And for the whitest version ever of a James Brown song–or any other song–the award goes to…
1990’s Brooklyn duo Drink Me created some of the most endearingly quirky and humorous folk music I’ve ever had the pleasure to come across. But a look beneath the layer of quirk always revealed a genius for a remarkably economical brand of song craftsmanship not seen perhaps since Roger Miller.
They covered other artists rarely, but in this case they picked the perfect song to demonstrate how strikingly un-mainstream an act they were. In a great way.
If Roger Daltrey’s hair-raising scream in “Won’t Get Fooled Again” is one of rock’s great moments, the pitiful yelp that falls at the end of this song is its perfect antithesis–an equally definitive moment. Of some sort.
The song was written especially for Warwick. David’s lyrics are about a woman’s daily thoughts of her man, who is away in Vietnam. Bacharach arranged and produced the original recording in April of 1966, but was unhappy with the result. “I thought I blew it,” he told the Los Angeles Times in 1998. “The tempo seemed too fast. I never wanted the record to come out. So what happens? They put out the record and it was a huge hit. I was wrong.” The song was released over Bacharach’s objections in October, 1967 and rose to number 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 8 on the Billboard R & B charts.
A few months after Warwick’s single came out, Aretha Franklin and The Sweet Inspirations were singing “I Say a Little Prayer” for fun during a break in recording sessions for Aretha Now. Producer Jerry Wexler liked what he heard, and decided to record the song. With Franklin on piano and the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section behind her, it was recorded in one take. Franklin’s version has more of a gospel and rhythm & blues feel, with a fluid call-and-response interplay between the lead and backup singers.
Released in July of 1968, the single was less of a crossover hit than Warwick’s version — it peaked at number 10 on the Hot 100 chart — but rose all the way to number 3 on the R & B chart. Overshadowed at first, Franklin’s recording has grown in stature over the years. Even Bacharach likes it better than the one he made with Warwick. As he told Mitch Albom earlier this year, “Aretha just made a far better record.”
You can listen above, as Warwick performs “I Say a Little Prayer” in an unidentified television broadcast and Franklin sings it with the Sweethearts of Soul on the August 31, 1970 Cliff Richard Show. Tell us: Which version do you think is better?
She is 14 years old, and apparently French. Not much else is known about this precocious young guitarist who goes by the name “Tina S” on her YouTube channel.
Tina became an Internet sensation in late May, when she posted an astonishing cover version of “Eruption,” from Van Halen’s debut album. Eddie Van Halen’s son Wolfgang was so impressed he tweeted, “I need to meet this girl!!!” Writing as “@Tina_Guitare,” the young musician replied, “I need to meet you too! Haha :))” Talk show host Ellen DeGeneres also went on Twitter and said, “This girl is incredible. If you know where she is, I want her on my show immediately.” There was no reply to that one — at least not on Twitter.
Now Tina is back with a new video, made by her teacher Renaud Louis-Servais, in which she rips through a cover of “Vivaldi Tribute,” Patrick Rondat’s speed metal adaptation of the climactic “Presto” (very fast) movement of the Baroque composer Antonio Vivaldi’s “Summer” concerto from The Four Seasons. It’s an amazing performance for a 14-year-old (although you should also see her playing classical guitar when she was nine). After watching it above you can look below for a little perspective on the music, as famed violinist Itzhak Perlman plays the same movement with a group of young musicians in a 2003 episode of the PBS show Live From Lincoln Center:
Fairfield Parlour: “I Will Always Feel the Same” (1970)
A modest second helping from the Parlour, a band that released only a single LP, From Home to Home–a richly rewarding listen for fans of pastoral British folk rock, otherwise known as Acid Folk.
Nellie McKay’s debut was a genre-skipping jubilee bursting with fresh sounds and attitude. For a minute there, I thought this young lady might just take over the world.
It hasn’t happened, of course. But while the Ke$has and Gagas pull the Rolling Stone magazine covers and headlines for their weird behavior, artists like McKay go on making intelligent, inventive and classy art pop.
Every Moment Has A Song 