blowin' your cover

Five For Friday 21 - Back From The Dead

2011-10-28T19:13:00.000-04:00

As usual I've less than kept up with my promise to update more this year, in fact this is the worst year to date. I can't believe this is only my third post of the year??? How did that even happen? Let's just say I've had a really good year and seen some really great shows. For once we will have a Five for Friday that features all popular acts, my personal favorite being Wild Flag. For those that don't know I'm a HUGE Sleater-Kinney fan and a pretty big Helium fan as well, so this band has been like a dream project, not to say Mary Timony and Carrie Brownstein's previous project together - The Spells, wasn't awesome, but throwing Janet Weiss and Rebecca Cole in with them has made this band unstoppable. I saw Wild Flag for the third and fourth times a couple weeks ago and they did not disappoint. Carrie blew my mind on Ask The Angels even if she did douse me in beer in the process. I highly recommend checking out their album if you haven't had the chance to already.

The Widowspeak album is also pretty damn good and I'm kicking myself for missing them over CMJ, however I put all my energy into Wild Flag and then got really sick, a sickness I'm sadly still battling. Also I'm a sucker for anything by Bob Mould and I love The Decemberists so of course I'm loving this Sugar cover. Enjoy the music folks.

Wild Flag "Ask The Angels" (Patti Smith Cover)
The National "Twenty Miles To NH Part 2" (The Philistines Jr. Cover)
Asobi Seksu "Never Understand" (The Jesus and Mary Chain Cover)
Widowspeak "Wicked Game" (Chris Isaak Cover)
The Decemberists "If I Can't Change Your Mind" (Sugar Cover)

As always, support the artists, click the artist name for the website or use the links to the right to buy music as well as support the blog.

Five For Friday 20 - The Missing Edition

2011-06-17T08:41:00.013-04:00

I have nothing to say for myself. Does anyone else remember Kenickie?

Blur "Substitute" (Who Cover)
Buffalo Tom "Heaven" (The Psychedelic Furs Cover)
Dirty Projectors "I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine" (Bob Dylan Cover)
Kenickie "Save Your Kisses For Me" (Brotherhood of Man Cover)
Sonic Youth "I Know There's An Answer" (Beach Boys Cover)

As always, support the artists, click the artist name for the website or use the links to the right to buy music as well as support the blog.

Something I Learned Today: Our Concert Could Be Your Life

2011-05-24T14:07:00.000-04:00

photo by Amanda Hatfield

Our Concert Could Be Your Life took place this past weekend at the Bowery Ballroom in New York City (how I wish I could've made it to this show) and featured an all-star indie line up of bands covering classic indie rock songs from bands featured in Michael Azerrad's book Our Band Could Be Your Life: Scenes From the American Indie Underground 1981-1991. The tribute show celebrated the 10th anniversary of the book and was hosted by Janeane Garofalo and Eugene Mirman. On the bill were Ted Leo (covering Minor Threat), Tune-Yards (covering Sonic Youth), Titus Andronicus (covering The Replacements), Wye Oak (covering Dinosaur Jr) & St Vincent (covering Big Black) among others including an amazing Nirvana encore with various musicians who performed earlier in the night.

I don't have any mp3's of the show but I highly recommend heading over to NPR to listen to the whole show or any specific sets that interest you.

PS I'm not quite dead.

Happy Chanukah v3

2010-12-06T17:38:00.000-05:00

Once again we will post the same Chanukah songs as we have done in previous years (although apparently I missed last year...oops). Thankfully I've picked up a few more along the way because it seems few Jews out there want to do any new covers for us. If you know of anything post it here or send it my way. Happy Chanukah to all my Jews!

So on this 6th night of Chanukah I give you some tunes to keep you warm (just like on the first year of this blog).

Barenaked Ladies "I Have A Little Dreidel"
Barenaked Ladies "Hanukkah Oh Hanukkah"
Ben Kweller "Rock of Ages"
Erran Baron Cohen featuring Jules Brookes "Dreidel"
The Yule Logs "Hanukkah, O Hanukkah"
Michelle Citrin "Light One Candle" (Peter, Paul & Mary Cover)
Neil Diamond "The Chanukah Song" (Adam Sandler Cover)
Grape Soda "Rock of Ages"Black Tape For A Blue Girl "Chanukkah Oh Chanukkah"
Save Ferris "Christmas Wrapping" (The Waitresses Cover)

As always, support the artists, buy the music. Use the links to the right and support the blog too!

Don't Be Afraid To Sing

2010-09-27T19:23:00.000-04:00

photo by Dominick Mastrangelo

Last night I finally had the pleasure of seeing Stars live, and not only that, I saw them in an intimate venue in Brooklyn. Tickets went on sale the day before the show and sold out pretty quickly so I was quite pleased to have snagged a couple. Show was advertised as being at 8pm, at which time I arrived only to find out doors were not opened yet. By the time we made our way inside it was already 8:30pm and the band didn't go on until around 9:45pm, no openers, just a night of Stars. They played almost all the songs I wanted to hear, except my favorite "Elevator Love Letter" which was a little disappointing but I shall live. Torquil Campbell did most of the talking, not that there was much talking and a pregnant Amy Millan stuck to a multitude of Thank You's, just a full set of music and a constant influx of white roses and rose petals being thrown out to the audience. It was a night I was glad to be part of and I'm loving that larger bands are going back to their roots and doing intimate shows lately.

Stars "Asleep" (The Smiths Cover)
Stars "Hungry Heart" (Bruce Springsteen Cover)
Stars "This Charming Man" (The Smiths Cover)
Amy Millan "I Will Follow You Into The Dark" (Death Cab For Cutie Cover)
Ben Gibbard "Your Ex-Lover Is Dead" (Stars Cover)
Jason Collet "Reunion" (Stars Cover)

As always, support the artists, click the artist name for the website or use the links to the right to buy music as well as support the blog.

Five For Friday 19 - The Wussy Edition

2010-08-13T10:58:00.001-04:00

Summer is in full force and so am I! I've been going to a ton of shows (so many great free shows in New York in the summer - more about that later...maybe), travelling and getting lots of sunshine. All of this obviously equates to not updating of this blog. This sort of counts as an update I guess, the wussy way out I suppose.

Enjoy the cover shuffle, especially this sweet version of Divine Hammer!

Jóvenes y Sexys "Divine Hammer" (The Breeders Cover)
The Mr. T Experience "Crash" (The Primitives Cover)
Southern Culture On The Skids "(I Never Promised You a) Rose Garden" (Joe South Cover)
Rogue Wave "Maps" (Yeah Yeah Yeahs Cover)
Of Montreal "More Than A Feeling" (Boston Cover)

As always, support the artists, click the artist name for the website or use the links to the right to buy music as well as support the blog.

Celebrated Summer

2010-06-21T21:22:00.000-04:00

As everyone already knows, summer solstice has arrived. We've had gorgeous weather here in New York City recently and I never want it to end. I only wish I didn't have to work and could spend all my days at the parks and beaches in and around the city. Instead I will appease myself with some summer tunes to celebrate the official start of my favorite hot and humid season.

Cub "Summer Samba" (comp. Marcos Valle)
Bree Sharp "Boys of Summer" (Don Henley Cover)
Devendra Banhart "In The Summertime" (Mungo Jerry Cover)
Mark Kozelek "Celebrated Summer" (Husker Du Cover)
My Morning Jacket "Hot Fun In The Summertime" (Sly & The Family Stone Cover)
Peter Bjorn & John "Summer Breeze" (Seals & Crofts Cover)
PYT "Summer of 69" (Bryan Adams Cover)
R.E.M. "Summertime" (comp. Gershwin)
Soul Asylum "Summer of Drugs" (Victoria Williams Covers)
14 Iced Bears "Summer Nights" (John Travolta & Olivia Newton John Cover)

As always, support the artists, click the artist name for the website or use the links to the right to buy music as well as support the blog.

In For The Kill

2010-06-14T23:11:00.001-04:00

Last Monday I finally saw La Roux at my least favorite venue in town, Terminal Five. It was like old times, getting to the show before doors opened to get up close and personal with Elly Jackson (except for the fact that the venue gates you away from the stage and you can't actually get up close and personal with anyone besides the other sweaty folks in the crowd). Thankfully everyone in the crowd was looking to have a good time, dancing through all the upbeat songs and giving Elly full attention when she pulled out her acoustic guitar and sat down to play "Saviour." I had an amazing time (not quite as amazing as Sleigh Bells) and I highly recommend checking out La Roux if they hit up your town on the remainder of this tour.

The British duo started in 2008 with their first single "Quicksand" and have blown up in England and across Europe and are slowly making headway in the US. La Roux have everything going for them, Elly has a strong voice, great style and a wonderful stage presence and she and Ben Langmaid write catchy, upbeat, dancey tunes that are synth heavy and make it impossible for you not to want to dance around. Most of the tunes are perfectly crafted and could have been plucked right out of an 80s pop collection, which is rather ironic because Elly was born in the late 80s. I'm a sucker for a good pop song and La Roux definitely do it right.

On July 26th a La Roux curated compilation called Sidetracked is out in the UK on Renaissance and features a studio version of "Under My Thumb," which I greatly look forward to hearing and hope to post once I have my hands on it.

Here are a trio of covers by La Roux and a bunch of folks covering La Roux, plus Heaven 17 & La Roux together doing the Heaven 17 classic "Temptation!"

La Roux "Under My Thumb" (The Rolling Stones Cover)
Heaven 17 & La Roux "Sign Your Name" (Terence Trent D'Arby Cover)
Franz Ferdinand & La Roux "Call Me" (Blondie Cover)

La Roux Covers:
Athlete "Bulletproof"
Lou Barlow "Bulletproof"
Steel Train "Bulletproof"
Daniel Merriweather "In For The Kill"
Kelis "In For The Kill"
Miike Snow "In For The Kill"
Yes Giantess "I'm Not Your Toy"

BONUS:
Heaven 17 & La Roux "Temptation"

As always, support the artists, click the artist name for the website or use the links to the right to buy music as well as support the blog.

Five For Friday 18- The I'm Not Dead Yet Edition

2010-05-14T16:34:00.000-04:00

Yes it's true, I am still among the living. I have been going to a ton of live shows lately, most notably the much hyped (and for good reason) band Sleigh Bells. I finally saw them last week, then again this week and they were amazing! All I could have hoped for - a hot, sweaty, in your face show, something I've definitely been missing lately. I've been pushing this band onto friends for over six months now and with the digital release of their album Treats on M.I.A.'s NEET Recordings earlier this week they seem to have exploded overnight. If you haven't had a chance already, stream the album on NPR right now and pre-order the album now from insound and get a free 7 inch. No Sleigh Bells covers that I can locate so I'm cheating and throwing out a mash-up with another amazing, high-energy musician I recently saw - Rye Rye.

Sleigh Bells x Rye Rye - Tell 'Em Rye Rye Said Bang

To balance out this non-cover overload here's a real Five For Friday for you that in absolutely no way relates to Sleigh Bells!

The Avengers "Paint It Black" (The Rolling Stones Cover)
Hinterland "For Love" (Lush Cover)
Manchester Orchestra "This Year" (Mountain Goats Cover)
Nina Persson "Losing My Religion" (R.E.M. Cover)
The Wedding Present "Back For Good" (Take That Cover)

As always, support the artists, click the artist name for the website or use the links to the right to buy music as well as support the blog.

I've Got A Heart of Stone

2010-03-04T20:17:00.000-05:00

Today's post comes from the mailbox. The Raveonettes tune "Heart of Stone" was just covered buy not one but two bands recently. First, one of my (and everyone else's) favorite bands of the past 6 or so months, Dum Dum Girls, whose debut album is due to drop in a matter of weeks, do a version similar, though shorter and more fuzzed out than the original. Second, a slowed down version of the song from Amazing Baby. Give both a listen and let me know your thoughts.

Dum Dum Girls "Heart of Stone"
Amazing Baby "Heart of Stone"

BONUS:
The Raveonettes "My Boyfriend's Back" (The Angels Cover)

And here's The Raveonettes video for "Heart of Stone":

As always, support the artists, click the artist name for the website or use the links to the right to buy music as well as support the blog.

Five For Friday 17 - The Snowed In Edition

2010-02-26T16:08:00.000-05:00

Here in Brooklyn we've got nearly 2 feet of snow and it's still coming down a bit. It was a "work from home" day that ended at 11am. I trekked out once to check on my roommates car and then back in the house. I'd gladly have a snowball fight or build a snowperson with someone or go sledding before the snow turns black and yellow and other assorted unnatural colors. In the meantime I will sit here and share some snowy music with you on this Friday afternoon.

The Mendoza Line "Fox In The Snow" (Belle & Sebastian Cover)
Galaxie 500 "Listen, The Snow Is Falling" (Yoko Ono Cover)
Pixies "Winterlong" (Neil Young Cover)
Ruby Isle "White Winter Hymnal" (Fleet Foxes Cover)
Strawberry Fair "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow" (Vaughn Monroe Cover)

As always, support the artists, click the artist name for the website or use the links to the right to buy music as well as support the blog.

