Five Favorite Covers of the Moment

I listen to music all the time.  I listen to music on the way to work and on the way home.  I listen to music at work.  I have music playing while I sleep.  If I got paid for listening to music, I'd be a multi millionaire.

One of the things about listening to music is that you go through phases.  Sometimes you're aware of it, like when you want to listen to music to get you pumped up at the gym or get you in the mood for love.  But sometimes your subconscious plays games with you.

For instance I've been on a real cover kick recently.  And it wasn't until I began writing this that I realized my favorite covers of the moment were all by artists beginning with the letter C.

Nutty.




Corrine Bailey Rae - "I Wanna Be Your Lover"

This one makes sense; she released The Love EP a couple months back and it's still in relatively heavy rotation.



The song itself is really dope, at least for me.  She stays true to the Prince original, which normally might not impress, but it showed me a side ot her that I wasn't aware she possessed; a funky side. Sure, her husband od'd which might sort of imply coolness, but I'd only ever heard the milquetoast stuff she had on VH1 and at Starbucks, so she seemed rather tame.  This cover changed everything.

Calexico - "Ocean of Noise"

Again, this one is justifiable; Calexico is one of the groups I'm committed to diving headfirst into this year and they're a band that hails from my hometown.



It's a pretty solid cover.  I actually didn't fully appreciate the Arcade Fire original, until I'd heard Norah Jones cover it.  But Calexico manage to honor the original while still adding their own trademark sound.  And what a sound it is; it instantly takes me back home.

CAKE - "Mahna Mahna"

This one is in rotation for a couple of reasons; first I'm going to see CAKE next month in DC and I've been adding more songs into the mix in preparation for the show.  And secondly I love music from Sesame Street.



Look, I'll be real; it's not as good as the original.  But when you're covering Sesame Street, you've got the odds stacked against you.  That said, the song does allow each member of the band to shine, which is cool.  And they manage to actually sound like they're having fun, which is always a plus.

Cat Power - "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction"

I can't really explain why this one is still in the mix, other than just general awesomeness.



Seriously, this may be one of my favorite covers of all time.  It's right up there with Ryan Adam's cover of "Wonderwall."  Ms. Marshall dares to take one of the classic songs of all time and make it her own with her stripped down version.  It's haunting.  It's breathtaking.  It has so little, yet completely mesmerizes.

The Cardigans - "The Boys are Back in Town"

Yup, this is another curveball for me.  I do love The Cardigans and I find their covers to always be at the very least interesting.  This one fits the bill too.

Can't find a video, here's the album cover though. 

The Cardigans always reinterpret whatever song they cover and this no different.  Their version is slowed down and almost sultry.  It's not loud and brash as the original is.  Their version is almost like a hushed rumor that's spreading through the titular town.

There you have it; those are the five covers that I'm really digging at the moment.  Of course by the time that you read this, there's a 50% chance that I'll have moved on to five other covers.