Cover songs are not merely the terrain of wannabe amateur tribute acts (cough cough JET). The act of reperforming a previously recorded song - taking the musical skeleton and altering the building of a track from scratch- can be grounds for stellar artistic creation.
Often the 'original' version of a song is awarded the mark of authenticity by which all other versions are compared and measured against.
Yet, in some notable cases, cover songs have eclipsed their orginal counterparts- in select circles that is. Ryan Adam's "Wonderwall," Rufus Wainwright's "Hallelujah," and Marianne Faithfull's "As Tears Go By" come to mind. The cover song has made its way into the vernacular of popular music culture with the capacity to ignite the flames of forgotten anthems and as a means for emerging artists to leave their fingerprints on work that they wish they could have penned in the first place. Taking a piece of history and warping the hell out of every last fragment is a wonderful concept; One that we hope to aptly exploit on tonight's program Under the Covers with Anthony.Yet, the fear with cover songs is that a fine line is easily crossed between reinventing a song with fervor and originality versus the act of shamelessly using a hit as an easy cash-grab. The latter often results in a vacuous incarnation of a former gem of a song that masks the accused artist as little more than a lazy, non-credible culture vulture. Alternatively, one can become TOO adventurous with experimentation and turn a perfectly amazing track beyond comprehension. Witness the WORST cover song of all time Blur's "Like a Virgin" - or possibly the best. We can't decide; The distinction between sanity and mental delusion is totally grey afterall.
Hysteric Glamour Radio covets covers - discerning ones that is. We hope you enjoy our exploration of the artfully recycled tracks that we've compiled for you this time 'round.
Under The Covers With Anthony [Episode 31]
Tracklisting:
Soft Cell - "Waifs and Strays Remix"
Dusty Springfield - "The Look of Love"
Yoko Ono ft. Blow Up - "Everyman Everywoman"
Sonic Youth - "I'm Not There"
Siouxsie & The Banshees - "Wheels On Fire"
Kylie Minogue - "Love Is The Drug"
Antony & The Johnsons - "Knockin' On Heaven's Door"
Patti Smith - "Gloria"
Scarlett Johansson - "Falling Down"
Mark Ronson ft. Alex Grenwald - "Just"
Marianne Faithfull - "Working Class Heroe"
E & E Mix - Paris Hilton "Do You Think I'm Sexy" vs. The Kimberly Stewart Motorcyle Crash
Goldfrapp - "Yes Sir!"
Diamanda Galas - "Dark End Of The Street"
Iggy Pop - "China Girl"
Gimme More? We'll supply you with an extra fix:
Chicks on Speed - "She's in Parties" (Bauhaus Cover)
Giant Drag - "Wicked Game" (Chris Isaak Cover)
The Libertines - "Dreaming of You" (The Coral Cover)