Because I Am Awesome...

2010-01-27T17:46:00.001-05:00

If there is one thing I'm good at in life it is making mistakes.

Kathryn Williams "All Apologies" (Nirvana Cover)

I Have a Supercrush on Rose Melberg

2010-01-12T13:30:00.000-05:00

**I LOVE this skirt!

I am awesome! I managed to miss posting about the holidays this year, I also managed to not post any year-end lists once again this year. I think 2009 was a wash, I'm glad to see it go for many reasons. The last few months have been difficult for me for a variety of reasons but 2010 is a new year, a new decade and I suppose a new start (again), and thus far things seem to be going pretty darn well.

I've been listening to a lot of music on repeat lately on my iphone, as I haven't loaded much in. Unfortunately most of the acts have no covers, especially the newer stuff. So I'm going to focus on the career of the lead singer in one of the long defunct bands that recently found its way to the top of my heart again due to a friends recent facebook post. The band in question is Go Sailor and the driving force behind the band is Rose Melberg.

The adorable Melberg started her musical career in Sacramento, California, (a city I lived in for a few months with quite the decent music scene) with the band Tiger Trap. Tiger Trap were a poppy, punky and all around catchy girl band who unfortunately didn't last as long as they should have. Tiger Trap only put out a couple of singles, a lone amazing self-titled LP and a single EP before calling it quits.

Melberg next started two bands around the same time, The Softies and the aforementioned, Go Sailor, who continued on with the catchy, poppy vibe, just not quite as punky. Go Sailor was formed with Henry's Dress and future Aislers Set (one of my favorite bands) member, Amy Linton. You may be familiar with Go Sailor due to the songs featured in the hilarious movie "But I'm A Cheerleader." Go Sailor was another short-lived band for Melberg, only releasing a handful of singles and appearing on a few compilations, all of which were re-released together on their brilliant self-titled album. Melberg formed The Softies with Jen Sbragia who later went on to All Girl Summer Fun Band. The Softies were Melberg's most prolific band, releasing 3 gorgeous LPs, an EP and a number of singles. The Softies relied almost solely on vocals and guitars and the purity and beauty of Melberg's and Sbragia's voices created some of the sweetest, most stunning songs you have ever heard.

While still in The Softies Melberg played drums in the Canadian band Gaze, who were a happy poppy band that put out a couple full length albums and a number of singles before calling it quits.

For the early part of the new millennium Melberg was quiet. She moved to Canada and started a family with Mint Records owner, Bill Baker and spent time raising their son. In recent years she has put out a couple of solo albums, Cast Away The Clouds and last year's Homemade Ship. Hopefully this means she's back on the musical radar for years to come!

Melberg will always hold a special place in my heart - I think if you give any of her music a listen you will surely agree. If you manage to see her live she is known to pull out songs from some of her former bands, which is always a treat.

I know there are a few other Melberg related covers, if you have them please post them or send them my way.

Go Sailor "Blue Sky" (NAR cover)

The Softies "Together Forever" (Rick Astley Cover)

The Softies "Hey, Hey Girl" (Rocketship Cover)

The Softies "I Can't Get No Satisfaction, Thank God" (Talulah Gosh Cover)

Gaze "Nine Lives To Rigel Five" (Game Theory Cover)

Gaze "Whenever She Holds You" (Patty Duke Cover)

Rose Melberg "I Will" (Beatles Cover)

Rose Melberg "I Love How You Love Me" (The Paris Sisters Cover)

BONUS:

Henry's Dress "Supercrush" (Live Tiger Trap Cover)

As always, support the artists, click the artist name for the website or use the links to the right to buy music as well as support the blog.

Five For Friday 16 - The New Year's Edition

2010-01-01T20:55:00.001-05:00

Happy New Year to everyone! I guess my resolution this year is to post more blog entries, I can't possibly post any less than last year. I suppose I'm off to a good start by posting the first day of the year. I'm glad to see 2009 go for many reasons, I'm ready for a new year, a new decade and a fresh start. I hope 2010 proves awesome for us all and far surpasses any expectations we may have.

Quasi "This Will Be Our Year" (Live Zombies Cover)

The Dresden Dolls "New Years Day" (Live U2 Cover)

Lightspeed Champion "Happy New Year" (Abba Cover)

Cry Cry Cry "Auld Lang Syne"

Bedouin Soundclash "New Year's Day / Guns of Brixton" (U2 / The Clash Cover)

As always, support the artists, click the artist name for the website or use the links to the right to buy music as well as support the blog (I know a lot of you shop Amazon, I just paid web hosting for the year...hint hint).

Five For Friday 15

2009-12-04T05:00:00.002-05:00

It seems everyone is already coming to byc in search of holiday music, yet I haven't even had time to digest my tofurkey. I promise to get some holiday music up soon, and yes I will probably recycle music from the past unless a slew of Chanukah songs have been released in recent weeks.

Enjoy the randomness that is my life.

Billy Bragg "Garageland" (Live The Clash Cover)

Edson "I Believe in a Thing Called Love" (The Darkness Cover)

The Lucksmiths "I Started a Joke" (The Bee Gees Cover)

Sloan "Over You" (Live Roxy Music Cover)

Throwing Muses "Cry Baby Cry" (The Beatles Cover)

Five For Friday 14

2009-11-13T05:45:00.001-05:00

I can't believe another 2 months have gone by since I last updated! Not that anyone cares but I've moved AGAIN, hopefully I don't have to move for a while. The end of the year is rapidly approaching, hopefully I can get in a few more posts before the year ends, who knows if any of them will have any substance, but they will have covers.

Here are Five covers of "Thirteen" by Big Star for Friday the 13th.

Elliott Smith (web)

Mary Lou Lord (web)

Wilco (web)

Magnapop (web)

Kathryn Williams (web)

By the way, Big Star recently put out a 4 cd box set on Rhino entitled "Keep An Eye On The Sky" if you are interested.

Five For Friday Lucky Number 13

2009-09-18T12:19:00.000-04:00

Another wonderful week in the world of music...

In an atypical Five For Friday we are not going totally random because we have to make mention of the musicians (and actors) we lost this week: Patrick Swayze, Jim Carroll and Mary Travers.

Bonnie 'Prince' Billy "Puff The Magic Dragon" (Peter, Paul & Mary Cover)
Drive-By Truckers "People Who Died" (Jim Carroll Band Cover)
Tywanna Jo Baskette "Just A Memory" (Elvis Costello Cover)
Charlotte Martin "Wild Horses" (Rolling Stones Cover)

Unfortunately I couldn't find any Patrick Swayze covers so you'll have to settle for this mash up from YouTube of Swayze's She's Like The Wind and The Pet Shop Boys Minimal

Welcome To The Gayborhood Pt. 3

2009-08-22T14:47:00.000-04:00

Two months later and I'm finally getting around to finishing this post. No excuses except enjoying the summer (post on that later, and by later I mean sooner rather than later) and spending less time in front of computers outside of work, hopefully some of you missed me. There are still a few more Pride celebrations in this neck of the woods over the next few weekends including Jersey City and the Bronx (my birthplace for those that are keeping tabs) so I figured it's still okay to continue posting in this direction before moving on to anything else.

As previously noted this time we shall focus on artists covering songs by queer artists or bands that have queer musicians in them.

Black Kids "Damn I Wish I Was Your Lover" (Sophie B Hawkins Cover)
Ash "I Don't Mind" (Buzzcocks Cover)
Bright Eyes "Papa Was A Rodeo" (Magnetic Fields Cover)
The Blow Monkeys "You Don't Own Me" (Lesley Gore Cover)
Colin Meloy "Everyday Is Like Sunday" (Morrissey Cover)
Adele "Black And Gold" (Live Sam Sparro Cover)
Cat Power "Wild Is The Wind" (Johnny Mathis Cover)
JJ72 "It's A Sin" (Pet Shop Boys Cover)
Boy Least Likely To "Faith" (George Michael Cover)
Be Your Own Pet "Bicycle Race" (Queen Cover)
My Morning Jacket "Rocket Man" (Elton John Cover)
Violent Femmes "Do You Really Want To Hurt Me?" (Culture Club Cover)
The Broken West "Back In Your Head" (Live Tegan and Sara Cover)
Deborah Harry & Iggy Pop "Well Did You Evah!" (Cole Porter Cover)
Lightspeed Champion "Souvenirs" (Patrick Wolf Cover)
Shout Out Louds "Man On The Moon" (REM Cover)
Wheatus "A Little Respect" (Erasure Cover)
Xiu Xiu "Fast Car" (Tracy Chapman Cover)

As always, support the artists, click the artist name for the website or use the links to the right to buy music as well as support the blog.

Welcome To The Gayborhood Pt. 2

2009-06-30T14:53:00.001-04:00

Here's part 2 as promised, looks like part 3 will have to wait until July, but I suppose there is pride all year round. Enjoy.

K's Choice "Hallelujah" (Live Leonard Cohen Cover)
Kaki King "Lovestoned" (Live Justin Timberlake Cover)
Kiki & Herb "I'm Not Waiting" (Sleater-Kinney Cover)
Lesbian on Ecstasy "Kündstant Krøving" (k.d. Lang Cover)
Melissa Ferrick "Feel Like Makin' Love" (Roberta Flack Cover)
Mirah "Civil War" (Live Guns N Roses Cover) - I recorded this one myself long ago...
The Murmurs "H.R. Pufnstuf"
Pansy Division "Flower" (Liz Phair Cover)
Peaches "Gay Bar" (Electric Six Cover)
R.E.M. "Toys in the Attic" (Aerosmith Cover)
Rufus Wainwright "Chelsea Hotel No. 2" (Leonard Cohen Cover)
The Runaways "Rock And Roll" (Live Velvet Underground Cover)
Scissor Sisters "Take Me Out" (Franz Ferdinand Cover)
Sia "Gimme More" (Britney Spears Cover)
Sleater-Kinney "I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight" (Live Richard & Linda Thompson Cover)
Tamala Poljak & Audrey Marrs (Karaneedoke) "52 Girls" (Live B-52's Cover)
Tegan and Sara featuring Grace Nocturnal "Rebel Rebel" (David Bowie Cover)
Tender Forever "My Love" (Live Justin Timberlake Cover)
Tribe 8 "Radar Love" (Live Golden Earring Cover)
4 Non Blondes "Bless The Beasts and Children" (The Carpenters Cover)

As always, support the artists, click the artist name for the website or use the links to the right to buy music as well as support the blog.

Welcome To The Gayborhood Pt. 1

2009-06-29T14:45:00.001-04:00

June is nearly over, and with that we shall celebrate LGBT Pride month (thanks Obama), yes it's no longer just Gay Pride, which I think is awesome. Here in NYC specifically we've just ended Pride week, a week filled with marches, parades and parties all over the city. This year also marks the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots, the catalyst for the modern LGBT rights movement. We are still fighting for equal rights but with more and more states allowing same sex marriage and with a democrat in office again, it seems likely we will be a lot more equal sooner rather than later.

We are going to start off with LGBT artists doing covers, this includes solo artists and bands that feature out LGBT artists. Due to the large amount of songs I have that fit this criteria we are gonna break this up into two parts. Hopefully before the month is through I will do another post of musicians covering songs by LGBT artists as well.

Amanda Palmer "Creep" (Live Radiohead Cover)
Antony & The Johnsons "Knockin' On Heaven's Door" (Bob Dylan Cover)
B-52s "Downtown" (Live Petula Clark Cover)
Bob Mould "Everybody Knows/Cinnamon Girl" (Neil Young Cover)
Bonfire Madigan "Monkey Gone To Heaven" (Pixies Cover)
Bratmobile "Where Eagles Dare" (Misfits Cover)
The Butchies "Your Love" (The Outfield Cover)
The Cliks "Cry Me A River" (Justin Timberlake Cover)
Cub "Tell Me Now" (Daniel Johnston Cover)
Dear Nora "Girl From The North Country" (Bob Dylan Cover)
The Ditty Bops "Bye Bye Love" (The Everly Brothers Cover)
Erasure "Take A Chance On Me" (Abba Cover)
Erin McKeown "Paper Moon" (comp. Arlen, Rose & Harburg)
Final Fantasy "Power of Love" (Live Celine Dion Cover)
Girlyman "All Through The Night" (Cyndi Lauper Cover)
Gossip "Are U That Somebody" (Aaliyah Cover)
Hüsker Dü "Love Is All Around" (Sonny Curtis Cover)
The Indigo Girls "Tangled Up In Blue" (Live Bob Dylan Cover)
Jay Brannan "Straight Outta Compton" (Live N.W.A. Cover)
Jill Sobule "I Will Survive" (Live Gloria Gaynor Cover)
The Josephine Wiggs Experience "Head To Toe" (The Breeders Cover)

As always, support the artists, click the artist name for the website or use the links to the right to buy music as well as support the blog.

