When cover songs attack, really bad versions of great songs

[mikado-AKA-Shoknifeman]

WHEN COVER SONGS ATTACK...Really bad remakes of great hits, #1 .... Start with the cover(s) then post the original

[mikado-AKA-Shoknifeman]

AND THE ORIGINAL...

[tangerinesun]

Oct 8, 2017 12:04:15 GMT -5 mikado-AKA-Shoknifeman said:

WHEN COVER SONGS ATTACK...Really bad remakes of great hits, #1 .... This might be a good idea for a new music thread, what do you all think?

Steve Lawrence 'Party Doll' travesty at YT

I think it took a lot of talent to louse that up so convincingly. 
The Travesty Covers thread will be great, if you can endure... 



The Lindisfarne Challenge:
Can you watch all the way through w/o squirming? 



Lindisfarne - Party Doll (1987)
2006 AUG 11 by tyneidols.com (03:43)
Promo Video for Lindisfarne's cover of Buddy Knox' 50s hit 'Party Doll'.

The band's line-up at the time was Alan Hull, Rod Clements, Ray Jackson,
Si Cowe, Ray Laidlaw, Marty Craggs and Steve Daggett.

www.lindisfarne.co.uk


They said the '70s were tacky.

That was true, but this… there was a whole album of this: C'mon Everybody!
It actually sounds a lot better than it looks. Mullets. Shirt dresses. Volumizing mousse!!
If you close your eyes, you get immediate relief.

[mikado-AKA-Shoknifeman]

Well, compared to the Steve Laurence version, this one isn't so bad... compared to the original, on the other hand...

[mikado-AKA-Shoknifeman]

Some guy called Larry Page destroys my all-time favorite song...

[mikado-AKA-Shoknifeman]

A couple of French women turned out this barfable version....

[mikado-AKA-Shoknifeman]

And of course, the original... the greatest rock n roll song ever written! (Both versions) First the Decca version, that was ruined by Nashville's trying to turn Buddy more "country" and the hit, which was recorded in New Mexico in the style it was meant to be played in, as the "B" side, of Looking for someone to love (also in this video as a bonus)... TBTD went on to be Buddy's only #1 hit.

[sasquatch]

Horrible, dreadful, a travesty, though apparently it made Mr Costello an awful lot of money. Heartbreaking, for all the wrong reasons.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=jmuoLvCnB4c

The original

www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9GlC9GyF4Y

Remember playing the My Aim Is True LP for the first time in my bedroom when I was a kid of 14. After this track had played my Mum and Dad came up to my bedroom to discover just what I had been playing, and praising Elvis. My Mum picked up the LP cover and studied it for a while and commented that he looked like someone who went to a 'special school'. There was a girl who lived across the road called Alison who was to put it bluntly, very ugly. I remember my Dad saying if Elvis Costello had seen her he would not have called this song 'Alison'. He stayed until the LP had finished. I miss my Dad.

[tangerinesun]

I don't think I realized till now how bad this could get.

This thread could go on for pages with unfortunate versions of "That'll Be The Day" alone.

〜〜〜

There are actually some features of the original 1956 Buddy Holly version I like.

I don't know if I'd call it very countrified. It's kind of East Tennessee, but it sounds
like rockabilly the way Elvis would have done it, with some swing in the rhythm
that he took from R&B.

I like how gloss-free the recording is. The higher key makes it a little more urgent.

It just sounds like a completely trashy engineering and production job with many
obvious flaws. It's hard to believe Owen Bradley had his hands on it when you look
at what he did with Decca not too much later.

〜〜〜

Linda Ronstadt covered "That'll Be The Day" too, but I won't put you through it.

I mean, she sings like an angel but that's just not enough to save a song she
never should have sung. These tunes aren't supposed to be buffed up and put
on a plinth.

We didn't like them as virtuoso vehicles in the first place.


Now here's a sort of a hot mess. If I'm not wrong, this is from a two-night stand
in 1986 at the Fox Theatre in St. Louis celebrating Chuck Berry's 60th birthday.

So it gets a pass for that reason, but it's the same as singing in the living room
at anybody else's birthday, and on any other day it would have been, "Why did
they feel the need, are they just high on how much talent they have?"



Chuck Berry, Linda Ronstadt & Keith Richards, Back In The U.S.A., St. Louis 1987
2016 SEP 25 by Stefano Foni (03:34)

Linda had already recorded this song for an album... it's a natural from that POV.

