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Great songs murdered by lesser performers

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    Great songs murdered by lesser performers

    #1 You are the Sunshine of my Life, Stevie Wonder

    #2
    I'm not following the premise here. Stevie Wonder's vocals on his song are inadequate? Somebody not very good covered the sing and murdered it, but merits no mention? Jim Gilstap's delivery of the first verse is murdering the song, or is so good that Stevie murders the song afterwards?

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      #3
      Ah, sorry. No I was listening to it today and Stevie's version is terrific. It's just that I've heard it murdered so many times by club singers and other hacks. (Apparently Wonder has his his own Las Vegas lounge version of the song, which he'll play to friends for a laugh.)

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        #4
        Paul Young attempting his version of Love Will Tear Us Apart

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          #5
          That was my first thought, too. But like G-Man, I don't really understand what's required here. There are far too many examples of sh*te covers by 'lesser performers': the beyond-rotten version of Talk Talk's It's My Life by No Doubt is one never far from my thoughts, more's the pity.

          And how is Stevie Wonder a 'lesser performer', pray tell?

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            #6
            No, Stevie is a "greater" performer to his lessers who murder his songs.

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              #7
              I think we've done bad cover versions in other threads. I'm just guessing, but maybe Stumpy is looking for staples of the cabaret singer's oeuvre that tend to be a bit beyond them.
              I don't very often find myself in places where I have to listen to a rank covers band or Vic Reeves style pub singer, but nearly every busker with a guitar these days manage to make Oasis songs sound appalling, despite the fact that they are set such a low bar in the first place.

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                #8
                Well every singer with a guitar that takes a famous song and slows it down, singing it with a whispy voice is a lesser singer murdering great songs. Not that I'm against interpretation or changing the tempo of a song, but these oh-so-bare-and-vulnerable renditions are becoming cliché. My tolerance gets tested if they then start enunciating words as if they have a lollipop lodged at the back of their mouth, and perhaps let their voice crack a bit at random words.

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                  #9
                  Originally posted by G-Man View Post
                  No, Stevie is a "greater" performer to his lessers who murder his songs.
                  Well, I assumed that initially, but thought that I must be missing something here. (It's not self-explanatory, in any case.)

                  If the last couple of posts are nailing what this 'is', then I'll nominate just about all of those relentlessly sappy renditions of standards that seem to have to feature in current UK television commercials.

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                    #10
                    I thought he meant that You are the Sunshine of my Life starts off with non-Stevie vocals, but I've always felt that this gives more impact to the moment Stevie takes over.

                    A valid example might be Lennon playing bass on The Long and Winding Road, although I'm not sure that's one of The Beatles' great songs. Yoko was a shadow over Lennon's deterioration as a songwriter but did she murder anything that wasn't already bad?

                    My personal favourites Durutti Column were infamous for Vini Reilly murdering some amazing tunes by singing over them. Subthread would be "Great instrumentalist murders his own songs because he's too vain to get a proper singer in." Clapton, Phil Collins?
                    Last edited by Satchmo Distel; 29-04-2018, 08:50.

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                      #11
                      Well, I put the question about Jim Gilstrap's (very good) vocals in my response, and stumpy declared Jim not guilty.

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                        #12
                        I agree that Oasis have their songs murdered by buskers. But it's only really Wonderwall.

                        Round here the Stereophonics are equally likely to have their tunes buskered to death.

                        I don't really go anywhere with lounge singers but I went to a few gigs in a row when 'Sweet Caroline' was the cover in the set list. I'm pretty sure people only choose it because the audience are bound to join in with "bah bah bah".

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                          #13
                          There's no little irony in Oasis and Stereophonics having their wares murdered by buskers.

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                            #14
                            Originally posted by Patrick Thistle View Post
                            I don't really go anywhere with lounge singers but I went to a few gigs in a row when 'Sweet Caroline' was the cover in the set list. I'm pretty sure people only choose it because the audience are bound to join in with "bah bah bah".
                            Which makes me want to go "bang bang bang" as I point an imaginary gun in their direction.

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                              #15
                              Pretty awful what Phil Collins did to The Mindbenders' "Groovy Kind Of Love."
                              Pretty awful what Phil Collins did to The Supremes' "You Can't Hurry Love."

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                                #16
                                Johnnie Walker played the Steve Harley cover of Here Comes The Sun on Sunday. A right dogs dinner of a track it is too.

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                                  #17
                                  I always thought Harley's version was really good - from a fine album too.

                                  Collins, Fwiw, said in his autobiography that his version of Groovy was, indeed, terrible.

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                                    #18
                                    There have been a few threads over the years about cover versions, good, bad or ill-advised.

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                                      #19
                                      The Beatles' In My Life often falls victim to earnest, over-emoting singers.
                                      Last edited by Stumpy Pepys; 15-05-2018, 13:35.

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