A Seed Dies

2009-06-26T12:28:00.001-04:00

Well this blog is just full of great news the past 24 hours. I know I just covered the passing of MJ, which I'm sure many blogs have done or will be doing, but we lost another musician yesterday as well, Sky Saxon of The Seeds. The Seeds were an LA based 60s garage rock band who never really made it that big outside of the California vicinity. They had a couple popular tunes such as "Pushin' Too Hard" which was named one of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll as well as "Can't Seem To Make You Mine". The band broke up and reformed many times with Saxon as the only member in all incarnations, between these stints with The Seeds Saxon worked on other musical interests. Sky Saxon passed away in Austin, TX at age 63, possibly due to an infection of the internal organs.

Here are three covers the The Seeds tune "Can't Seem To Make You Mine":

Fuckulele (web)

Garbage (web)

The Ramones (web)

The Gloved One

2009-06-26T01:05:00.000-04:00

I had been working on another post but this is much more important. Hopefully can get the other post up later.

As everyone knows by now, Michael Jackson has passed away from cardiac arrest. I just heard recently he wanted to get into better shape to do that 50 show stint in London was it? Perhaps the exercise was too much? I'm sure the truth will come out in the next few days or weeks as to what caused this. Although I haven't cared much for his music the past few decades I'll admit that I used to do gymnastics in my parents living room to the Thriller album...on vinyl, that album was so scratched and chipped it was unbelievable. MJ you will certainly be missed by many.

Aerogramme "Thriller"
Cobra Starship "Billie Jean" (Live)
Emm Gryner "Beat It" (Live)
Amy Winehouse & Charlotte Church "Beat It" (Live)
KT Tunstall "I Want You Back" (Live)
Supergrass "Beat It" (Live)
Ben Gibbard "Thriller" (Live)
Chris Cornell "Billie Jean" (Live)

As always, support the artists, click the artist name for the website or use the links to the right to buy music as well as support the blog.

Five For Friday 12

2009-06-19T23:00:00.000-04:00

Another week gone by and another week without a post, until now.

I got some good news this week and I'm riding high for a variety of reasons. Enjoy another smattering of songs with no rhyme or reason. Hopefully tomorrow it rains (literally) and I will actually write up some posts and put them in the pipeline, but don't hold your breath because I'm certainly not.

Of the following songs I'm really fond of The No-No's one. I'm sure most of you are not familiar with the band but I fell in love with their cuteness the first time I heard them in the mid to late 90s. Perfect pop gems appear on all three of their albums. I am sure they are out of print but if you find them in the bargain bin I highly recommend them for all you pop fans.

Keane "That's All" (Live Genesis Cover)
The No-No's "Love Is Only Sleeping" (The Monkees Cover)
The Paper Scissors "I Can't Go For That (No Can Do)" (Hall & Oates Cover)
Hole "Do It Clean" (Live Echo & The Bunnymen Cover)
Nirvana "Here She Comes Now" (Velvet Underground Cover)

As always, support the artists, click the artist name for the website or use the links to the right to buy music as well as support the blog.

Inked...Again

2009-06-06T17:45:00.001-04:00

This past week I went in for some new ink. I always spend months if not years thinking about what I would like to have permanently inked into my skin and where I would like to place it, then spend time researching the artist if it is not someone I've already visited. This time I went for something near and dear to my heart, the eggplant. It is not only my favorite food but it has been something associated with me by various people for more than a decade now, I thought it was only fitting to be with me always. I normally have work done by male artists, it's just happened that way, not on purpose, but I felt this piece needed a woman's touch so I decided on the talented Joy Rumore owner of Twelve 28 Tattoo, if you are in NYC I recommend checking her out. I also recommend Alex McWatt owner of Three Kings Tattoo which is whom I'll be headed back to soon, as he's already done a few large pieces on me.

Tricky "Tattoo" (Siouxsie & The Banshees Cover)
Petra Haden "Tattoo" (The Who Cover)
Kaki King "Fashion Tattoo" (Live Bubonix Cover)

As always, support the artists, click the artist name for the website or use the links to the right to buy music as well as support the blog.

Happy Earth Day

2009-04-22T21:08:00.004-04:00

There are still a few more hours left in Earth Day and although mother nature has been pretty tough on the east coast this year I'd still like to celebrate, after all she is giving us some summer weather this weekend! Although I've always been pro-mass transit, pro-walking and pro-recycling, this past year I've made more of an effort and started using more organic and earth friendly products, including using blankets in my guinea pigs cage over disposable bedding. I've also been a vegetarian for more than a decade and for the second time in my life I'm dating a vegan, so I suppose that has rubbed off on me and made me see some of my harsh ways. I gave up my car when I moved from California to New York last year and I will buy a hybrid if I should ever need to buy a car again. I feel like any little bit I can do for this world is worth it, although I don't have children yet, I hope to one day, and I hope to leave them a healthy world to live in.

Here are some covers about the earth or by environmentally sound artists.

R.E.M. "I Will Survive" (Gloria Gaynor Cover)
Sharon Jones "This Land Is Your Land" (Woody Guthrie Cover)
The Strokes w/Eddie Vedder "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)" (Marvin Gaye Cover)
Billy Bragg "Seven & Seven Is" (Love Cover)
Cry Cry Cry "Fall on Me" (R.E.M. Cover)
The Dresden Dolls "Imagine" (John Lennon Cover)
Natalie Merchant "Birds & Ships" (Woody Guthrie Cover)
The Innocence Mission "What A Wonderful World" (Louis Armstrong Cover)

As always, support the artists, click the artist name for the website or use the links to the right to buy music as well as support the blog.

Five For Friday 11

2009-04-03T22:20:00.000-04:00

We are back in action with a shiny new macbook and all our files retrieved from our dead imac. Hopefully I haven't lost too many of you along the way and I hope I can try to make up for lost time. At least it's spring, right?

Bat For Lashes "A Forest" (The Cure Cover)
Jeff Buckley "Mama, You've Been on My Mind" (Bob Dylan Cover)
The Killers "Four Winds" (Bright Eyes Cover)
Lykke Li "Knocked Up" (Kings Of Leon Cover)
Yeah Yeah Yeahs "The Love I'm Searching For" (The Rentals Cover)

As always, support the artists, click the artist name for the website or use the links to the right to buy music while supporting the blog

Fried Logic

2009-02-21T16:56:00.001-05:00

The logic board on my imac seems to have fried. It was working fine one day and then it was zapped completely the next. I'm using my roommates computer right now but have no access to my mp3s. I am hoping that my hard drive is unaffected by all of this and will have to invest in a new macbook. Hopefully I'll be up and running soon. In the meantime I will see if I can pull anything from my inbox or maybe I'll motivate myself to rip some cds.

I know times are tough but some of you are probably still buying cds and other assorted things online. I rarely ask for anything but request that if you make any amazon, insound or even threadless purchases you please use the links from this site.

I'll hopefully be back soon.

Here's one from the inbox, I'll probably do a more in depth post on the "band" soon as they do a lot of pretty good covers, the title of this one fits my thoughts on losing my beloved imac!

the sarcastic dharma society - "Shit on My Heart" (Meyercord Cover)

Five For Friday 10 - Change

2009-01-23T12:08:00.001-05:00

This was a big week in the US as everyone already knows, and this is unfortunately my first post of the year (so much for my resolution of posting more). In honor of both things we have a special FFF, with not 5 but 6 tunes in honor of our new leader and the hope that our country will be improving and changing, and in fact it already has in my eyes.

Cold War Kids "A Change Is Gonna Come" (Sam Cooke Cover)
Fountains of Wayne "Better Things" (The Kinks Cover)
Rogue Wave "Something In The Air" (Thunderclap Newman Cover)
The Sugarcubes "Top Of The World" (The Carpenters Cover)
Twink and Ajda the Turkish Queen "Beautiful World" (Devo Cover)
The Wedding Present "Getting Better" (The Beatles Cover)

As always, support the artists, click the artist name for the website or use the links to the right to buy music as well as support the blog

Calvin Johnson Can Do No Wrong

2008-12-25T15:20:00.001-05:00

I've asked my pal Denise from Logical Logic to do a little guest post for me while I'm gone. If you like the following I highly recommend her blog as it doesn't focus on the next big thing, instead it focuses on the music she loves, some of which you may have missed over the years (recent posts include The Need and Galaxie 500). It's never too late to start listening to a band that's new to you. Now for Denise to shed some light on Beat Happening.

In my humble opinion Beat Happening are one of the best and most influential bands to ever exist. They proved without a doubt that you didn't have to be the most awesome singer, guitarist, or drummer to start a band and make records. The DIY ethics that they lived (maybe most notable by Calvin Johnson starting K Records) continue to inspire countless young bands. They also wrote some of the sweetest, saddest, and sexual songs I've ever heard. I think it's true talent that can write about sex without being crude and about love without being sappy. The lyrics can be cutting on occasion and that adds to allure of the band - you just never knew lyrically what might be coming your way.

In the spirit of the day I would like to share with you a song called Christmas by Beat Happening. It's everything about the band that I love. Kind of warped, kind of sad, kind of funny. Since this is a covers blog I compiled some of my favorites. In particular, the Luna version of Indian Summer is a nice take on the song. Different, yet capturing the feel of the song extremely well. The Velocity Girl song makes me miss the keyboards in the original version - a joint venture between Beat Happening and Screaming Trees - yet I still find it to be quite pleasing. The Cub and Shapiros versions of the songs are pretty faithful covers but still make my black heart beat a little red.

Luna "Indian Summer"
Velocity Girl "Tales Of Brave Aphrodite"
Cub "Cast A Shadow"
The Shapiros "Cry For A Shadow"

Bonus:
Beat Happening "Christmas"

*Gasp* This is the first time I've posted a non-cover song, a special Christmas gift indeed!

It's A Marshmallow World

2008-12-24T08:54:00.000-05:00

Well I managed to throw up a bunch of tracks on the server this morning so I could put up a little Christmastime mix for all of you. Anyone that knows me knows that although I'm Jewish I'm a sucker for a Christmas tune.

I wish everyone a safe and Happy Christmas, Chanukah, Kwanzaa, New Year and anything else that may fall over the next few days. I'm hoping to get one more post up before I skip town and maybe get a guest post or two up, if not I'll be back in 2009.

Aimee Mann "I'll Be Home For Christmas"

Jill Sobule "Merry Christmas From The Family" (Robert Earl Keen Cover)

Belle & Sebastian "O Come, All Ye Faithful"

Pedro The Lion "The First Noel"

The Mountain Goats "Run Run Rudolph" (Chuck Berry Cover)

Bright Eyes "Silver Bells (Christmas Time In The City)"

Sarge "Last Christmas" (Wham Cover)

Ciao Bella "Christmas Time" (Chris Stamey Cover)

Evan Dando "Silent Night"

Cap'n Jazz "Winter Wonderland"

Math and Physics Club "Marshmallow World" (Darlene Love Cover)

Cocteau Twins "Frosty The Snowman"

The Puppini Sisters "Jingle Bells"

As always, support the bands and buy some music, it is the holidays after all!

Happy Chanukah v2

2008-12-23T10:19:00.002-05:00

Thankfully we have a few more Chanukah tunes than last year to share with you, hopefully more pop up this holiday season but I will not hold my breath. Also why are there four different ways to spell Chanukah, Chanukkah, Hanukah, Hanukkah???

So on this second day of Chanukah I will give you the gift of covers. The tunes for the most part are not along the line of the usual songs I post here but given the limited choices out there I'll take all I can get. The Save Ferris song is not a literal cover, more of an interpretation but it's probably my favorite of the bunch followed by Ben Kwellers rendition of "Rock of Ages".

Happy Chanukah all! I'll try to get one more holiday post up by tomorrow, if not I wish everyone a happy holiday season and a great New Year too, I'll be out of the country for a week enjoying some much needed sun (it's insanely cold in New York right now) and sand but I'll be back in 2009 with a resolution to post more often.

Also a holiday gift to myself was buying a domain for this blog and if the internet police come back with a vengeance in 2009 I'll be moving this all to my own host. So update your bookmarks with http://blowinyourcover.com/ if you'd like.

Barenaked Ladies "I Have A Little Dreidel"
Barenaked Ladies "Hanukkah Oh Hanukkah"
Ben Kweller "Rock of Ages"
Erran Baron Cohen featuring Jules Brookes "Dreidel"
Black Tape For A Blue Girl "Chanukkah Oh Chanukkah"
Save Ferris "Christmas Wrapping" (The Waitresses Cover)

As always, support the artists, buy the music. Use the links to the right and support the blog too!

Five For Friday 9

2008-12-19T22:54:00.001-05:00

This Five For Friday will start the holiday season off right with a bunch of pop songs. I hope to get in at least one more holiday post in the next few days, but if not I wish everyone a happy holiday season!