The guy duetting with Keef in matching shiny tuxedos is Joey Spampinato, the 
bass player of NRBQ. The guy in sunglasses loitering upstage with a red Strat is
Robert Cray, and nobody is really that wide. The video is stretched all out of shape. 

It's really good, but at the same time it's really bad, like folk music played 
by a crack pit orchestra on Broadway.

[tangerinesun]

The bloody awful Canon of genius organist Johann Pachelbel
Not always in D Major, but who's arguing. The most-covered,
most ripped-off song of the last 300+ years.



There can be no good covers. "I'll see you in hell, Pachelbel."
If you watch nothing else for the rest of your life:



Pachelbel Rant
2006 NOV 21 by RobPRocks (05:14)
A comedian rants about how much it sucks to play Pachelbel's Canon in D
on a cello. Recorded live at Penn State, this piece by comedian/musician
Rob Paravonian has been a favorite on the Dr. Demento Show.




THE ONLY APPROPRIATE CONTEMPORARY USE


10-HOUR of Pachelbel's Canon in Violin and Harp - Song for Study, Song for Sleep
youtu.be/t3qlF5q2d4o   (10:01:19)
Ten hours. Go on, I dare you. I'm sure they have this in the playlist at Guantanamo.


Nuclear Explosion—Pachelbel Canon in D Major
youtu.be/XvHuPoDkwF8   (05:02)
All right, you win. Honorable mention.
It ruined my day, but the uploader is ruined forever.




TYPHOID MARY, STOP SPREADING IT ALREADY


Lesson & PDF: Pachelbel's Canon in D for Drop-D Classical Guitar
youtu.be/G_vNTve8iDo   (12:59)
The very important thing in this piece is to have that bass line really secure.
No matter what you're doing, just make sure you're really focusing on that bass line.




GIVE 'EM WHAT THEY WANT


Hilarious! Pachelbel's Canon in D Major! (Oopsie Mamushka)
youtu.be/ZjXpUiaUreg   (04:38)
No joke, I need to get these CDs out of the back of my car.


James Galway – Canon – Pachelbel
youtu.be/L3ZhL-O0zPk   (05:12)
Know who else has a few discs to move? Him.


My Sassy Girl - (Pachelbel) Canon in D
youtu.be/5luWBmd_f5Y  (06:34)
They tear up and they melt down, and I don't have to do a thing.
This is awesome. Thanks, JP.


Pachelbel's Canon in D on Rockefeller's Carillon
youtu.be/RarsphZl1b8   (02:28)
Performed on the Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial Carillon
by University Carillonneur Wylie Crawford.
Not your average bell chorus, no sir.




PLENTY OF ROOM ON THE BANDWAGON, ALL ABOARD


Pachelbel's Canon played by Penny Whistle Trio (Tin Whistle)
youtu.be/PSy1YS6gDPo   (05:58)
Uh huh, it's what you think. You didn't expect the MIDI synth and harp.
Not nearly as shrill as it should be.


Pachelbel's Canon – for saxophone quartet
youtu.be/O7o1QrWel_Q   (06:03)
So, this one is an arrangement for, um, a saxophone quartet.


Pachelbel's Canon in D Ukulele jam
youtu.be/6yWyVw1W3Wg   (01:27)
All set for the Baroque luau. There are no
beaches around Nuremburg, though.


Pachelbel's Canon in D (Harmonica)
youtu.be/JCOj_0CbyvQ   (03:31)
Alto & standard chromatic transcription at a stately
processional pace for, like, weddings and coronations.


CANON (Pachelbel) ~ Royal Scots Dragoon Guards.
youtu.be/xod2ZDzUR8U   (03:33)
Not even the Guards dared to do it straight with just pipes.


Johann Pachelbel - Canon for Two Ocarinas with Ocarina Diva
youtu.be/U4oBWmrbo1A   (05:14)
"Music, I believe, has this very unique nature. It brings people together
from different places." Into a hell of shared experience. 


Pachelbel's Canon- Mike Rayburn's Original Theme and Variations - funny keynote
youtu.be/pz0KoNeI2nQ   (03:51)
Think it's funny? The Canon in D is about  your whole life.
Learn the three tools that took Mike from playing bars to
headlining Carnegie Hall.


Nanae Mimura - "Transformations on Pachelbel's Canon [ solo marimba ]
youtu.be/x7xrRkymO74   (07:48)
Terrific reach. Get an accent on that downbeat, OK?


Seek Ye First The Kingdom of God – Canon in D by Pachelbel –
youtu.be/hCdYULR-pe4   (03:57)
God Tier. Your Creator will forgive you, but… I'm sorry, I can't.


