Another discovery from the Very Short List:
On her new album, Wire Waltz, Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter Megan Hickey (front woman of The Last Town Chorus) strips the Thin White Duke’s 1983 hit “Modern Love” bare, transforming a catchy pop tune into a sad, yearning country ballad. Where Bowie’s version was all manic energy, Hickey’s slowed-down cover finds a startling poignancy in timeworn lyrics.
VSL adds: “A great example of an underrated art: the cover version that allows you to look again at the familiar.” Here’s a couple more examples I’m loving right now:
If you’re looking for interesting cross genre covers I recommend Sonata Arctica’s Power Metal cover of wind beneath your wings, and Sarah Mcleod’s covers of AC/DC songs Highway to Hell and You Shook me all night long.
Oh, and William Shatner’s cover of Common People. You have to hear it once
I really like Seu Jorge’s covers of Bowie songs. Some were used in “The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou”, but there’s a whole album’s worth in “The Life Aquatic Studio Sessions”.
warren zevon’s cover of “back in the high life” is the best cover ever made.
That’s high praise. I’ll have to check all these out … except William Shatner? Really?
well I like it. It’s certainly the best song on his album.
Not that that’s saying a huge amount now that I think about it