Music Today

I thought this was an appropriate thing to post to my blog...

But, wouldn't Gary Jules and Michael Andrews be the ones who ruined it? It was Tears for Fears song, they originally released it in 1982.

I was a little confused when I heard it on the GOW previews. "That's not TFF" I thought. I've come to really like Jules' version. But nothing beats the original. They can't really ruin their own song, can they? Ok ok, I can't lie, I'm a huge fan of 80's music, but still.

This brings up something that bothers me today. I'm not talking specifically about Gary Jules, but too many groups these days are unoriginal.

I'm talking about the stupid "mainstream" groups that have a hit song that isn't even theirs. They become famous because they did a crappy rendition of a classic song and mush-brained fans eat it up. You hear people talking "Oh I love that new song by __, it's so good!" Except that it's not new at all. People are losing touch with the OLD stuff, the classic stuff. They don't even realize that the song they "love" so much was made 30 years ago. It's not like you can blame them, it just makes me angry that this is where we're headed.

I've got two examples for you. A little while back I was driving to school when I hear a familiar tune come on the radio. However, something's not right. This was none other than Fall Out Boy, whom I (for some reason) just have always had something against. I don't like them. And guess who they're covering? Michael Friggin Jackson. The song, in all honesty is OK until about 2:00 into that video where the solo is supposed to happen. It's a modern take on a great song, ok, who cares right? They KILL it at the end.

Here's the original. Go to 3:00, a little bit after here is where the solo starts. Now go listen.......back? Care to compare? You just can't beat Eddie Van Halen (who played in the original) The worst part is that FOB didn't even try. In their studio version they brought in John Mayer who actually soloed and of course didn't do a bad job.

My second example, you can look up yourself if you so choose because I refuse to youtube this band. The Jonas Brothers. *vomits* Now, for a long while we had an understanding relationship. They left me alone, and I left them alone. I didn't like them, so I didn't listen to them, and they stayed away from me. A few of my female friends are just "in love" with them (yes, at 17 years old) and went to see them in concert. They returned to school the next day with all kinds of stories. The part that caught my attention was when they mentioned a "new song" that these baby-faced young boys played. Take On Me. I was instantly filled with anger. "Sing a little bit for me" I said, just to be sure my rage was justified. It was. And then some.

When I got home that day I youtubed it, and almost cried. These guys BUTCHERED the song. Their version is horrible, I urge you to look it up. And then look up the original by A-ha. Yes, it's an 80's song so again maybe I'm biased, but the Jonas Brothers SUCK. If you want to hear a decent cover of the song look it up under Reel Big Fish.

I don't always have a problem with covers, but if you're going to redo a song, make sure you can play it. And do some justice to the original band by NOT changing it so much. I don't know, maybe it's just me. And I admit that some of my opinions may not be fair, but that's just how I feel. To completely contradict myself, I love everything that Reel Big Fish has ever done, and they do a lot of covers. I love the originals too, though. And (most of the time) I loved them first.

*Deep breath* Man did I need to rant about that.