Pachelbel's Canon in D major futuristic version
youtu.be/YTcAvVVEVic   (05:55)
I have seen the future. Let's not go there.



HEY WE'RE IN ON THE JOKE OK?


PaGAGnini. Canon de Pachelbel
youtu.be/tNgkxyMMfiE   (09:03)
I can play this stupid song while I make popcorn and vacuum the LR.
Don't miss the country fiddle or tango arrangements.


Pachelbel's Canon... on Cell Phone?!?!
youtu.be/UmG34QB07Bc   (01:31)
Jake… the bar battle was over, but then you brought it back.




NEVER SHOULD HAVE HAPPENED AT ALL


Pachelbel Meets U2 – Jon Schmidt
youtu.be/HVRcbc5_WoI   (05:44)
How does this help anyone, seriously.


"All Star" by Smash Mouth but it's Pachelbel's Canon
youtu.be/L1atQOvwODw   (06:13)
Look, if you have Autotune, it's any song you want.
Why did it have to be *this* song?


smashmouth by allstar but I take a bite of an onion every time he says "star"
youtu.be/y9OGJQNWOGo   (03:34)
Thanks, at this point I really needed someone to validate my feelings.
Smash Mouth is the group's name, BTW.


The Pachelbel's Canon in C Harmonica Cover- CEP Freshers' Reception 2017, SUST (Official Video)
youtu.be/2xlC2nb5rBU   (03:05)
It's the awful covers thread, so here you go. It's official.


Canon Rock – Mega Techno Remix 2010!
youtu.be/uTvR_-ZkPqM   (06:15)
If you can't hang in with it, go straight to 04:30.


Pachelbel's Canon in D Major (Happy Hardcore Remix)
youtu.be/S8oB-hij_zg   (04:30)
Turn up the bass! I tried to make this track sound different
than anything else. Let me know what you think!


Pachelbel - Canon In D (Dance version)
youtu.be/Qv31doW60yo   (05:34)
Synths over a cheap rock drum track make great disco,
if you remember to turn on the wowing Leslie effect.


Pachelbel's Canon (Club Mix)
youtu.be/n5sKoqZvTtg   (05:22)
BOOMchaBOOMchaBOOMchaBOOMchaBOOMchaBOOMcha


Canon In Dubstep – DJReek (Pachelbel's Canon Dubstep Remix)
youtu.be/WTij7K73Ecc   (03:34)
What it says on the label. Plenty of hoovering and thumping.
Short of dub bass.




JUST BECAUSE YOU CAN DOESN'T MEAN YOU SHOULD


Pachelbel's Canon - Overtone Singing
youtu.be/haz6W7p8xjM   (00:43)
Great, now it'll go to Mongolia.


Canon in D by Pachelbel – a moving Japanese commercial
youtu.be/XnOWGVCUJw8   (03:30)
A commercial by Tosando Music of Japan that went viral and
inspired many adults to learn to play the piano at home.

"That song… how? Why?? (cries miserably)". Now when I remember
my wedding, it'll just be… this.


Pachelbel's Scottish Canon (6 Cello Mashup) – eyeglasses
youtu.be/Xj2E2yXrnGg   (03:34)
6X the cellos, 6X the fun.


Pachelbel's Canon in D on Eight Floppy Drives
youtu.be/H13pIS3ZXO8   (05:58)
Oddly moving. Some other guy once programmed a '70s
IBM Winchester hard disk drive so it would walk spastically
across a tile floor. Mr.Solidsnake745 has dozens of FDD 
song arrangements at Bandcamp, links from the video.


Pachelbel - Canon in D Major [ synth and ocean sounds ]
youtu.be/LUvcvwGKnp8   (25:53)
Use it when you're sleeping, or absent somewhere else.


Pachelbel – Canon in D Major on Singing Tesla Coils
youtu.be/LErNobl79NU   (02:46)
Hair-raising orchestration by Fabrício H. Franzoli.


Pachelbel's Canon [ solo kalimba ]
youtu.be/XPeDx5CW1aQ   (02:45)
Impressive rendition of the ultimate school music program
composition on the ultimate school music program instrument.


Canon (Pachelbel's Canon in D 8-Bit Cover) – Solidify Reality
youtu.be/2324Mpo432w   (04:14)
Vanilla chiptune transcription.




AT LEAST THEY TRIED


Hiromi – Pachelbel's Canon [ jazz variations for prepared piano ]
youtu.be/cdhHOFv5suY   (08:18)
Well… the talent is yours to waste. 


