Last week’s Coverville was brilliant. It’s an “Originalville” episode, which the host does periodically — the original version of a song better known for its cover. I know “I’ve Got My Mind Set on You” from George Harrison’s “Cloud Nine”, but it turns out that it’s a cover of a song by one James Ray. The original is awesome — a big band song with a banjo, reminding me very much of William Grant Still’s Afro-American Symphony, especially its third movement. Betty Hutton’s “It’s Oh So Quiet” is also a lot of fun. That’s best known today because of Bjork’s cover, off of “Post,” which turns out to hew closely to Hutton’s original. Neil Diamond’s “I’m a Believer” is in the mix, too, though as “All Along the Watchtower” has been claimed for a third time by Dave Matthews Band, that’s now best known for Smashmouth’s cover rather than the Monkees’ cover.
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I just discovered the video for Bjork’s cover of “It’s Oh So Quiet” — it’s pretty good. The director cleverly made it hew closely to the predominant style of musicals at the time that the song was originally released.
I don’t believe the Dave Matthews Band have claimed “All Along the Watchtower” so much as they have merely played it.
That Björk video is by Spike Jonze, by the way… (as in “Being John Malkovitch” Spike Jonze, not “Der Führer’s Face” Spike Jones, obviously).
Waldo, that’s a Spike Jonze directed video to boot. Great song, even better video.
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And now I see another commenter beat me to it. But I’m still gonna say it. Nyah!