This topic was started by Clem back 2018. I PMed him last night about it because I wanted to revive it w/a cover that absolutely blew me away. He gave me the correct title name and some search advice. I did find the thread, but it said something like 404, File Not Found. I probably am doing something wrong. I apologize for that. Anyway, I just wanted to clear up that this is a continuation of Clem's thread and not my own idea. He deserves the credit for the thread topic.
The song I am about to share is one of my favorites of all-time. It's been recorded many times and recorded by some of the very best like Ella and Louie. It reminds me somewhat of To Kill a Mockingbird in how it captures the essence of a time period and southern culture. It's hypnotizing and riveting. This rendition is by a relatively unknown artist. It popped up on one of my Pandora stations one day and I was freaking amazed. Her voice isn't the greatest, but it's amazingly unique. The band is really good in making this a sultry, deep, reflective piece. Love the tempo. Please give it a listen. If you like it, look for a live version. There is one w/a piano player who is quite dramatic and it's a cool listen. Here is the recording from the album, though.
2 of my favorite covers .... which I am sure have been mentioned at one time or another .....
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
Jade does a lot of classic covers with this band Stringspace.
"At Last", "My Funny Valentine", "Misty", "Dock of the Bay", "Georgia on My Mind",
I love those songs.
Her mother is a singer as well. She sang behind Van Morrison and Sting. Her father is an amazing keyboard player. He played with Buddy Rich. Jade has been playing since she was five.
She can sing any style. Her own albums are her original music. She has written some beautiful songs.
Covers. I know I posted these on the original thread, but they bear a second hearing.
Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush did the original. John Legend and Pink did this cover (with the incomparable Herbie Hancock on keys/arr) After listening to John & Pink the first time, go back and isolate Herb's playing. So subtle, lush and tasteful. Timing, touch... just exquisite. And like Miles Davis always said: "A great player knows when to not say something-"
...and this Dude is just on another plane. His arrangement. Done in his bedroom. As a teenager.
His knowledge of chords and voicings is on the level of sophistication of a Gil Evans, or a Duke Ellington. His sense of pitch is impeccable, his technique is stunning, and Be under no illusions, folks- this is some top-level arranging and performing. He continually leaves me shaking my head
(It's obvious that he listened to a loooooooooooooot of Take 6 LOL!)
....and then, there's this piece of awesome. (put on a seat belt, and tie a string around your head- it will keep your jaw from hitting the desk).
Stumbled across this thread earlier today ... so enjoyable. Still running through these but sharing a couple of covers that I love:
I missed the chance to see the 2 Cellos act a couple years ago much to my chagrin ... and the Fleetwood Mac cover of an old Blue song has been one of my favorites 'forever' !
The more things change the more they stay the same.
Improvisation: the art of taking an idea, exploring it to the nth degree by varying it, while never losing the original thread. Improvisation: the art of free-associating within a strict structure.
The best tell a story/take you on a journey. Without ever losing that thread back to Home. All the best live solos meet this standard. Doesn't matter what the instrument is. The best take you on an Homeric epic, while leaving you firmly lashed to the mast on storm-tossed seas. Hang on and enjoy the ride, son-
Jazz lovers are people who listen deep. They hear the interplay; they understand the role each performer plays in creating the whole. And when they congregate to share The Live Experience, they get to put their hard-earned listening chops to the test. The luckiest ones are those who get to experience a master working his craft off.
(Wait for it- I'm enjoying the making of this post...)
This man not only improvised throughout the tune, he also employed improv in his set-up on the mic. The seamless transition to Paul Desmond's Jazz classic 'Take Five' was rehearsed, but the mic bit is different every time. I know this, because his performance was totally different than the setup we heard at rehearsal, just hours before- and both setups were totally different than what you're about to hear. *FULL DISCLOSURE: when he did this tune in our house, it was with his touring combo only. We played almost no role in this tune, and that was just fine by me. They did 2 other tunes without us on that date, and both were treats, as well. I sat 10-20 ft. away from these folks, and watched them work a craft that only a few ever get to see up close.
