Good day to all! Once again, I'd like to slip between the covers and look at original songs and their cover versions. It's always a fun and fascinating process to analyse and compare re-workings of famous songs. Take a world famous tune that spans the generations like I'm a Believer. We've all heard it on TV, in movies (Shrek, most notably), grocery stores, radios, you name it.
From Neil Diamond to The Monkees to Smash Mouth (for the Shrek movie)...
only a few of the artists to record I'm a Believer
Yet few people know that Neil Diamond was the composer of the song and that he was the first to record it. Sure, the older folks who didn't know this (most did, I'd assume) just knew Diamond for his glittery shirts and chest hair back in the 60's. But the guy was a master songwriter, crafting hits for the biggest names in the business. Even in his earliest days trying to break into the biz, he was selling his songs to pay the bills.
Neil Diamond's I'm a Believer recording instrumentally sounds much like the Monkees version we'd later love, but his rich, smooth baritone voice, stretching a little toward the upper register, didn't really ignite the song the same way our lovable simian-named band later did. The Monkees' multi-part vocals allowed a purer pop sensibility to shine through. Their much more radio-friendly version held the No. 1 spot on the charts for weeks. I prefer this take on the song, with its brighter percussion and electronic keyboard sound. And this was perhaps my favourite Monkees song on the first full-length record that I ever bought as a kid, More of the Monkees. Old Neil - well, young Neil at the time - sure had a gift; that song still sounds fresh and fun in its eternal durability as a 60's classic.
80's-oriented radio stations must still be playing Belinda Carlisle's I Feel Free. Even back in '87, that bouncy, glittery tune seemed to epitomize those carefree days. Though I wasn't really a fan of Carlisle or even that sort of pop music at the time, that song was everywhere and was hard to ignore. Some years later, I began to loosen up and appreciate lighter 80's fare, including that of Belinda Carlisle. Her Go-Go's work was fun if a bit rough around the edges, but its Top 40 appeal was unmistakable. I actually prefer Carlisle's solo music, mostly via her Best of Belinda: Her Greatest Hits album.
Belinda Carlisle feels free to cover a Cream classic... with class
Again, my ignorance led me to believe this song was Belinda's doing... hey, the vibe of the song fit so well, so why doubt that? But in fact, it was the 60's supergroup Cream who originally wrote and first recorded I Feel Free. I learned this, and heard that version, many years too late. Well, better late than never. Cream is a band that I had long admired for the few songs that rock radio stations played endlessly: White Room, Sunshine of Your Love, and Crossroads. Immortal riffs in those first two, and a kickin' jam on the latter. I even dabbled with White Room and Sunshine on guitar over the years. Anyway....
When I first heard Cream performing I Feel Free, I felt like I was hearing the song for the first time. This seemed to be a very different beast. There is so much going on here... layers and intricacies that lace the song with a hypnotic, very 60's quality - pop appeal with a sort of psychedelic wash. Jack Bruce's shouted vocals on verses contrast sharply with the gentler harmonies on the chorus. Also cool is the melding of Clapton's rock guitar with Baker's pseudo-jazzy percussion base. I can see how this song easily spans genres.
Am I Evil? Say that to a metal fan today and chances are he or she will immediately think Metallica. But those giants of the genre were not responsible for the writing or original recording of that song. British band Diamond Head penned Am I Evil and put it to vinyl in 1980. The song was popular in the UK but it wasn't until '84 that it went international, thanks to a cover version appearing on the B-side of a Metallica single. A few years later, that cover was included on a re-release of Metallica's first album, Kill 'Em All.
In Diamond Head's original recording, all the elements are there: overdriven guitars, big riffs and chords, bashing drums and cymbals. I really like this version of the song. It is cleaner and a little lighter - less low end and more mid-to-high end, kind of closer to an early Judas Priest feel... still metal, just not the massive raw mean sound of Metallica. Kind of sad that Diamond Head didn't export themselves out of the UK more successfully; there's a lot of talent there - and they definitely influenced the thrash movement that was to follow. Bands like Metallica and Megadeth wouldn't even exist without them.
Metallica, on the other hand, delivered a grittier, heavier, sludgier variant on Am I Evil. This was my introduction to both the song and the band Metallica. A new acquaintance gave me a cassette tape packed with early Metallica music. It took a little getting used to, but it wasn't long until I was totally sold on this band. And Am I Evil was among my favourite tracks. Hetfield thrust more anger into his vocal performance than we got on the original, which was sung more melodically. Everything here is amped up for the full thrash experience, brimming with aggression and violence. Metallica gives Diamond Head solid competition on their rendition of the song, but I can't say one version is better than the other... they appeal to me equally in their different ways, sort of like classic 70's heavy rock (Diamond Head, on the cusp of 1980) versus the next decade's more "extreme" thrash metal.
Townshend's distinctive fuzzed-out guitar sets the tone, while we are treated to piano - and is that mandolin? - flourishes, plus country-clean solo licks and trademark Who vocal harmonies. An odd though effective combination that still spells rock'n'roll. The memorable chord progression is what I find most attractive about the song; I've tried, without much success, to hash that out on my own guitar, but hey, I don't aspire to be more than a bedroom guitarist.
Fast-forward thirty-four years: Canadian power-trio Rush drops their latest disc, Feedback, including a cover of The Who's The Seeker. Feedback is a fun trip through the 60's, a tribute to the bands that influenced and inspired Rush. The boys are respectful in their treatment of their favourite songs of the past, showing good taste and reverence in their renditions. It's nice to see such a variety of artists on there, too, from The Yardbirds and Buffalo Springfield to Eddie Cochran and, of course, The Who. In fact, this album was a first - never before had Rush released any recordings of themselves playing anything but their own music.
On 2004's Feedback, we hear the roots of Rush... not far off the sound they displayed on their first album back in '74. And on The Seeker, we hear something that might have felt at home on that self-titled debut. There's a raw guitar approach, a stripped-down drum foundation, and Geddy Lee simply does his thing - his unmistakable voice works perfectly on this ancient gem. Since The Who really busied up their song back in '70, it was clear that Rush would not try to replicate the track in every way. After all, this wasn't an epic atmospheric piece like Xanadu that demanded attention to detail... The Seeker resembled more closely the basic heavy rock style that Rush took into the studio on their first record. Boiled down to the essentials of guitar, bass, drums, and vocals, Rush made it all work in a tight, lively, nearly garage band manner. But with a crisp and clean audio presentation, as per Rush standards.
Ciao....
No comments:
Post a Comment