“Particle Man”? Has anyone covered that? No one else could do it right.

Posted by Janis Jaquith on 17 November 02006 @ 10am

Oh, yeah. Perhaps most famously, The Bobs cover it. And here’s a website that tracks (among other things) people covering TMBG.

BTW, there’s a great website named The Covers Project that attempts to track every instance of one artist covering a song by another.

Posted by Waldo Jaquith on 17 November 02006 @ 11am

The Covers Project is great, though far from complete (I need to mail them a few additions). The Bobs covering anything is good, IMO. Willie Nelson did a great cover Hallelujah on his newest album (with Ryan Adams and the Cardinals providing backup on the whole thing) as well as a good rendition of Cake’s “Sad Songs and Waltzes”.

Posted by Jason on 17 November 02006 @ 1pm

That’s funny — it was exactly that cover that made me list “Hallelujah” and, in fact, gave me this idea for a 5ives list. I heard it on Coverville and really loved it.

Posted by Waldo Jaquith on 17 November 02006 @ 1pm

Speaking of TMBG and covers, have you heard this?
http://www.acme.com/jef/singing_science/
it’s where the original “The Sun is a Mass of Incandescent Gas” comes from… good stuff. Wish I’d heard it as a kid. “Zoom a Little Zoom” is my favorite, I think.

also, what are your feelings about Scarlett Johanssen’s upcoming album of all Tom Waits covers? (not a joke)

Posted by james on 17 November 02006 @ 1pm

Speaking of TMBG and covers, have you heard this?

Years ago, on some radio show. Probably WTJU. That’s awesome. :)

what are your feelings about Scarlett Johanssen’s upcoming album of all Tom Waits covers?

I just read about that yesterday! On the one hand, I love to see somebody covering Waits — I’m yet to hear a Waits cover that I didn’t like. On the other hand…Scarlett Johanssen? Let’s chalk me up as “irrationally optimistic” — it’s Waits, so how badly could she screw it up?

Do you think it’ll suck?

Posted by Waldo Jaquith on 17 November 02006 @ 1pm

Jeff Buckley’s version of “Hallelujah” is still my favorite since I first heard the song in the last episode of The West Wing’s 3rd season.

Posted by Matt on 17 November 02006 @ 3pm

Oh man, Hallelujah is right up on top of my list of favorite songs. SPOILER ALERT: I first heard it at the end of “Smoke” and it blew me away.
Still love Leonard Cohen’s version best.

Posted by Diane on 17 November 02006 @ 5pm

From Diane:

Oh man, Hallelujah is right up on top of my list of favorite songs. SPOILER ALERT: I first heard it at the end of “Smoke” and it blew me away.
Still love Leonard Cohen’s version best.

:::clapping hands:::: Which Cohen version? I’m a fan of his 1994 “Various Positions” version, though I think my mom prefers the version on his “More Best of…” live album.

Posted by TLPatten on 17 November 02006 @ 5pm

Blogging about Tom Waits and Leonard Cohen! Waldo, are you trying to draw me out of my cave of blogging inactivity? (You obviously know the right bait.)

“also, what are your feelings about Scarlett Johanssen’s upcoming album of all Tom Waits covers? (not a joke)”

James, for real?

Posted by Cory Capron on 17 November 02006 @ 6pm

Yeah, it’s not a joke. Try googling both their names.

I mean, she does have a decent singing voice. She could probably do well on several Waits ballads. If we’re really lucky I think she might be capable a killer version of a song like “Blue Valentines” or “Little Trip to Heaven” or even “Picture in a Frame.” On the other hand, if she tries anything from “Nighthawks at the Diner” or “Blood Money,” that should put and end to her singing career pretty quickly.

So, I’m curious to hear it.

Posted by james on 18 November 02006 @ 6pm

Well, “A Good Man is Hard to Find” might work out pretty good actually. But yeah, stuff like “Top of the Hill” should be avoided.

Posted by Cory Capron on 18 November 02006 @ 6pm

John Cale does ‘Hallelujah’ the best, IMHO.

Posted by Jack on 20 November 02006 @ 1pm

James,

Actually, I was just thinking the other day that ‘All the World is Green’ could easily become a standard. ‘The Part You Throw Away’ or ‘Coneny Island Baby’ could also both be covered to good effect. ‘Blood Money’ is easily among Tom Waits’ strongest albums ever.

Posted by Jack on 20 November 02006 @ 1pm

I just looked up “Hallelujah” on the Leonard Cohen Files site, and it’s been covered (on recordings) 79 times. I think it’s in a category by itself.

The uber-fan site (the Cohen version of nancies.org) lists only 4 Cohen recordings of it. I thought there were 5 — I don’t know why I was so sure there was one release prior to “Various Positions.”

Posted by TLPatten on 20 November 02006 @ 2pm

6. Louie, Louie

Posted by Mark Brooks on 20 November 02006 @ 11pm