Kate Nash "Christmas Wrapping" (The Waitresses Cover)

Melt Banana "White Christmas" (Bing Crosby Cover)

The Raveonettes "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" (Darlene Love Cover)

Saint Etienne "I Don't Intend To Spend Christmas Without You" (Claudine Longet Cover)

Strawberry Fair "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!" (Vaughn Monroe Cover)

Love is All

2008-12-18T11:20:00.002-05:00

Photo by John Niedermeyer

On Sunday, December 7th, I checked out Crystal Stilts and Love is All at the Bowery Ballroom and I'm glad to report the sound was much improved over the last show there. I was so excited that there were two bands on the same bill that I was eager to see live, because that rarely happens any more. Music Snobbery has a great review and some swell photos from the show so I won't bother posting a review, instead I'll focus a bit on Love is all since I don't have any Crystal Stilts covers (if anyone has any please send them my way though).

If you aren't familiar with Love is All, they are an adorable Swedish pop band who formed from the ashes of Girlfriendo. The show is high energy and lead singer Josephine is almost elfin like playing the cowbell or tambourine and jumping around the stage or playing her keyboard and singing. They write the kind of pop songs that when you listen to them you are instantly in a great mood and you really cannot sit still. I highly recommend the two most recently released, the Wishing Well EP where the covers below are from as well as the latest A Hundred Things Keep Me Up At Night on the small Whats Your Rupture label out of New York. I just want to say the fact that they cover Lung Leg is awesome and this is probably my favorite Lung Leg song at that.

"So Far Away" (Dire Straits Cover)
"Kung-Fu On The Internet" (Lung Leg Cover)

Bonus
Of Montreal "Make Out, Fall Out, Make Up" (Love is All Cover)

As always, support the artists and buy the music!

New York City

2008-12-02T16:59:00.000-05:00

New York is my favorite city in the whole world. I love that I can do anything I want at just about any given time, and if I can't do it quite at that moment, I know it's only hours away until I can do it. I'm elated to be living back in my birthplace, although I enjoyed the California weather for 5+ years, I am not California material at this point in my life. It's a gorgeous place to visit but I am a New Yorker at heart and I will always have a yearning in my soul if I am not here. Having been gone so long I revel in the little things that people don't always see. I love riding the 7 train above ground in the morning and looking out at Manhattan, seeing the skyline from my subway stop, riding past Silvercup Studios (where many of my favorite shows are filmed - 30 Rock, Ugly Betty & Gossip Girl) and dreaming that I worked there instead of my eventual stop at Grand Central Station. But I adore walking through the crowds of people every morning knowing how amazing this place is and that it is all mine. I will even admit to finding amusement in the people on the subway ranting and raving and making no sense, which I just experienced on my ride home, in addition to a blind older gentleman playing a violin as we passed underground from Manhattan to Queens, where else can you get all that entertainment in 20 minutes for $2?

I had planned to do this post when I first came back to the city, then when I first moved back to the city, but now I feel that I am finally again PART of the city it's a perfect time for this post. So here is my ode to NY with a Jersey track thrown in for good measure (I grew up mostly in Jersey).

Jeff Buckley "Back in N.Y.C." (Genesis Cover)
Jonatha Brooke "Bleecker Street" (Simon & Garfunkel Cover)
R.E.M. "First We Take Manhattan" (Jennifer Warnes Cover)
Scrabbel "Chicago New York" (The Aislers Set Cover)
Ted Leo "Union City Blue" (Blondie Cover)
They Might Be Giants "New York City" (Cub Cover)
Ryan Adams "Brooklyn" (Jesse Malin Cover)
Cat Power "Hard Times In New York Town" (Bob Dylan Cover)
X "Positively 4th Street" (Bob Dylan Cover)

And here's an early Christmas present...
Stars "Fairytale of New York" (Pogues Cover)

One Year Down The Drain

2008-11-26T19:57:00.001-05:00

Although the first post on this blog appeared over a year ago today marks the anniversary of the first post about music with mp3's, so I consider today the true anniversary of the blog. So whilest everyone is travelling across the country today and tomorrow to visit family, spending hours upon hours in the kitchen cooking and baking or just relaxing I thought I'd take today to thank everyone for visiting, commenting and emailing me. I know the past few months have been difficult for bloggers, especially some of my cover loving friends, but as long as there are people like you who appreciate the music and what we do, we will continue to do our best to introduce you to new things, remind you of old favorites or torture you with something you hate.

We've had a pretty good first year here at blowin' your cover, even if I didn't meet my goal of averaging a post a week, but I have made some great blogging friends (see the links on the right), I've managed to have a few contests for you guys, (congrats to Joe for winning the MaryKate O'Neil cd!!) and we've clocked nearly 100,000 hits (no they aren't all me, I've blocked myself). I hope I can continue to do this for a while, searching out new covers and sharing them, I hope to also write more posts of substance, like boyhowdy does over at Cover Lay Down, even though I know most people just want the music on this site.

Please keep the comments and emails coming, if you know something you think I should hear please mention it to me, I haven't had much time to scour for new tunes lately so I know I've missed a few months of covers. I look forward to another year with all of you and I promise to try and post more regularly.

Not that we have a snowballs chance in hell but if you feel like it please vote for byc over at the streogum gummy awards by clicking the below, if nothing else maybe it will make a few more people aware of the blog since hype machine doesn't seem to want to pick us up! Plus you can win some stuff by entering!

So in honor of our first anniversary I'll throw at you nine songs with the word "one" in the title and a thank you tune for all of you. Also please note I'm changing to format of the links, the artist now links to their website and the song will link to the download, this is to help you find out more about the artist and also where to buy cds and vinyl.

CSS "One Way or Another vs Teenage Kicks" (Blondie Cover & The Undertones Cover)
Jenny Owen Youngs "...Baby One More Time" (Britney Spears Cover)
R.E.M. "One" (U2 Cover)
Natalie Merchant "One Fine Day" (The Chiffons Cover)
Natty & Mystery Jets One (Blake's Got A New Face)" (Vampire Weekend Cover)
Nina Gordon "One More Night" (Phil Collins Cover)
The Postmarks "One Note Samba" (João Gilberto Cover)
Sufjan Stevens "The One I Love" (R.E.M. Cover)
The Fiery Furnaces "One More Time" (The Clash Cover)
Erin McKeown "Thanks For The Boogie Ride" (Gene Krupa & Anita ODay Cover)

As always please support the artist and purchase albums. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Five For Friday 8

2008-11-14T21:50:00.000-05:00

I've been busy planning a party for the past week or so and need a break from all the upbeat music so today's Five For Friday is going to slow it down. For those not familiar with Madeleine Peyroux she is my favorite romantic dinner or chill out music.

Also don't forget to enter the MaryKate O'Neil contest, I'll be drawing a winner in a few days.

Also, like everyone else out there, I've had a post deleted, not even sure why. I made a deal with myself that if 5 posts get killed I may have to wrap up shop unless we've found a safe haven by then. Thankfully I don't post as much as most bloggers so I may be lucky in the long-run.

Colin Meloy "I Know Very Well How I Got My Name" (Morrissey Cover)
(web)
Josh Pyke "The House At Pooh Corner" (Nitty Gritty Dirt Band Cover)
(web)
Mojave 3 "Love From Room 109 at the Islander" (Tim Buckley Cover)
(web)
Sarah McLachlan "Ol' 55" (Tom Waits Cover)
(web)
Madeleine Peyroux "Between The Bars" (Elliott Smith Cover)
(web)

As always please visit the websites and support the artists by purchasing their albums.

mkULTRA Contest

2008-11-09T12:26:00.003-05:00

First up check out Logical Logic for a guest post I did on Portland artist Grey Anne.

Marykate O'Neil is a Brooklyn based singer-songwriter who recently put out her third solo release, a six song ep, mkULTRA on Seventy-One Recordings. The record features not one, but two covers, one of "Living Without You" by Randy Newman and the other "Happy" by her friends Jill Sobule & Adam Schlesinger (of Ivy & Fountains of Wayne). In fact Sobule makes appearances all over the album playing various instruments and singing backing vocals. O'Neil says of the covers "I recorded and picked the two covers I did because I thought they completed the story well. I recorded a song of one of my friends because I was thinking how lucky I was to be around all these talented people, and started thinking it would be fun to do covers of my friends songs... like how in the 60's everyone would be singing each others songs. So you would have Glenn Campbell singing a George Harrison song, and released at the same time."

O'Neil's voice can be incredibly sweet on songs like "Map" and "Trouble" or somewhat husky on tracks like "Happy" which enable her to evoke different moods with more than just the music. The music itself is the superb blend of thoughtful charm and cynicism, the perfect music for a Sunday morning after a long Saturday night. Keep an eye out on O'Neil, she's due to release a full album entitled Underground in February.

If this sounds up your alley please email me at quietcore@gmail.com with "mk contest" as the title for your chance to win a copy of mkULTRA. Winners will be contacted next week.

"Happy" (Jill Sobule Cover)
Also check out O'Neil's website for more music.

Boo!

2008-10-31T17:33:00.002-04:00

I've found that a lot of people are not in the Halloween spirit this year, including myself. I will blame it on the economy and more personally my disorganized life. That said, I've still managed to find a few gems to share with you on my most favorite holiday.

Juliana Hatfield "Witches Song" (Marianne Faithful Cover)
Luna "Season of the Witch" (live)(Donovan Cover)
Mudhoney "Halloween" (Sonic Youth Cover)
Superchunk "Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps)" (David Bowie Cover)
Misfits "Monster Mash" (Bobby "Boris" Pickett Cover)
The Postmarks "Every Day is Halloween" (Ministry Cover)
Petra Haden "Thriller" (Michael Jackson Cover)

Vivian Girls take on the Bowery

2008-10-16T23:43:00.000-04:00

photo by Late Night Wallflower

I've been back on the east coast for about 4 months now and I've finally managed to catch, the Brooklyn three piece, Vivian Girls do their thing. Unfortunately for me the sound at the Bowery Ballroom last night was awful. Yes I could hear the instruments, but the vocal mix was horrible, so much in fact that one guy screamed out "get a new sound guy!"

The girls write super-short, catchy, lo-fi, noisy pop tunes that are a cross between the girl bands of the 60s and The Jesus & Mary Chain. I highly recommend their self-titled album which recently came out on In The Red Records.

The highlight of the evening for me was their version of "Girl Don't Tell Me" (which I didn't even know they covered), as bad as the mix was, after a few notes I became so excited about what I was going to hear. Unfortunately the below version is a rip I made from youtube and the only copy I can find, if anyone knows of a cleaner version please let me know.

"Blind Spot" (Daisy Chain Cover)
"Girl Don't Tell Me" (live) (Beach Boys Cover)

Doctor My Eyes

2008-10-12T19:32:00.000-04:00

As I've said a lot has been going on the past few months for me. One of the more recent turn of events for me was having PRK surgery to correct my vision. The pain wasn't half as bad as I expected based on my reading of blogs and messages boards on the subject, but the healing time was pretty slow - nearly a month of horribly blurred vision and tired eyes. I'm happy to say I just about have 20/20 vision, something I haven't been able to say since middle school, my eyes still get tired and my night vision isn't the best but I'm so pleased with things thus far and it's only going to improve!

Brazilian Girls "Crosseyed And Painless" (Talking Heads Cover)
Manic Street Preachers "Bright Eyes" (live) (Art Garfunkel Cover)
Seaweed "Foggy Eyes" (Beat Happening Cover)
Martina Topley-Bird "I Only Have Eyes For You" (The Flamingos Cover)
The Czars "Angel Eyes" (Abba Cover)
Sexton Blake "Bette Davis Eyes" (Kim Carnes Cover)
The New Amsterdams "Doctor My Eyes" (Jackson Browne Cover)
The Blake Babies "Temptation Eyes" (live) (Grass Roots Cover)

Coming Soon

2008-10-06T14:01:00.004-04:00

The last month or so a lot has been going on for me plus I just moved again. I promise to have a post up within the next week and then we can get back to normal, and by normal I mean posting more than I did in the past.

Five For Friday 7

2008-08-29T10:50:00.001-04:00

First off, Threadless has lowered the price on over 140 shirts to only $9...what better time to revamp your wardrobe??

We are back with another random FFF after a few month hiatus, my vision isn't clear enough yet to write a post with much content.

The Airfields "Sensitive" (Field Mice Cover)
Elliott Smith "Ballad Of A Thin Man" (Bob Dylan Cover)
The Flaming Lips "What A Wonderful World" (Louis Armstrong Cover)
Radiohead "Ceremony" (Joy Division Cover)
Thee Headcoatees "I Want Candy" (The Strangeloves Cover)

It's Threadless Time

2008-08-28T10:05:00.001-04:00

Threadless is having yet another glorious sale for you to stock up on some new shirts for the fall. It seems as with everything else the new price point is $12 rather than the former $10, but still a great deal!

Hopefully a full post by the weekend. I had eye surgery earlier this week and looking at the computer screen makes me cry. In fact this is the first time all week I've been able to see anything at all.

Here's a song by my pal Ruby aka The Faeries to help make your online shopping trip more pleasant.