Variations on Pachelbel's Canon - Etienne de Lavaulx on 5-chord zither
youtu.be/UPCGOHjBuNU   (03:30)
In this guy's hands, the badness of zither and the badness of
the tune almost completely cancel each other out. Really pretty.


Pachelbel Loose Canon [ the Los Angeles Guitar 4tet ]
youtu.be/ghh37awHdiA   (08:05)
Variations from the Baroque through gypsy jazz to John Fahey-like
folk/classical to bluegrass to Mexico to Argentina to Andalusia.


Pachelbel's Guitar Hero | Trace Bundy | TEDxBoulder
youtu.be/QfxG8Ic6S9I   (18:40, 04:12 is Pachelbel)
Want to see a stunning use of a guitar? John Belushi, you are not forgotten.


Pachelbel's Music Box Canon in D
youtu.be/3a9wWRxYSko   (02:53)
Proper canon arrangement for 3 melody music boxes with a fourth
looping ground bass music box. Hand-cranked, hand programmed,
well done. Now get out of here with that, will you?


Pachelbel's Canon for Solo Bass - Zander Zon
youtu.be/ZQoRS09OUnE   (04:00)
I wanted to be a guitarist, but all I have is this Zon electric bass…

[mikado-AKA-Shoknifeman]

Now here's a sort of a hot mess. If I'm not wrong, this is from a two-night stand
in 1986 at the Fox Theatre in St. Louis celebrating Chuck Berry's 60th birthday.
--- Weird. I thought it was great @_@

[tangerinesun]

Oct 17, 2017 3:01:02 GMT -5 mikado-AKA-Shoknifeman said:

Now here's a sort of a hot mess. If I'm not wrong, this is from a two-night stand
in 1986 at the Fox Theatre in St. Louis celebrating Chuck Berry's 60th birthday.
--- Weird. I thought it was great @_@

It's great but in a bad way. The song's all gone, it's about nothing but the singer.
What's Linda in her Louise Brooks haircut and her shoulder pads got to do with
a Chuck Berry song? It just becomes a star vehicle, consumable material.

That happens to Linda Ronstadt a lot. And it's not that she's fake, she grew up
on Hank Williams and Elvis. Everything she touches turns to Linda Ronstadt
and that somewhat kills it for me. Similar to how Barbara Streisand can never
do a Christmas carol without making it into another Streisand exercise. It's
just what happens. Céline's about Céline. Adele's about Adele.

When the artist overpowers the artwork instead of serving it and giving it
life... you've got a circus performance. The greats really hate the idea that
this might be what they're doing. It's not what they came to do.

It is pretty fun, in a what-if kind of way, to see what all these stars do when
they get thrown together in a production like this. So there's a lot to enjoy
and honestly, they really do pull it off pretty much. It's not half-baked. So
let them have their fun and let them honor Chuck and let them put on
tuxedo jackets and ruffles if they want to, but rock 'n' roll is not musical
theater, and that's just what this show turned it into.

[mikado-AKA-Shoknifeman]

Oct 17, 2017 4:36:53 GMT -5 tangerinesun said:

Oct 17, 2017 3:01:02 GMT -5 mikado-AKA-Shoknifeman said:

Now here's a sort of a hot mess. If I'm not wrong, this is from a two-night stand
in 1986 at the Fox Theatre in St. Louis celebrating Chuck Berry's 60th birthday.
--- Weird. I thought it was great @_@

It's great but in a bad way. The song's all gone, it's about nothing but the singer.
What's Linda in her Louise Brooks haircut and her shoulder pads got to do with
a Chuck Berry song? It just becomes a star vehicle, consumable material.

That happens to Linda Ronstadt a lot. And it's not that she's fake, she grew up
on Hank Williams and Elvis. Everything she touches turns to Linda Ronstadt
and that somewhat kills it for me. Similar to how Barbara Streisand can never
do a Christmas carol without making it into another Streisand exercise. It's
just what happens. Céline's about Céline. Adele's about Adele.

When the artist overpowers the artwork instead of serving it and giving it
life... you've got a circus performance. The greats really hate the idea that
this might be what they're doing. It's not what they came to do.

It is pretty fun, in a what-if kind of way, to see what all these stars do when
they get thrown together in a production like this. So there's a lot to enjoy
and honestly, they really do pull it off pretty much. It's not half-baked. So
let them have their fun and let them honor Chuck and let them put on
tuxedo jackets and ruffles if they want to, but rock 'n' roll is not musical
theater, and that's just what this show turned it into.

I get your point now and, think it has much validity, but, I still enjoyed the performance.