Covers

The only Craig David song I know is 7 days. Not a fan. I saw the video once and I thought it was strange – he was black, but he seemed kind of awkward, like not soulful at all physically. Is it just me? I dunno, that barber shop scene, he’s just awkward. The disconnect between his voice and his movements was just odd to me.

I’m 100% against Sting and his background vocal on his own song thing. Haven’t heard the song but I’m still super against it. Remember when Puff Daddy’s I’ll Be Missing You came out? I hated that song. Yeah, I know people like it. Just, for me, it destroys what’s good about the song. The song’s all about melancholy and soul. It’s got this staccato guitar riff, but it’s overlaid over moody background sound and overlaid with Sting’s smooth vibrato-free voice. Just pure soul there. Not black soul, but soul nonetheless.

Puff Daddy took the riff and made it *more* percussive, with more percussive drums and using rap, which is by inherently percussive. And then uses Faith Evans (it was her, right?)’ harsh voice on the chorus. Just, the song isn’t smooth at all anymore. I dunno, I just hated it.

So it enraged me when on some music awards show he appears doing background vocals to the Puff Daddy version. Argh! He sold himself out to a terrible version of his song! I dunno, I was just disappointed is all. I disowned the Puff Daddy thing and I guess I hoped he had also.

I think in general I like recorded covers 50% of the time (it’s totally different if it’s live). I’m not a huge fan of Sixpence’s Don’t Dream It’s Over cover. It’s all right, just not particularly interesting compared to the original. Don’t like Counting Crows’ cover of Joni Mitchell’s Big Yellow Taxi either. Almost too different musically. And they change a critical line I think, from “Big Yellow Taxi carried off my old man” to “Big Yellow Taxi took my girlfriend away” or something like that. What the? Just weird.

You know what cover I love. Shaggy’s Angel. It’s a cover of some 60s song I’ve never heard. But the bold thing is, it uses the bass line from Steve Miller Band’s The Joker. It covers two songs in one! I dunno, I just thought that was interesting. Ever since I heard that I’ve dreamt of covering two songs in one someday myself. I actually want to mix the Mission Impossible theme with this one famous jazz song, is it Take Five by Dave Brubeck? You would know if it you heard it. They’re both in 5/4 and they actually kinda fit together. Someday.