple and more. These are some pretty well-known acts, but I can guarantee the songs we served up don’t have the total number of plays of their fan page, facebook or myspace page or other platform than the songs they’re known for. This goes back to the mission of The Appetizer, to showcase the deeper songbook of known and unknown artists.
Without going into too much detail, I’ll tell you some of my favorite tracks from this episode. I love Otis Redding, and his songbook is much deeper than the song everyone recognizes him for (Sitting On The Dock Of The Bay). During his heyday, Redding was one of the premier soul/R&B artists in the country. His track I’ve Got Dreams To Remember can be found on The Very Best Of Otis Redding Vol. 1. It carries this old fashioned blues sound with a sad soul vocal. There’s this loss and passion there that’s hard to find in music. It’s what makes legends what they are, and this track certainly showcases why he is in the legendary bracket.
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Johnny Cash is one of my all-time favorite artists. If he were still alive he’d be continuing to cross genres of music and covering stuff other people won’t touch. It’s strange how when Cash covered someone, he took music from something other than the folk/country genre and remade it in his image. However, most of the covers you will hear of Cash’s music, are redone in Cash’s style, not remaking them the way he would have if he were someone else. He also took music from people way off the beaten path, with a few exceptions. He did cover Tom Petty’s I Won’t Back Down, Trent Reznor’s Hurt, and Springsteen’s Further On Up The Road. But I have to admit I hadn’t heard of indie songwriter Bonnie ‘Prince Billy prior to hearing The Man In Black cover Billy’s I See A Darkness which is my all-time favorite Cash song, even though it’s a cover and not an original. There’s a challenge in this song to recognize the road ahead, put away the poor decisions of the past and live differently, because otherwise the darkness will consume all the light. You can hear the track below.
The second hour of the series focused on my favorite genre of music-90s alternative rock. I featured non-radio tunes from The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Pearl Jam, Nirvana, No Doubt, Social Distortion, No Motiv, Weezer, Counting Crows and more. Tomorrow I’ll post about some of these selections, why they were chosen, and take look at what’s coming up this weekend when the series concludes.
You can request a playlist from this series. Send an email to dgrantsmith@appetizerradio.com
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