The Faeries "The Bargain Store" (Dolly Parton Cover)

A Gift From Madonna

2008-08-15T11:32:00.000-04:00

Tomorrow is Madonna's 50th birthday! I'm currently not at home, but hope to get up a post in honor of this milestone late tomorrow. As much as I'm not a huge fan of her newer music, I grew up on Madonna (the first cassette I ever bought was her debut) and she will forever be a pop/dance icon.

To tide you over here is a track just leaked from the Ray of Light recording sessions.

Madonna "Like An Angel Passing Through My Room" (Abba Cover)

Going For The Gold

2008-08-13T22:35:00.001-04:00

Since the Summer Olympics only come around once every 4 years and really, who knows if this blog will be here in another 4 years, I figured I owed it to all of us to jump on the bandwagon and do an "Ode to the Olympics" post. Unfortunately I don't have many sports themed songs so we'll just pretend that the titles actually reflect what the Olympic events are about.

Aquatics
Natalie Merchant "Diver Boy" (trad.)
web

Martial Arts
Patti Rothberg "Kung Fu Fighting" (Carl Douglas Cover)
web

Soccer
Islands "Red Football" (Sinead O'Connor Cover)
web

Baseball
Yo La Tengo "Baseball Altamont" (Ned Hayden/Phillip Shelley Cover)
web

Track & Field
Adam Green "Born To Run" (Bruce Springsteen Cover)
web
The Backbeat "Band Roadrunner" (Bo Diddley Cover)
web
The Joggers "Long Distance Runaround" (Yes Cover)
web
Leona Lewis "Run" (Snow Patrol Cover)
web
Palomar "I'll Come Running" (Brian Eno Cover)
web
Placebo "Running Up That Hill" (Kate Bush Cover)
web
Yo La Tengo "Roadrunner" (Jonathan Richman Cover)

As always, please support the artists (and the athletes)!

World's Worst Blogger

2008-08-09T15:32:00.000-04:00

I've been getting quite a few emails asking if this blog is dead, and fans hoping it wasn't. Well it definitely isn't dead, I've still been scouring for new (and old covers), it has just been difficult this summer after a move and not yet having a permanent home. Needless to say, I'm pretty much the worst blogger around these days. Things will still be sporadic until I've figured things out but I'm going to try really hard to put up a post a week, even if it's just a Five For Friday. Anyone who has sent me email, I'm sorry, half haven't even been read yet, any submissions will be looked at next week and hopefully emails responded to as well.

Here are a couple of tunes that reflect how I feel and how perhaps you feel about me!

Death Cab For Cutie "Bad Reputation" (Freedy Johnston Cover)
Eels "I'm A Loser" (The Beatles Cover)

Warm California Sun

2008-07-03T14:26:00.000-04:00

I am safely on the east coast and have sporadic internet access, but I wanted to say hi and give a fond farewell to California. As I get more settled I will try and post more often, I'm way behind on searching for new covers for the collection as well so if you find something amazing send it my way!

Guster "California Dreamin'" (The Mamas and The Papas Cover)
Mates of State "California" (Phantom Planet Cover)
The Delgados "California Über Alles" (Dead Kennedys Cover)
Ramones "California Sun" (Joe Jones Cover)
Wakey!Wakey! "California Girls" (Beach Boys Cover)
Kaki King "Angeles" (Elliott Smith Cover)

Expressway To Yr Skull

2008-05-29T00:05:00.000-04:00

I'm not a big coffee drinker, but when I do drink coffee it's Dunkin' Donuts (oh how I miss you) and certainly not Starbucks. Apparently Sonic Youth disagree with my taste buds as June 10th sees the release of Hits Are For Squares released by Starbucks Music. The compilation features songs hand-picked by friends of Sonic Youth from the music and film world, plus one new track entitled "Slow Revolution". I love Sonic Youth as much as the next gal, and I know the band is really down to earth (one time outside of the Knitting Factory Thurston asked me who was playing that night, like he was some regular guy and not the rock god he is), but seriously, Starbucks??

01 “Bull In The Heather” (covered by Ladies Who Lunch)(selected by Catherine Keener)
02 “Sugar Kane” (selected by Beck)
03 “100%” (covered by The Raveonettes) (selected by Mike D)
04 “Kool Thing” (selected by Radiohead)
05 “Disappearer” (selected by Portia de Rossi)
06 “Stones” (selected by Allison Anders)
07 “Tuff Gnarl” (selected by Dave Eggers and Mike Watt)
08 “Teenage Riot” (covered by Ruby Isle) (selected Eddie Vedder)
09 “Shadow Of A Doubt” (selected by Michelle Williams)
10 “Rain on Tin” (selected by Flea)
11 “Tom Violence” (covered by M. Ward) (selected by Gus Van Sant)
12 “Mary-Christ” (selected by David Cross)
13 “World Looks Red” (selected by Chloë Sevigny)
14 “Expressway To Yr Skull” (covered by Ryan Adams)(selected by the Flaming Lips)
15 “Slow Revolution” (new)

As a bonus here are a few covers Sonic Youth have done that have absolutely nothing to do with this release.

"Computer Age" (Neil Young Cover)
'Touch Me I'm Sick" (Mudhoney Cover)
'That's All I Know (Right Now)" (Neon Boys Cover)

I Think It's In A Box

2008-05-22T14:55:00.000-04:00

Once again please excuse the lack of updates but I'm in the process of moving (again). I've moved more times in my "adult" life than I'd like to remember and this is probably the most difficult of them all. It's my second cross country jaunt (I'm moving back east, hello New York), but this time I have to do it all myself. I'm stressed beyond all belief and probably won't relax (I'm tense person to begin with) until all my things have arrived safely, including myself.

Unfortunately I can't find any covers about packing but since I am pretty much going crazy right now I don't think I could do much better than a bunch of covers of the Pixies classic Where is my Mind?

Emmy The Great
The Frames (live)
John P. Strohm (from the excellent Pixies tribute album Dig For Fire)
Nada Surf
Placebo

Winners for the Dusty contest to be announced this week, plus another contest on the way!

To All The Mothers

2008-05-11T22:06:00.000-04:00

I couldn't let today go by without honoring my mother, my grandmother and all the other wonderful mothers out there. I love you mom! To each of you a wonderful Mother's Day!

Maybe these songs don't quite honor our mother's in the way we should today (uh, Danzig?), but title-wise they fit the bill! Hey, at least I tried!

Elliott Smith's beautiful and heart-wrenching words will forever be burned in my heart and mind. This track comes from the beautiful tribute album To: Elliott From: Portland.

Jeff Trott "Wouldn't Mama Be Proud" (Elliott Smith Cover)

This one goes out the Kim Gordon, from the days before she was mother to Coco Haley Gordon Moore.

Sonic Youth "Mom I Gave The Cat Some Acid/Beat on The Brat" (Happy Flowers Cover/The Ramones Cover)

The Veronicas are 20-something twin sisters from Australia who write punk-pop songs, but here's a spot-on cover of a 90s classic!

The Veronicas "Mother Mother" (Tracy Bonham Cover)

I don't know much about International House of Karen, but as far as I know it is a side project for various comps from Karen Ried from bunnygrunt. This track appears on one of the great Patty Duke fanzines!

International House of Karen "Tell Me Momma" (Patty Duke Cover)

Madeleine Peyroux is one of the few artists that I loved upon the first word out of her mouth. Any song she lends her voice to becomes instantly amazing and I hope I can manage to see her live one of these days. This track comes from the Sweetheart 2005 compilation.

Madeleine Peyroux "Give Your Mama One Smile" (Big Bill Broonzy Cover)

Sleater-Kinney are one of my all-time favorite bands, and although they are on permanent hiatus I have high hopes that they will once again perform and I will be there rockin out with all the other kids! Here's an inappropriate Mother's Day tune sung by the one mother in the band, Happy Mother's Day Corin!

Sleater-Kinney "Mother" (Danzig Cover)

I don't know much about The Zutons, and I want this post up before Mother's Day is over so just enjoy the song!

The Zutons "Take Your Mama Out" (Scissor Sisters Cover)

Five For Friday 6

2008-05-09T23:01:00.000-04:00

I couldn't pass up the Speed Racer cover, I was a huge fan of the cartoon as a kid yet have no interest in the current film, go figure.

Don't forget to enter the Forever Dusty contest!

Yo La Tengo "Captain Lou" (NRBQ Cover)
KT Tunstall "My Doorbell" (White Stripes Cover)
Arcade Fire "Heroes" (David Bowie Cover)
Brian Grosz "Roads" (Portishead Cover)
Sponge "Go Speed Racer Go"

The Artists:
Yo La Tengo
KT Tunstall
Arcade Fire
Brian Grosz
Sponge

Cover Chain: Yoshimi Battles The Rhinestone Cowboy

2008-05-08T00:23:00.000-04:00

I guess this is what is called a cover chain. I'm going to try and do these every now and again, it's not as easy as it looks!

Damien Rice & Vyvienne Long"Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots" (The Flaming Lips Cover)
The Flaming Lips "Golden Age" (Beck Cover)
Beck "Wraith Pinned to the Mist and Other Games" (Of Montreal Cover)
Of Montreal "Raspberry Beret" (Prince Cover)
Prince "Creep" (Radiohead Cover)
Radiohead "Rhinestone Cowboy" (Glen Campbell Cover)

The Artists:
Damien Rice
Vyvienne Long
The Flaming Lips
Beck
Of Montreal
Prince
Radiohead

Forever Dusty -- Giveaway!

2008-05-06T22:39:00.000-04:00

Today is my birthday and to celebrate we are having our first ever giveaway!

It was announced last week that Nicole Kidman has been tapped to play Dusty Springfield in an upcoming biopic written by Michael Cunningham who also wrote The Hours. It also seems that the much mentioned Dusty film starring Kristin Chenoweth may finally get moving as well. I think it will be interesting to see each actresses take on this musical icon and to see what direction each film goes in as well.

In honor of all of this I'm giving away 3 copies of Forever Dusty: Homage To An Icon, a great covers compilation put out by R & D Records featuring 17 female artists from Indigo Girls to Gretchen Phillips. Special thanks to Rebekah who produced the disc and provided me with these copies to give away! If you want to buy your own copy please head over to cdbaby!

To enter use the email in the sidebar and give me a topic for an upcoming post. Three winners will be chosen at random and contacted next week. Good luck!

Here's a couple tracks from the compliation as well as a Dusty tune.

The Butchies "What's It Gonna Be"
Jill Sobule "Just A Little Lovin'"
Sara Lee "I Only Want To Be With You"
Dusty Springfield "You Don't Own Me" (Leslie Gore Cover)

Five For Friday 5

2008-05-02T03:01:00.000-04:00

Today it's one for the ladies. Get another track off the Scarlett Johansson album before it's deleted.

Ivy "Digging Your Scene" (Blow Monkeys Cover)
Leaky Chipmunk "Our Secret" (Beat Happening Cover)
Clare & The Reasons "Everybody Wants To Rule The World" (Tears For Fears Cover)
The Last Town Chorus "Do You Really Wanna To Hurt Me" (Culture Club Cover)
Scarlett Johansson "I Wish I Was In New Orleans" (Tom Waits Cover)

The Artists:
Ivy
Leaky Chipmunk
Clare & The Reasons
The Last Town Chorus
Scarlett Johansson

Rock N Roll Suicide

2008-04-25T10:30:00.000-04:00

I know the rest of the cover bloggers are vehemently against this post but I believe all these artists are multi-talented and deserve any recognition than can get. I mean it's not like I'm posting about Britney Spears here.

Recently Fong Songs did a wonderful post on Zooey Deschanel which got me thinking about all the actors/musicians out there. Some of these multi-talented celebrities have opted for music over acting but some have managed to keep both going strong.

So to start off we'll go with Zooey Deschanel. Zooey is best known for Elf, Almost Famous, and a short stint on the tv show Weeds. Zooey has sang in a number of her films including Elf, Winter Passing & The New Guy. Recently Zooey teamed up with M. Ward to form She & Him and released the amazing Volume One on Merge Records.

She & Him You Really Got A Hold On Me (Live on KEXP) (The Miracles Cover)

Juliette Lewis is probably best known for her work in such films as Natural Born Killers, Cape Fear, Kalifornia & What's Eating Gilbert Grape. However more recently she's been the lead singer of Juliette & The Licks, you can check out their latest cd Four on the Floor released last year.

Juliette & The Licks Rid Of Me (PJ Harvey Cover)

Minnie Driver first came onto my radar with Circle of Friends which I actually remember seeing with a bunch of gal pals in the theatre. She's also been in Good Will Hunting, but more recently Minnie has built a tv career with the f/x series The Riches. You can pick up her latest cd Seastories on Rounder Records.

Minnie Driver Hungry Heart (Bruce Springsteen Cover)

Scarlett Johansson needs no explanation, so unless you live under a rock you already know about her acting career, now she's embarking on a bit of a singing career. A lot of people are against her upcoming album due out May 20 on Atco/Rhino Records check the title track and be your own judge.

