When I was in High School (way back in the dark ages) I remember being frustrated when I was excited about a new song, and my mother would say, “oh, that’s a remake”. Apparently the cycle is about 15-20 years because not only did I explain to the X-man that Disturbed’s song was a remake (and had to get onto You Tube to prove it) but recently had a cute interaction with Elizabeth’s daughter where she was discovering that Shout was written by Tears for Fears and not by Disturbed (apparently they like to do covers of the songs we liked in the 80s)
Remakes are a funny thing; for the most part I enjoy covers a lot. There’s something about a band I enjoy reimagining songs that I love (and my Dh teases me that there is a relationship between how much I like the group remaking the song, and how much I like the remake) – and it is also funny how when you hit in the remake part of the cycle, how that informs your musical taste – for example, my favorite version of Ring of Fire is the one by Social Distortion , not Johnny Cash (and in fact, I didn’t know it was a cover for years). And we’ve all had those moments of “that’s a remake?” – I remember discovering that “The Passenger” wasn’t original to Siouxie and the Banshees well into adulthood.
For Valentine’s Day, my love got me The Killers’ Sawdust, which has one of my newest favorite covers – Romeo and Juliet. May you enjoy a favorite song through someone else’s eyes soon.
posted by Mimi @ 2/23/2009 05:01:00 PM
20 Comments
20 Comments:
When I used to teach middle school, the kids were always listening to their ipods after school or just singing in the hallway. When I would hear a song, I would reack my brain to try to find out where I had heard that song before. I felt so old!!! They would just laugh at us teachers when we said we were old!!
My Dad used to do that too and it drove me bananas!!! LOL!
I just smile when my kids used to say, "Oh hey! Here's a new song I like!"
However the hubster would be the one to chime in, "Oh heck! That's a remake!!"
LOL!
yes, I remember discovering that "the book of love" by the magnetic fields was actually a peter gabriel remake.
also, I heard johnny cash (king of the remake) do a cover of bonnie prince billy's "I see a darkness".
and I prefer "hallelujah" by rufus wainwright rather than the original by leonard cohen.
yay for remakes! :)
I can still see my mother's face: "That song is older than I am!"
my husband (who came to the US in 1992) is a huge metal fan and I remember he was shocked when I knew all the words to Disturbed's Land of Confusion - "how do you know this song?!" "ummm, its Phil Collins!"
Hearing cover versions often makes me feel OLD! LOL!
I listen to my DD's Killers CD, Sam's Town when i am driving around on my own.
It's weird you brought this up when I was just thinking about cover songs the other day! I was listening to the radio and that remake of Don Henley's "Boys of Summer" came on (I can't remember who did it) and I had to change the station. How is it possible to do a note-for-note remake and yet lose all the regret and hauntingness (is that a word?) of the song?
And yet, there are covers like the Bangles' "Hazy Shade of Winter" where they actually improve on the original. I'm not sure that happens all that often, I'll have to give it some more thought.
Sure...thanks to your post, I had to go to iTunes and download a few songs.
;)
fun... all these songs... it is intresting how they mark different times in our lives!
I had to chuckle about this post on covers. Hall & Oates made a whole career on covers of Righteous Bros. tunes. Van Halen's cover of Roy Orbinson's Pretty Woman was huge 'back in the day', but also allowed for a resurgence of Roy's original.
Then there's the whole near-simultaneous promotion of songs - typically the 'country' version and the 'pop' version (which says a lot about where country has gone in recent times). The John Michael Montgomery original and All 4 One cover of "I Swear" is a good example of this.
Thanks for the chuckle!
-Eric John
Sometimes I like remakes, sometimes I don't!
Awww. . .good old Siouxie. I should have known. Of all the blogs I read, YOU would be the one who knows good old Siouxie.
Our son is always telling me about some great new song he downloaded. He knows when I start to try to sing a long that is isn't a new song.
You should have seen his face fall when he tried to introduce me to a great new song by Fall Out Boy....called "Beat it."
I had to explain about Michael Jackson and find the Beat it video on Youtube. I told him I was already an old married lady when that came out the first time.
Actually FOB's version is not bad...
Oh Victoria – me too! I love Hallelujah, but mostly by Rufus Wainwright or kd lang.
Magda, bwahahahahahahah – yeah, we’ve had those moments too.
Kat – that’s pretty much how it went down here too – it cracks me up that a heavy metal band would redo a Genesis song, but there you go.
Ukok - Puttering around town with the Killers on the CD player is one of life’s pleasures, don’t you think?
Janelle – “Hazy Shade of Winter” was one that I was thinking about too. I liked that remake a lot.
That’s true, Hilarius, about Hall and Oates. Paul Young also made a pretty good career about of being a cover guy (ironically of an H&O tune, no less)
H west – thanks!
Bwahahahahahaha, Juliana – Beat It got remade? I didn’t know that.
Hi Kathy, Philippa, and Meadowlark! Glad I could help, Angie :)
LOL... I LOVE 80's music! I was a kid then (not a teenager), but for some reason the songs stick with me more than the songs that were popular in high school (early 90's).
Seems that all things 80's are making a comeback-- skinny jeans with off-the-shoulder loose tops. Even the rubics cube is back!
I used to have that conversation with my sister all the time.
I really, really don't like remakes. There are a few I really like, but for the most part they just aggravate me.
I didn't know Shout was covered. I'll have to look it up.
Funny that someone mentioned Boys of Summer because the Ataris version of that song is one of the remakes I actually do like!!!
LOL! I was on a service project with some youth from church, and one of the girls was telling her friends about this cool song she had learned. It was "One Tin Soldier." I said, "Oh yeah, that's an old protest song from the 60's." And she said, "Protesting what?"
@ Jedi Sue -- I also *love* The Ataris version of "Boys of Summer" too!
In 1977 or so some pop group recorded 'Blue Moon' and my mum seriously annoyed me by saying that she remembered it from the 1950s. Now I find the version I like best is Dean Martin's...
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