Some days at work actually don't suck, you know?
Some day, I might tell of when I got to spend 30 minutes alone with this incredible artist- talking music, talking life, talking fam, talking church, talking s#... (it might be the only positive thing that ever came from my nicotine addiction-). My deepest fear is that something like Alzheimer's/dementia might eventually steal this memory (among so many other) from me.
But I digress.
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If you're gonna do a cover of an over-covered cover, and you do it live- every night... you'd best bring game every time. He did. In this rendition, he built that solo from a germ, and took y'azz 'round the world! And all the time, you never lost the beat: "1,2,3,4,5...) When they came to the 419, Take Five was their very last tune. He did the very same thing right in front of us. We 'stage prop role-playaz' got to enjoy the jam, and only came in at the end, for 'Da Big Boffo Finish.' Two curtain calls. Two encores. Crowd lost their collective mind that night. Al owned us all, that night. If I'm gonna be on the clock, I can find worse ways to make a paycheck, yo.
Al Jarreau, doing Paul Desmond's tune, made famous by Dave Brubeck- "Take Five."
Brubeck's "Jazz at Oberlin" was the one of the first albums I remember my Dad playing in his den when I was a little kid in the early '70s. He always used to remind me he'd been in attendance at the Chapel for its recording some twenty years before.
In the '90's, I saw the California Guitar Trio open up for King Crimson in Phoenix. Talented guys. This is their cover of Brubeck's Blue Rondo a la Turk:
Our string quartet does a cover of BR ala T. Such a great tune. It's not easy to roll a jam in 7/8 time, and keep it bumpin.' And dropping that swing 4/4 breaks and jam section in the middle without losing pace is a real challenge. Nice rendition by Your Boys.
So... there is a chord sequence (changes) and construction form that's ubiquitous in Jazz standards. It's called "Rhythm Changes." HUNDREDS of tunes have been written on it. It's the structure that was used to write "I Got Rhythm," by George Gershwin (hence, the name: 'rhythm changes'). The structure is simple: First phrase is 8 bars of melody and chords. Second phrase is another 8 bars, directly repeated. A contrasting section of new chords and melody makes up the third phrase, followed by a reiteration of the opening 8 bars. The form is charted as : AABA. 32 bars- nice and neat. Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and countless other Bop phenoms wore this form out when writing their tunes.
One of the most widely-heard and easily recognizable version of rhythm changes is the Flintstones theme. Straight-up rhythm changes. Listen to this UK phenom Jacob Collier do his own version. I've been in The Game for decades, and I've rarely heard anything as impressive. He not only nails the spirit of the tune, but he also arranged the hell outta this tune... key modulations, form extensions, an extended keyboard solo, and pitch-perfect sung harmonies. Hint: before listening to this, you should probably wrap a belt around your head to keep your jaw from hitting the floor.
Oh... and he also did it all in his bedroom while he waiting to graduate High School. Too ill for words.
Johnny Cash is not everyone's cup of tea, but watch this...........It is very powerful.
I am definitely not a country fan ..... but Cash just killed it on that cover. When I first heard that he was going to release a cover of "Hurt", I laughed. However, after hearing it, the cover is one of the best I have ever heard. The raw emotion is just amazing.
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
I posted Mr. Cash's cover, along with Mr. Reznor's original in 'The Art of the Cover 1.0.' IIRC, I talked about how Trent's guitar chords were more sophisticated and tortured than Johnny's... and how Johnny's voice was more tortured than Trent's.
Trent needed those grinding chords to add weight to the delivery. Otherwise, he'd have sounded like any anonymous emo suburban teen strumming chords and (not seriously) contemplating suicide. Johnny just needed to play the basic notes, and let His Life tell the story in that voice we hear.
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