Scarlett Johansson Anywhere I Lay My Head (Tom Waits Cover)

I think Jason Schwartzman was still in Phantom Planet when this song was recorded, but I could be wrong. Schwartzman is a staple in the indie film scene having appeared in Rushmore, Shopgirl and The Darjeeling Limited. On the music front his most recent effort is a solo project called Coconut Records.

Phantom Planet Somebody's Baby (Jackson Browne Cover)

I fell in love with The Murmurs the first time I heard "You Suck" back in high school. Leisha Hailey & Heather Grody had beautiful harmonies and sweet voices and were super cute to boot. The two followed The Murmurs with the short-lived Gush. After Gush broke up Heather went on to form LA band Redcar. Meanwhile Leisha has been in All Over Me, The L Word and of course those Yoplait commercials! As far as music Leisha is now in Uh Huh Her and has an album entitled Common Reaction coming out in August on Nettwerk.

The Murmurs White Rabbit (Jefferson Airplane Cover)

Milla Jovovich is currently concentrating on her fashion line Jovovich-Hawk. However she started her career as a model and quickly moved into acting in such films as Return To The Blue Lagoon, The Fifth Element, The Messenger and of course all the Resident Evil films. This song is featured in her film The Million Dollar Hotel.

Milla Jovovich Satellite of Love (Lou Reed Cover)
**This is an .m4a file, if anyone has an mp3 please let me know

And Finally I've saved Rilo Kiley for last because it features not one, but two child stars in Jenny Lewis and Blake Sennett. Blake Sennett will always be Ronnie Pinsky from Salute Your Shorts in my book, he followed this role playing a bully on Boy Meets World and has had supporting roles in a number of other tv shows. Blake is also the driving force behind The Elected. His bandmate Jenny Lewis had a career in both tv and film and was featured in the classic Troop Beverly Hills, The Wizard and Foxfire (a personal favorite). Jenny also has a solid career as a solo artist. Rilo Kiley's latest album Under The Blacklight was released last year.

Rilo Kiley Let My Love Open The Door (Pete Townshend Cover)
Rilo Kiley Rock N Roll Suicide (David Bowie Cover)

Warmth Of The Sun

2008-04-13T23:53:00.001-04:00

It was in the 90s in Long Beach this weekend so I spent the weekend getting some sun (and sweating to death) at the beach. To celebrate the great weather enjoy some Beach Boys tunes, and if it's dreary where you are hopefully this adds a little sunshine to your day.

I was a Bangles fan from elementary school, and into Matthew Sweet in high school, it's pretty awesome to see these two working together. Their voices flow effortlessly together on all the tracks from the excellent album Under The Covers, Vol. 1.
Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoffs "Warmth Of The Sun"

The Ramones have done a handful of Beach Boys covers, but what what a post be without this essential tune!
The Ramones "Surfin' Safari"

This is about the last band I would ever expect to cover the Beach Boys. This track comes off the Darklands EP.
The Jesus & Mary Chain "Surfin' USA"

I thought if I ever heard this song again in the late 80s I'd pull out all my hair. I still cringe when I hear it now but this version just makes me smirk.
Adam Green & Ben Kweller "Kokomo"

In my book Cub can do no wrong. Perfect pop harmony on this track off the Japanese version of the Betti-Cola album.
Cub "Surfer Girl"

Five For Friday 4

2008-04-12T00:25:00.000-04:00

A few more hours are left in my Friday. Here's a few tunes for you, a post with more substance coming your way this weekend.

What an odd assortment!

Arctic Monkeys Diamonds Are Forever (Shirley Bassey Cover)
Athlete If I Ain't Got You (Alicia Keys Cover)
Cold War Kids Well Well Well (John Lennon Cover)
Of Montreal Fuck The Pain Away (Peaches Cover)
Kim Deal & Robert Pollard Love Hurts (Nazareth Cover)

The Bands:
Arctic Monkeys
Athlete
Cold War Kids
Of Montreal
Kim Deal
Robert Pollard

Body of Song

2008-04-04T15:01:00.000-04:00

Last week Bob Mould rolled into the El Rey Theatre in Los Angeles, so it's a perfect time to give him some props. I was supposed to be at the show but unforeseen circumstances proved that impossible. Yet another act I am destined never to see live!

Besides his solo work Bob Mould is known as the heart of both Hüsker Dü in the 80s and Sugar in the 90s. Hüsker Dü was punk band out of Minneapolis comprised of Mould, Grant Hart (who shared singing and songwriting duties) and Greg Norton. The band started receiving national exposure in 1983 with its first release on SST records out of Long Beach, CA (my current home - in fact I walk past the old building now and again). Metal Circus signaled a change in their sound to a more melodic punk which led to greater airplay. The band never achieved mainstream success but have been influential on a number of acts including The Pixies and Superchunk. Hüsker Dü disbanded in 1987 amidst internal conflict stemming from drug abuse among other things.

Hüsker Dü Sunshine Superman (Donovan Cover)

Hüsker Dü Eight Miles High (The Byrds Cover)

Trip Shakespeare Dead Set On Destruction (Hüsker Dü Cover)
Catherine Wheel Don't Want To Know If You Are Lonely (Hüsker Dü Cover)

Foo Fighters Never Talking To You Again (Hüsker Dü Cover)

After Hüsker Dü Mould put out a couple solo albums before starting Sugar in the early 90s. Sugar had more pop sensibility and gained success in the hot alternative scene of the day. It was with Sugar that I first really took notice of Mould and Copper Blue is still an amazing album. Sugar broke up in the mid 90s and Mould went back to his solo career.

Mould has put out quite a catalog of music over the years ranging from the early punk of Hüsker Dü to the more recent electronica of LoudBomb and rock of Blowoff. His latest solo album District Line was released earlier this year on Anti Records.

Bob Mould Cinnamon Girl (Neil Young Cover)

Bob Mould & Vic Chesnutt Hickory Wind (The Byrds Cover)

Tour Dates:

May 10, 2008 - Bank of America Pavilion - Boston, MA
May 23, 2008 - ABC - Glasgow, Scotland
May 24, 2008 - Academy 2 - Manchester, England
May 26, 2008 - Academy 2 - Birmingham, England
May 27, 2008 - Koko - London, England
May 28, 2008 - Cafe De La Danse - Paris, France
May 30, 2008 - Primavera Sound Festival - Barcelona, Spain
June 02, 2008 - Batschkapp - Frankfurt, Germany
June 03, 2008 - Luxor - Cologne, Germany
June 04, 2008 - Ubel & Gefahrlich - Hamburg, Germany
June 05, 2008 - Melkweg - Amsterdam, Holland
June 07, 2008 - Postbahnhof - Berlin, Germany

Five For Friday 3

2008-03-21T21:50:00.001-04:00

It's another Five for Friday for ya, no rhyme or reason to this one.

FYI, the threadless sale has been extended due to some server issues, also if you spend over $50 use the code "spring08" and get $5 off your order (first 5000 people only)

Ariel Pink "Everybody" (Madonna Cover)
Miracle Fortress "Digital Love" (Daft Punk Cover)
Of Montreal "Need You Tonight" (INXS Cover)
Okkervil River "Do What You Gotta Do" (Johnny Rivers Cover)
Dresden Dolls "The Ghost In You" (Psychedelic Furs Cover)

Info on the Bands:
Ariel Pink
Miracle Fortress
Of Montreal
Okkervil River
Dresden Dolls

Britpop pt. 3 - Blur vs Oasis

2008-03-19T23:23:00.000-04:00

The date that will go down in British chart history is August 14, 1995, The Battle of Britpop. The day that Blur released "Country House" and Oasis released "Roll With It" in a battle royale. Blur won over Oasis by almost sixty thousand copies (274,000 vs 216,000) however the battle wasn't over. Both bands released full length albums over the coming months, Blur with The Great Escape and Oasis with (What's the Story) Morning Glory? the latter of which spent 3 years on the charts and went fourteen times platinum. Oasis became not only the biggest band in England but the "biggest band in the world", whereas Blur failed to make a dent on the American charts. Both bands continued to have success and every studio album by both artists have hit the number one spot on the UK chart.

I'll always be partial to Blur, but I won't turn off an Oasis tune either.

Bratmobile "There's No Other Way" (Blur Cover)
James Morrison "Out Of Time" (Blur Cover)
The Black Canary "Sing" (Blur Cover)
Ben Gibbard & Colin Meloy "End of the Century" (Blur Cover)

vs

Devendra Banhart & Noah Georgeson "Don't Look Back In Anger" (Oasis Cover)
Elliott Smith "Supersonic" (Oasis Cover)
Foo Fighters "Lyla" (Oasis Cover)

Spring Cleaning

2008-03-17T22:55:00.000-04:00

threadless is having yet another sale, slightly different from the usual $10 sale, shirts start at $9 this time but go up from there.

Get dressed already!

While you are shopping here are some ladies to help you pick those perfect shirts!

Eve's Plum "If I Can't Have You" (Yvonne Elliman Cover)
Chicks on Speed "Eurotrash Girl" (Cracker Cover)
Katy Perry "Your Love" (The Outfield Cover)

More info on these Women:
Eve's Plum
Chicks On Speed
Katy Perry

On a completely unrelated note Logical Logic has a Bedsit Infamy giveaway going on for cds and more shirts, check it out!

Britpop pt. 2

2008-03-16T22:48:00.000-04:00

Now let's take a look at some Britpop acts being covered.

Ash are one of the few bands of the Britpop era that are still prodding along, although the band has had some ups and downs they are still making music. The band were extremely young when they first started but it doesn't show much in their music, they wrote excellent pop tunes just like the other hot acts of their time. For those of you in the NY area check out Ash tomorrow 3/17 for a St. Patrick's day show at the Music Hall of Williamsburg. The following is one of my all-time favorite covers.

Star 69 "Girl From Mars" (Ash Cover)

Supergrass is another act still making music, in fact they have a new album entitled Diamond Hoo Ha due out on March 24. When the band first came on the scene I would've definitely described them as happy-go-lucky and almost goofy in behavior, however the music was absolutely catchy and tight.

If you are in the UK check them out on their upcoming tour:

11 Apr	Academy, Birmingham
12 Apr	ABC, Glasgow
13 Apr	Northumbria University, Newcastle
15 Apr	Rock City, Nottingham
16 Apr	Leeds Metropolitan University, Leeds
17 Apr	Engine Shed, Lincoln
18 Apr	Academy, Manchester
20 Apr	Academy, Bristol
21 Apr	University of East Anglia, Norwich
22 Apr	Astoria, London
23 Apr	Astoria, London

Of Montreal "Alright" (Supergrass Cover)

The next two acts are both Welsh and part of the 2nd wave of Britpop. Super Furry Animals is yet another band still making music, I think they've survived this long by not quite breaking through to the mainstream. Gorky's Zygotic Mynci are now defunct and are another act that never quite had the success of other Britpop acts, partially due to the fact that many of the songs were in Welsh and not as attainable by the masses.

Syd Matters "Hello Sunshine" (Super Furry Animals Cover)
Of Montreal "Spanish Dance Troupe" (Gorky’s Zygotic Mynci Cover)

We already covered these artists in the last post, so just enjoy the music!
Franz Ferdinand "Mis-shapes" (Pulp Cover)
Nick Cave "Disco 2000" (Pulp Cover)
The Faeries "Stutter" (Elastica Cover)

If you enjoy The Faeries, look for a future post with other acts from Banazan Records, including more tunes from The Faeries.

Stay tuned for part 3 which will feature Blur vs Oasis.

Britpop pt. 1

2008-03-14T02:05:00.000-04:00

In the early 90s I fell in love with Britpop, in fact I was obsessed with most British things. I'd go to the bookstore and read NME and Melody Maker, and even though the issues were a couple weeks old already I'd devour every word. I had English pen pals sending me mix tapes constantly introducing me to new acts I could only read about. Britpop emerged from the UK alternative and independent music scene of the 90s as a reaction against grunge and other genres and was influenced by the British music of the 60s and 70s. The songs were known for their utterly catchy hooks and that is what drew me in and still holds me tight.

Today we will focus on Britpop artists doing some covers, but look for part two (and possibly three) featuring other artists covering some Britpop artists soon.

My favorite artist from the scene was by far Elastica. The band was lead by the gorgeous Justine Frischmann and was a bit more rock than the bulk of the other artists. I fell in love with "Connection" the first time I heard it like so many others and their self-titled debut album will forever be one of my feel good albums of all time.

Elastica "Da Da Da" (Trio Cover)

I was hooked on Blur from the moment I heard "She's So High" and it didn't hurt that Damon Albarn was absolutely adorable. In the Britpop warzone of Blur vs Oasis, I was definitely on the Blur team, although looking back both bands have had their place in my my music collection.

Blur "Oliver's Army" (Elvis Costello Cover)

Speaking of Oasis, although these blokes have some of the biggest heads I've ever seen, I will be the first to admit that they also have great talent, although they certainly are NOT The Beatles!

