Frank Turner’s cover of The Weakerthans A Plea From a Cat Named Virtute is one of those rare covers of a song by a Canadian band. I love this cover, because you can tell that the song really speaks to Frank, and he’s covering it because of how much he loves it (he has a tattoo of a cat named Virtute, after all) and his love for the song is infectious.
Awesome Cover: (There’s) Always Something There to Remind Me
This week, your awesome cover is a cover of a cover of a cover, of a cover, of a cover, of a cover. As a child of the 80s, I’m most familiar with the Naked Eyes version of the song. The Hippos take their cues from Naked Eyes and build on them, to the point where I almost prefer this version over the one I grew up with.
Awesome Covers: In Between Days
This week in the awesome cover files, is Ben Folds cover of The Cure’s In Between Days. While Ben Folds hits all the musical marks of the original, his use of predominantly piano and drum makes this cover a truly Ben Folds sounding song, without trying to emulate the original.
Awesome Covers: Do you Really Want to Hurt Me
Your awesome cover this week is Culture Club’s Do You Really Want to Hurt me, covered by the Violent Femmes. You probably know the Femmes from their most famous songs, Add it Up or Blister in the Sun, but their cover of Culture Club’s first hit is really unique. They take this well known song and make it into a very Femmes sounding song, using just their three instruments (acoustic guitar, bass and drum) to great effect.
Awesome Covers: Take on Me
If you know me, you probably know how much I love a good cover song. And what makes a good cover? When a band takes a previously recorded song and makes it their own, that’s just the best. So, I’m going to start sharing some of my favourite cover songs.
First up: Reel Big Fish’s cover of A-ha’s Take on Me. A-ha’s signature song has been covered many times, but Reel Big Fish’s ska flavoured cover is one of the best. They take the 80s classic and rock it up, yet still retain the best of the classic song.