Cover
versions of familiar songs always present artists with a challenge. Should they stick, and remain faithful to the
original? Or should they twist, and try
to re-imagine it in some way?
This dilemma
becomes especially interesting with a tribute album like Physical Graffiti
Redrawn, issued with the latest edition of Mojo, celebrating the 40th
anniversary of Zeppelin’s classic double album.
How do you go about re-tooling songs like these? How much of the structure do you retain? Are there segments you feel comfortable
jettisoning or re-working without confounding the listener’s expectations? Happily, while some of the efforts on show
here work better than others, none are real duds – and some even manage to
reveal more about the originals.
White Denim
and Blackberry Smoke open the proceedings with satisfactorily straightforward
versions of ‘Custard Pie’ and ‘The Rover’, largely confining themselves to a
few curve balls here and there, and then some experimentation in ‘outro’
territory. White Denim throw some
different sonic effects into the mix, while Smoke extend proceedings to allow
for some guitar harmonies and duelling.
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Miraculous Mule - getting radical |
Son Little (pictured below) goes even further, with a genre-switching, de-funked ‘Trampled Under Foot’,
re-styled as a slowed-down and sultry slice of soul. The Philadelphian has some voice, and uses it
to scorching effect here, conjuring up a slow burning, up close and personal
seduction. It may not be out and out
blues, but it’s enough to suggest a listen to his 2014 EP, ‘Things I Forgot’
may be warranted.
Malian
combo Songhoy Blues tackle the mountain that is ‘Kashmir’, and if there’s not
much they can do to break free of those byzantine riffs, they still manage to
get on top of the song, partly by toning down the instrumentation to their
fuzzy, desert blues style, and partly by playing a Joker - an entirely new vocal
delivered in their native tongue rather than English!
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Son Little, aka Aaron Livingston |
If those
are the highlights, the second half of the album takes an interesting turn, as
several contributors opt for a wistful, sometimes introspective approach that
fits the material like a glove. Max Jury
delivers a lilting ‘Down By The Seaside’ with tasteful rolling piano, even more
delicate than the original. Rose Windows
introduce a flute part into some hazy, jazzy passages in ‘The Wanton Song’,
albeit also letting rip with a squally, fuzzed up guitar break. And Hiss Golden Messenger take a sunny,
Californian troubadour tack on ‘Black Country Woman’. Heck, even Duke Garwood, whose latest album I
slated here recently, does a good job on ‘Night Flight’: a clacking rhythm evokes a slow train rolling
through the night, to which he adds rumbling, moody guitar. I’ve often thought there’s something a little
bit downbeat to the tail end of Physical Graffiti, and these versions
underscore that thought.
Oh yes, and
there’s a crisp, witty little take on ‘Boogie With Stu’ from Kitty, Daisy and
Lewis. Often regarded as the ugly
duckling of the album, here it’s translated to guitar, and leavened with a nod
to the clavinet phrase from ‘Trampled Under Foot’.
As these
kinds of classic album reboots go, Physically Graffiti Redrawn is about as
good as it gets. Credit to Mojo for
putting it together.
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