Oasis "Got To Hide Your Love Away" (The Beatles Cover)

Lush are definitely another one of my top Britpop acts, although they were part of the shoegaze scene in the late 80s and early 90s and therefore around before the Britpop scene their music definitely embraced the changing music culture with the album Lovelife.

Lush "I Wanna Be Your Girlfriend" (Rubinoos Cover)

Suede were led by Brett Anderson and among its founding members were Justine Frischmann of the aforementioned Elastica. Unfortunately for us American's Suede never hit as big as some of the other Britpop acts at the time for some unknown reason to me. They had the catchy tunes, the talent, the drugs and the look.

Suede "Brass In Pocket" (The Pretenders Cover)

Pulp is another act that were huge in the UK but didn't quite cash in on that success in the US. Most people here are probably more familiar with William Shatner's horrible cover of "Common People" from a few years back than the band itself. However Pulp is known for their witty lyrics about sex and middle-class life and of course for their sexy front man Jarvis Cocker.

Jarvis Cocker "Eye of the Tiger" (Survivor Cover)

Sleeper were possibly known equally as well for Louise Wener's good looks as for their music. Louise was known for her strong songwriting and although Sleeper is no more, you can find Louise's words in her novels.

Sleeper "Atomic" (Blondie Cover)

Dubstar came along a bit later with a more danceable vibe than the other Britpop artists. Unfortunately they barely made a dent in the US scene but lead singer Sarah Blackwood has since gone on to form the band Client.

Dubstar "St. Swithin's Day" (Billy Bragg Cover)

BONUS:
Manic Street Preachers "Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head" (B.J. Thomas/Burt Bacharach Cover)
Gene "Nightswimming" (REM Cover)
The Boo Radleys "There She Goes" (The La's Cover)
Kula Shaker "Hush" (Billy Joe Royal Cover)

Five For Friday 2

2008-03-07T21:53:00.001-05:00

I bet you thought I forgot about you! It's still Friday where I live.

Elliott Smith "Yer Blues" (The Beatles Cover)
Xiu Xiu "Fast Car" (Tracy Chapman Cover)
Morning Theft "Ana" (Pixies Cover)
The Flaming Lips "I Can't Get You Out Of My Head" (Kylie Minogue Cover)
Veruca Salt "Side Of The Road" (Lucinda Williams Cover)

More info on the artists:
Elliott Smith
Xiu Xiu
Morning Theft
The Flaming Lips
Veruca Salt

Dusty Forever

2008-03-02T19:15:00.000-05:00

Friday night I was lucky enough to see Stay Forever: The Life and Music of Dusty Springfield starring Kristen Holly Smith at the Renberg Theatre in Los Angeles. The show has received rave reviews, so much so that it was held over an extra week, if you are in the area I urge you to catch tonight's show before you lose out! Ms. Smith does an amazing job playing Dusty from a young catholic school girl crushing on the nuns to the recording of Dusty In Memphis to her alcoholism and subsequent time in the hospital up until the late 90s and her heroic battle with breast cancer.

The show features 13 tunes performed by Ms. Smith who completely embodies Dusty Springfield. It is basically a one woman show, there is a live band with back up singers and although the singers interact with "Dusty" for the storyline to flow, they do not have any lines, the whole show falls on Ms. Smith's shoulders and what she creates is stunning. This is a great introduction to the music and life of an amazing icon of our time.

Here's Kristen Holly Smith with her renditions of "Son of a Preacher Man" followed by "You Don't Have to Say You Love Me."

And here are a few Dusty covers! If anyone has the album Forever Dusty please contact me. Thanks!

Joan Osborne "Breakfast In Bed"
Shelby Lynn "Just A Little Lovin'"
Marc Almond & Sarah Cracknell "I Close My Eyes And Count To Ten"
Me First And The Gimme Gimmes "I Only Want To Be With You"
Susanna Hoffs "The Look of Love"
Nina Persson "Losing You"

BONUS:
Dusty Springfield "Take Another Little Piece Of My Heart" (Erma Franklin Cover)

Five For Friday

2008-02-29T10:00:00.000-05:00

I have some posts up my sleeve but nothing complete at the moment, so to tide you over I've hit shuffle on my itunes and these are the first five covers that popped up. Ah, don't you love being random?

I'm going to try and make this a regular Friday series, so be on the look out!

Luna "Everybody's Talkin'" (Harry Nilsson Cover)
Belly "It's Not Unusual" (Tom Jones Cover)
Hooverphonic "Shake The Disease" (Depeche Mode Cover)
Of Montreal "Hey Bulldog" (The Beatles Cover)
Sara Quin (from Tegan and Sara) featuring Kaki King "Sweetness Follows" (REM Cover)

The Mountain Goats Are Back In Town

2008-02-24T19:48:00.000-05:00

The first time I can recall hearing The Mountain Goats was about 5 years ago in the back seat of a car headed to San Francisco for a show. John Darnielle has an unmistakable voice which sounded incredibly familiar to me, I'm sure I'd heard The Mountain Goats before, after all they've been around since 1991, but I suppose I never really took notice. Darnielle is a great lyricist and story teller, it's quite difficult not to be lost in his songs and when you are in the car for about 90 minutes (round trip) listening to one band that piques your interest, you are bound to take notice. However with so many other acts out there, and new friends with new music (to me) I all but forgot about The Mountain Goats, a year or so passed and once again they were back on my radar, this time because of the release of We Shall All Be Healed and listening to KEXP at my office all day and they've been in rotation ever since.

Tuesday saw the release of their latest in a long line of releases Heretic Pride on 4AD, to celebrate here are a bunch of songs The Mountain Goats have covered and one cover from Ben Gibbard of a Mountain Goats tune.

The Mountain Goats "Pet Politics" (Silver Jews Cover)
The Mountain Goats "Cut Your Hair" (Pavement Cover)
The Mountain Goats "Two-Headed Boy" (Neutral Milk Hotel Cover)
The Mountain Goats "The Sign" (Ace of Base Cover)
The Mountain Goats "One Fine Day" (The Chiffons Cover)
The Mountain Goats "The Boys Are Back In Town" (Thin Lizzy Cover)
The Mountain Goats "Wild World" (Birthday Party Cover)
The Mountain Goats "Trash" (Suede Cover)

BONUS:
Ben Gibbard "Palmcorder Yajna" (The Mountain Goats Cover)

If you can check the band out on their upcoming tour.

February
25 - Portland, OR, Doug Fir
26 - Portland, OR, Doug Fir
27 - Eugene, OR, WOW Hall
29 - San Francisco, CA, Bimbo's

March
1 - San Francisco, CA, the Independent
2 - San Francisco, CA, Bottom of the Hill (matinee)
4 - Los Angeles, CA, the Troubadour
5 - Los Angeles, CA, the Troubadour
13 - Northampton, MA, Pearl Street
14 - Boston, MA, Museum of Fine Arts
15 - Boston, MA, The Middle East
18 - New York, NY, Webster Hall
19 - Brooklyn, NY, Music Hall of Williamsburg
20 - Philadelphia, PA, First Unitarian
22 - Washington, DC The Black Cat

April
5 - Perth, The Rousemount
6 - Adelaide, Fowlers Live
8 - Melbourne, Billboard
9 - Hobart, The Republic Bar
11- Newcastle, The Cambridge
12 - Sydney, Manning Bar
15 - Brisbane, The Zoo
17 - Sunshine Coast, Lake Kawana Community Centre

For more mp3s, live shows and rarities check out themountaingoats.net

Ida's Golden Hours

2008-02-02T15:20:00.000-05:00

I was first introduced to Ida 8 or 9 years ago by an ex, it was probably the best thing I got out of the relationship and I am truly grateful for that. When I initially heard them the male vocalist, Daniel Littleton sounded extremely familiar, I later discovered he was in the band Liquorice (who had been a favorite of mine a few years earlier) with Jenny Toomey founder of the Simple Machines label and former Tsunami leader.

Ida are a New York based band that began in Brooklyn in 1992. The band started with Littleton and his (future) wife, Elizabeth Mitchell with an ever rotating roster of musicians joining them. In 1996 Karla Shickele joined as permanent bassist and the three together have been the heart of Ida ever since.

Ida makes music that is beautiful on so many levels, the way Littleton, Mitchell and Schickele blend their voices and instruments allows you to get lost in their music and forget the world. It is definitely the music I put on to unwind, have a quiet night at home, a romantic night with a partner, it is the music I find comfort in no matter what else is going on in the world. In fact the first time I saw Ida was at the Knitting Factory, New York, and they actually put out chairs in the main space, no standing! It helped to give you your own space, to not have the person next to you bumping into you, or pushing up against you, but for you to sit and relax and completely enjoy the music. I again saw them a few years ago at the echo in Los Angeles, and although it is a smaller venue, it was standing room only this time, and it wasn't the same. The music still held its own but the experience wasn't as magnificent. That said, I would never turn down the chance to see them live.

On January 29th, Ida released their latest album Lovers Prayers on Polyvinyl Records, another beautiful masterpiece.

Enjoy my favorite Ida cover, "Shoe-In," from my favorite Ida album, Ten Small Paces, followed by a choice selection of other covers.

Ida "Shoe-In" (Secret Stars Cover)
Ida "Blue Moon of Kentucky" (Live Bill Monroe Cover)
Ida "Mendocino w/Dynamite Woman" (Live Sir Douglas Quintet Cover)
Ida "Dirty Mind" (Live Prince Cover)
Ida "Subway Joe" (Live Joe Bataan Cover)
Ida "Golden Hours" (Brian Eno Cover)

Everybody's Happy Nowadays...But Me

2008-01-27T22:54:00.000-05:00

Buzzcocks have a new 28-track live album that came out this past week called Buzzcocks 30. The band also has some tour dates lined up for the spring, but none in the US at the moment. Great to see another band going strong after more than 30 years in the business! Here are a handful of Buzzcocks covers for your Sunday night!

I am probably the biggest Luscious Jackson fan that ever was, here's a track that is from a 7" singles only side project of Kate Schellenbach and Josephine Wiggs (of Breeders fame). This song is from the 1997 single of the same name on the Beastie Boys Grandroyal Records. By the way - this is my first attempt at ripping vinyl so let me know how it is.

Ladies Who Lunch "Everybody's Happy Nowadays"

Lunachicks seem pretty up for the challenge of covering Buzzcocks by taking on not one, but two songs. This track appeared on the early 90s compilation Something's Gone Wrong Again. If you never got to see this band live you are missing out, I haven't seen a bunch of musicians with that much energy in my entire life. I was lucky enough to see the band at a reunion show at cbgb's a number of years back and it was a great time for all! Little known fact: Kate Schellenbach played drums for Lunachicks on one tour.

Lunachicks "Noise Annoys/Promises"

When I first heard Nouvelle Vague on the radio I thought they were pretty cute, then I learned their album was all covers which of course I loved. The band puts their own unique bossa-nova sound into ever cover they do. This track appears on their second album Bande a Part. I feel like this song is my life...

Nouvelle Vague "Ever Fallen In Love"

Elf Power are part of the Elephant Six Collective (The Apples in Stereo, Beulah, Neutral Milk Hotel, Of Montreal, etc.). They have a new album due out later this year entitled In A Cave. Here's a country tinged live track for you to enjoy.

Elf Power "Why Can't I Touch It"

BONUS: Ash featuring Chris Martin "Everybody's Happy Nowadays"

The Magnetic Fields Have Strange Powers

2008-01-14T21:04:00.000-05:00

A bunch of covers to celebrate the release of Distortion the 8th album from The Magnetic Fields tomorrow. You can also stream Distortion in its entirety over at MySpace.

Superchunk "100,000 Fireflies"
Arcade Fire "Born On A Train"
The Shins "Strange Powers"
Kelly Hogan "Papa Was A Rodeo"
St. Vincent with John Vanderslice "Yeah! Oh Yeah!"
Ben Gibbard "Why I Cry"
Kings of Convenience "The Luckiest Guy on The Lower East Side"
Lush "I Have The Moon"
Mary Lou Lord "I Don't Want To Get Over You"
The Lucksmiths "Deep Sea Diving Suit"

BONUS
The Magnetic Fields "Heroes" (David Bowie Cover)

A Case of Joni MItchell

2008-01-13T19:36:00.000-05:00

It's all Joni Mitchel l covers today!! When I think of Joni Mitchell I think of our apartment in the Bronx and spending time in the living room and my mom putting on records from my parents vast collection. I think she used Joni to calm me down. I wonder what these artists think of when they think of Joni.

Say what you want Morrissey, but Natalie Merchant can do no wrong in my book. From the first time I heard her voice as a youngster I was immediately hooked and she will forever hold a place in my heart. This track appears on the Wonder UK single.

Natalie Merchant All I Want

I imagine Tori Amos has done more cover songs than just about anyone around and each tune has her own unique twist to it. This track was on the Cornflake Girl single.

Tori Amos A Case of You

I was really against Sufjan Stevens when I first heard him, too much hype I said, but then I gave in and listened more and found some goodness in all that hype, plus the guy does a bunch of covers too. This track appears on last years compilation "A Tribute To Joni Mitchell."

