FortWayneMusic.com

Hmm,

Don't forget the 70's and 80's. Some of these nearly changed the meaning of the originals, while others seemed even more true.

Satisfaction by DEVO (Rolling Stones.)
Lost Highway by Jason and the Scorchers (Hank Williams)
Rawhide by Dead Kennedys (TV -show theme Ned Washington and Dimitri Tiomkin)
Viva Las Vegas by Dead Kennedys (Elvis Presley)
12XU by Minor Threat (Wire)
Needles and Pins by the Ramones (The Searchers)
Psychotic Reaction by The Cramps (Count 5)

The Monkeys' Stepping Stone by about 100 punk bands, deserves a mini catagory of its own.

Later;

Jezebel by The Rev. Horton Heat (Frankie Laine)
I Will Survive by Cake (Gloria Gaynor)

There's more out there. I used to have a favorite mix tape (yes, a mix tape) called "Heard it Before," with about 90 minutes of covers.

"Over the Rainbow/ What a Wonderful World"(1993) by Israel Kamakawiwo'ole"

Bad call. I know everybody coos over it like IK invented the freakin' uke, but he doesn't even play the right chords, which is unforgivable, but not nearly as unforgiveable as butchering the melodies of both songs... and it gets even MORE minus points by being run over the closing credits of "Finding Forrester," which also sucks, but more so.

Half-assing it and then demanding praise because you're all precious about doing it is nausea-inducing, IMO. That's, like, the Yanni approach to performance.

My choice for Over the Rainbow is Eva Cassady - also my favorite choice for Fields of Gold, which I like even better than Sting's original version of it.

That Eva Cassidy version is schweet. Haven't heard "Fields of Gold," but I love that song.

I spent many weeks at a resort hotel in Scottsdale working as musical director for a corporate show there. The hotel had a few "house" performers (including "artist in residence" Esteban, which you probably now know as the QVC-guitar-selling guy), and among them was an excellent steel drum/marimba player who would frequently be playing in the lounge during early evening, when I would be knocking off from a 10 to 12 hour day.

I would sit back in this huge open-air bar, with the peculiar Arizona breeze sliding through the wide open hotel lobby, a glass of Laphroaig on the rocks in my hand, and listen to this guy and his band play this exquisitely delicate version of "Fields of Gold." To this day, when I hear that song, I can smell the desert just over the hill, feel that heavy Mexican glass sweating in my hand.

Silencio wrote:Esteban.

Is he as much the condescending, self-loving hack as he comes across on the infomercials?

Those cannot be helping his reputation as a serious player.

As a matter of fact, he is. I've spoken with him, tried to book him for a party during the show, told him that we wouldn't pay his price even if the whole production team was drunk.

And that Segovia thing is a shuck. You only have to watch him play for 10 minutes to know he never studied classical guitar with ANYbody, let along the maestro.

Don't get me wrong... he plays real well, and his flamenco right hand is ultra hot (he can actually play better than you see on the QVC, but I will tell ya that he's been humping that skanktastic version of "House Of the Rising Sun" every night since '92), but it's not classical style by a long shot (says me, guitar performance major, Butler University, Jordan College of Music, 1974-75). What Esteban has got is an autographed picture of Segovia. That's all.

You wanna know how it happened? The Ladies Love Esteban... your standard vested-and-cowgirl-hatted Scottsdale trophy chick, they dig that whole Zorro thing, they used to JAM this hotel bar every Friday and Saturday night. One night a few years ago, QVC does their annual thing at the Hyatt Gainey Ranch. One of the presenter chicks falls in L-U-V love, and starts figuring out how to get Steverino on the air. They sell some of his homemade albums, they go pretty good. A few brainstorming sessions later, the Esteban Guitar is born. Steve makes huge bank, quits the hotel, now makes a living lying about how "his" guitars are designed and built.

I wish some presenter babe from QVC would develop a giant crush on ME. I could use the money.

Have I hijacked this thread enough, do you think?

How does a band turn a good song bad and end up #2 on the top covers list?

bassjones wrote:My choice for Over the Rainbow is Eva Cassady - also my favorite choice for Fields of Gold, which I like even better than Sting's original version of it.

I'd add pretty much the entire "Songbird" and "Time After Time" albums when it comes to Eva Cassidy.

bassjones wrote:My choice for Over the Rainbow is Eva Cassady

Dude, have you heard her? That voice could turn Wallace straight She makes that song sexy.