Sufjan Stevens Free Man In Paris

This track appeared on the recent free downloadable EP Okkervil River put out for the holidays last month chock full of covers. If you live on another planet and havent checked it out yet, I highly recommend it.

Okkervil River The Blonde In The Bleachers

Cold War Kids Recorded an AOL Session not so long ago and paid homage to Joni in only a way that they could.

Cold War Kids All I Want

Never in a million years would I expect Bjork to cover Joni, but she did, another track from "A Tribute To Joni Mitchell"

Bjork Boho Dance

This last track is a treat for you from the soon to be released album Jukebox. Chan Marshall has really gotten her act together in recent years, no more running off stage, no more repeated cancellation of shows yet she still manages to put out great music by once again paying homage to some of her favorites.

Cat Power Blue

The Top Artists I First Discovered in 2007...

2008-01-01T14:42:00.000-05:00

This is as close as I'm going to get to a year end list and it is by no means complete. Since most acts do not perform cover songs, and even if they do it's often only live and not so easy to get my hands on without endless searches. That is not to say there were not dozens of great cover songs performed in 2007 and dozens more I found for the first time in 2007, but I want to do something a little different for this list. So let's call this list "the top artists I first discovered in 2007 who also have a cover song I can post."

The first time I discovered The Pipettes I was in love, a great pop tune can do no wrong, especially with 3 girl harmony. Unfortunately the album was not out in the US at the time of discovery and wouldn't be out for months so I quickly downloaded everything I could. When the girls came to town for the first time I quickly bought up some tickets which was rare because my show going has dwindled since living in California.

The Pipettes "I Think We're Alone Now" (Tommy James & The Shondells cover)

I heard Kate Nash for the first time via Lily Allen's myspace, like half the known world and was immediately hooked. Thankfully Kate has done a number of covers in her short career, a career I hope lasts a long while

Kate Nash "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How To Dance With You" (Black Kids cover)

Bat for Lashes is an act I was first tipped off to via a long time British friends myspace due to enormous gushing, the likes of which I had not seen in quite a long time. I thought Natasha Khan had a great voice and the first single "What's A Girl To Do" completely brought to mind "Little Trouble Girl" by Sonic Youth, so I knew something was right.

Bat For Lashes feat. Fionn Regan and Maps "Higher Than The Sun" (Primal Scream cover)

I checked out The Bird and the Bee because a friend of mine had a band called The Birds and the Bees a couple years back, the two acts are however on either side of the spectrum. I've been familiar with Inara George for a while now due to the well deserved love KCRW has given her over the last couple years, but The Bird and the Bee is something quite different.

The Bird and the Bee "How Deep is Your Love" (Bee Gees cover)

Los Campesinos! first came into my ears via the song "We Throw Parties, You Throw Knives" some months ago on a random internet playlist I was listening to because it was one of very few things that wasn't blocked at work. I was immediately hooked on this new young band and look forward to their first full length album in 2008!

Los Campesinos! "C Is The Heavenly Option" (Heavenly cover)

I think I first heard of St. Vincent aka Annie Clark via a blog, which one, I can't tell you. Of course I was intrigued, another individual using a strange moniker even though they are performing "solo." I dug around and found some tracks and love Annie's voice and came to find she'd toured with Sufjan Stevens and been a member of the Polyphonic Spree, so how could I go wrong!

St. Vincent "These Days" (Nico/Jackson Browne cover)

Owen Pallett aka Final Fantasy popped into my radar because of all the brilliant covers he has done. In my never ending search to find the best covers I can, Final Fantasy pops up probably more than anyone else in recent months.

Final Fantasy "Telegraph" (OMD cover)

I may have first taken notice of Amy Winehouse in late 2006, I can't be sure, but she sure tore through 2007 like a hurricane! I had tickets to see her in NY in May on a visit but couldn't get one person to go with me, even for free!! I ended up selling the tickets and getting enough money to get another tattoo, so thank you Amy, for my best work to date! I can't say enough about the voice that comes out of this little Jewish woman, if only she could clean up her act!

Amy Winehouse "Hey Little Rich Girl" (The Specials cover)

Vampire Weekend are a bunch of guys out of NYC, more specifically Columbia University. The music is afro-ska-pop with a bitt of "Graceland" for good measure. Their first full length is due out in a matter of weeks and sure to be a hot album for 2008.

Vampire Weekend "Exit Music (For A Film)" (Radiohead cover)

You know Bishop Allen from that camera commercial, you know the one "click click click click" I first came to notice them from some friends who love indie pop more than anything in the world and they were spot on once again, perfect indie pop perfection! I'd heard the name for a while but never managed to check anything out until this year, I don't know what I was waiting for.

Bishop Allen "Psycho Killer" (Talking Heads cover)

I first heard New Young Pony Club on my local radio station, Indie 103.1 with the tune "The Bomb" which is a good indication of their energy and style. They make music you can't help but dance to.

New Young Pony Club "Pump Up The Jam" (Technotronic cover)

In honor of New Year's Day...

BONUS Lightspeed Champion "Happy New Year" (Abba cover)

Note: I started this post in 2007...got busy and didn't get around to posting it until 2008, story of my life. Damn, I hope 2008 is better than 2007 because besides some new music it was a pretty bad year all around.

A Gift From the Elves

2007-12-25T00:33:00.001-05:00

Just a few Christmas songs to get you through the next day or so. I wish all of you that celebrate Christmas a wonderful happy day filled with lots of good food, friends, family and of course presents!

Aimee Mann "You're A Mean One Mr. Grinch"
Arab Strap "Christmas (Baby, Please Come Home" (Darlene Love cover)
Asobi Seksu "Merry Christmas (I Don't Want To Fight Tonight)" (The Ramones cover)
Belle & Sebastian "The Twelve Days of Christmas"
Fuzzy "Christmas" (Florence Dore cover)
Ivy "Christmas Time Is Here" (Vince Guaraldi cover)
The Junior Varsity "Don't Believe In Christmas" (The Sonics cover)
Pearl Jam "Someday at Christmas" (The Jackson Five cover)
The Pipettes "White Christmas"
Snow Patrol "Just Like Christmas" (Low cover)

BONUS track with Gwenno from the Pipettes!!

Swipe! & Gwenno "Last Christmas" (Wham cover)

100 Greatest Songs of the 90s

2007-12-24T02:28:00.000-05:00

This past week VH1 premiered the 100 Greatest Songs of the 90s and I sat through the whole 5 hours reliving my prime music years, the time when I had the most voracious appetite for new music and when I accumulated probably 2/3 of my cd collection. So many of these 100 songs have been covered so I'm just going to share with you some tunes from the top 10.

This first tune is taken from a Radio 1 Live Lounge Session and grips at you almost as tightly as Sinéad's version.

10. Stereophonics "Nothing Compares 2 U" (Sinéad O'Connor cover and yes I realize this is a Prince cover)

At one point I thought I'd go crazy if I ever heard the original version of this song again, my high school history of art teacher even played the video for us in class! This gut wrenching version by Tori Amos is featured on the soundtrack to the film Higher Learning.

9. Tori Amos "Losing My Religion" (R.E.M. cover)

Britney Spears is currently a walking disaster but that doesn't mean Travis didn't do a cover that far surpasses the original in every way.

7. Travis "Hit Me Baby One More Time" (Britney Spears cover)

Here's a live acoustic and much more mellow version of a Backstreet Boys classic, unfortunately Ryan cuts it off.

3. Ryan Adams "I Want It That Way" (Backstreet Boys cover)

Johnny Cash cannot go wrong musically, here's a tune off his album American III: Solitary Man.

2. Johnny Cash "One" (U2 cover)

Since Nirvana claimed the number one spot I thought it was fitting to give a bonus cover both by amazing, unique and influential women. Patti's version appears on her recent album Twelve and Tori's appears on her Crucify EP.

1. Patti Smith "Smells Like Teen Spirit" (Nirvana cover)
BONUS Tori Amos "Smells Like Teen Spirit" (Nirvana cover)

The First Day of Winter

2007-12-23T02:50:00.000-05:00

Here's a diverse selection of winter themed tunes to celebrate the first day of winter in it's last few moments.

I remember being addicted to The Bangles as a child, one summer their tape did not leave my boom box, I still consider this song one of my absolute favorites.

The Bangles "Hazy Shade of Winter" (Simon & Garfunkel)

I know I was aware of the Cocteau Twins but I wasn't officially introduced to them until I was in high school from a French exchange student that was staying with my family for the summer. She had quite eclectic taste in music, she gave my brother an MC Solaar tape and introduced me officially to the Cocteau Twins album Treasure.

Cocteau Twins "Winter Wonderland"

There are so many beautiful versions of this amazing song, but I figured I'd pick this one to break up the all-girls club I have going on here.

Travis "River" (Joni Mitchell)

This traditional song appears on The Pipettes Christmas single.

The Pipettes "In The Bleak Midwinter"

I've been a long time Sarah McLachlan fan, the woman has an amazing voice and does a great job with this song.

Sarah McLachlan "Song For A Winter's Night" (Gordon Lightfoot)

Liz Phair's Exile In Guyville had more impact on me than almost any other album, and although I'm not following her career any longer, I'll always try to support her for helping to shape my formative years.

Liz Phair "Winter Wonderland"

My brain pushed me to add this tune after watching VH1's Greatest Songs of the 90s this week and seeing Fiona make a few appearances. Look for a post tomorrow with some of those songs that made the top 20.

Fiona Apple "Frosty The Snowman"

Threadless $10 Sale Extended

2007-12-17T19:14:00.000-05:00

The threadless $10 holiday sale has been extended through this Wednesday, December 19. If you haven't bought anything yet check out the link on the right.

Happy Chanukah

2007-12-09T20:13:00.000-05:00

Happy Chanukah to my Jewish brothers and sisters out there, I realize it is already the 6th night, but better late than never.

Unfortunately finding cover songs to celebrate Chanukah is not nearly as easy as finding Christmas tunes so we shall celebrate with the same handful of tunes that appear on every other blog that is giving Jews a shout out this year.

I'm not a huge Barenaked Ladies fan but at least they gave me a song!

Barenaked Ladies "I Have A Little Dreidel"

Ben Kweller "Rock of Ages"

This last tune is not exactly a cover, more of an interpretation of the original from a Jewish perspective but it's better than nothing.

Save Ferris "Christmas Wrapping" (The Waitresses)

Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings

2007-12-05T23:39:00.000-05:00

Photo courtesy of LAist

Last night I saw Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings at the El Rey in Los Angeles for the first time since they've blown up and I had a hell of a time! The woman has an amazing voice and more energy than someone half her age. The crowd was an interesting mix but everyone was into the music and it was nice to not hear the chitter-chatter of the crowd between songs, probably because the band didn't stop for a moment!

Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings "This Land is Your Land" (Woody Guthrie Cover)

Bonus videos!

Check out Sharon covering Marva Whitney's "Things Got To Get Better" at the Naturally record release show, Brooklyn NY - 1/21/05

And check out Sharon and her rendition of "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" by James Brown last month at First Avenue in Minneapolis

The Boss Pt. 1

2007-12-03T00:45:00.001-05:00

Although I wasn't born in New Jersey I spent my formative years there. I grew up in central NJ and my dad used to always tell me people would spot Bruce at this ice cream place in the Freehold area, I myself preferred hanging out in Princeton so I never had the pleasure of spotting the legend eating ice cream amongst the masses. To honor my roots I will share some Springsteen covers because apparently it's hip to cover The Boss these days.

All tracks are live except Electrelane which is featured on the On Parade single and although live The National track is featured on the Apartment Story single.

Tegan and Sara "Dancing In The Dark"

Bat For Lashes "I'm On Fire"

Sleater-Kinney "Promised Land"

The National "Mansion On The Hill"

Electrelane "I'm On Fire"

Ladies First

2007-11-26T10:25:00.000-05:00

I've always been partial to a female vocalist for as long as I can remember. Here's a taste of some of my favorites who will surely pop up from time to time.

Natalie Merchant "Baby I Love You/Son of a Preacher Man" (Aretha Franklin/Dusty Springfield cover)

Cat Power "Crazy" (Gnarls Barkley cover)

The Softies "Together Forever" (Rick Astley cover)

Sleater-Kinney "American Ruse" (MC5 cover)

Luscious Jackson "To Sir With Love" (Lulu cover)

Amy Winehouse "To Know Him Is To Love Him" (The Teddy Bears cover)

The Gossip "Careless Whisper" (Wham! cover)

New Kid On The Block

2007-11-05T23:09:00.000-05:00

I know there are thousands of blogs out there with the occasional cover song, and dozens with special cover song posts but there are only a handful of blogs that specialize in the art that is the cover song so i'm jumping on the bandwagon. Perhaps I'll expose you to something you've never heard before or spark some memory in your mind relating to the original or even the cover version.

I'm always open to new tracks so if you are aware of anything you think i should check out please let me know.

Please check back in a few weeks for the first real post!