The Great HTF Music Challenge (1 Viewer)

[BobO'Link]

Ooooo... I totally forgot about that fantastic acoustic version of the song!

 

[Walter Kittel]

Europe - "Angels with Broken Hearts" - This is a solid track. I like the deliberate pace of this song and the overall aesthetic.

Europe - "Walk the Earth" - This one didn't work as well for me as the first track. It isn't bad by any means but I definitely preferred the musical arrangement on the first selection.

I am not familiar with the group Europe but my first impression is that the lead singer (Joey Tempestt) stylistically reminds me just a bit of Ronnie James Dio. (In terms of having a forceful presentation; the voices are certainly different.)

- Walter.

 

[BobO'Link]

Europe, "Angels (With Broken Hearts)" and "Walk the Earth" - I enjoyed both tracks and liked the music on "Walk the Earth" a bit more. Didn't care for the lyrics on either as the bits I caught came off as typical "heavy metal" rather trite "message" type things, especially with "Walk the Earth." I did go to Spotify and sampled other tracks from those 2 albums. I liked almost all of those other tracks far better than either of these. I'm going to listen to those albums in full a couple of times to hear those other tracks in full.

Prince, Tom Petty, Jeff Lyne, and more, "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" - I didn't care for the keyboard open nor Tom Petty's vocals, neither fits the song, especially Petty's vocals (I like him quite well on his material, just not this). They should have given Jeff Lyne the lead for all of it and given Petty the harmony parts. Otherwise it's pretty good and Prince played well but I didn't care for his theatrical playing style - He's better heard and not seen. Because of Petty's vocals I'll take Rundgren's cover any time over this one.

The O'Jays, "Stairway to Heaven" - I generally like the group but not this song. Too lush, sounding too much like an easy listening song.

Paul Engemann, "Push it to the Limit" - Nope. Not my style. Sounds like generic 80s pop/movie soundtrack stuff.

Haley Reinhart, "White Rabbit" - The vocals work well although she needs to enunciate a bit better. The backing not so much so.

 

[BobO'Link]

Jefferson Airplane

"White Rabbit":



"Somebody to Love":



"Volunteers":

 

[BobO'Link]

The Lovemongers (aka Heart) - "Stairway to Heaven"
What's not to like here? A powerful performance all around. Loved it. BTW - Herbie Hancock was the first person shown in the audience.

Since we're on the subject, here's the O'Jays song of the same title, although not a cover.



The Lovemongers - "Battle of Evermore":
This one's not for me. A little harsh on the vocals and no drums. I like drums.

You want drums? How about one of Rock 'n Roll's best, most powerful, drummers?

John Bonham, drummer for Led Zeppelin, "Moby Dick":

 

[sleroi]

Thanks for posting that Walter. I was never a big STP fan, (Creep, Interstate Love Song and Vaseline are the only songs of theirs I ever liked), but that acoustic version of Plush is great. I like it better than the full version.

Working backwards, Haley Reinhart was okay. Its a decent song but her version is too similar to the original. If youre going to record a cover, find the essence of the song and make it your own.

Push it to the limit - Sorry, I just have to laugh. Such an 80s montage cliche of a song. I havent seen Scarface probably since its first cable run in the 80s, so I cant place it in that context, but this song would be right at home in something like MacGruber.

The OJays - I know the name but have never heard their music. I liked it. Started out mellow and relaxing and eased into the passionate vocals. Cool.

 

[sleroi]

Todd Rundgren is a guy Ive always wanted to like, but his voice is an acquired taste that I never acquired. And his covers were again too similar to the original versions. Why listen to them over the originals? (Although the guitar work on from 6 to 9 was pretty cool, but then his vocals trying to imitate Jimi, ugh.)

 

[sleroi]

That Prince video at the HOF made the rounds after he died. Good stuff. Didnt know he could play like that.

 

[DavidJ]

Kool & The Gang, "Summer Madness" - I love this one---especially the synth work. I started a Spotify playlist with it.

khruangbin, "Summer Madness" - I also added it to the playlist. I do prefer the original, but this has a very relaxed vibe to it.

 

[ChristopherG]

Weird Al Yankovic - "It's all about the Pentiums" I have always enjoyed WAY - not to the point of buying any of his material but he's always got something to say. I have to admit I've never heard this song before. Who knew he could Rap?

The Thrillseekers - "This is all we have" I would classify this under ambient but, tamayto, tamahto...I like ambient in all of its sometime meandering glory. This one had a kind of Enya quality to it.

Gareth Emery & Standerwick - "Saving Light" This one is a miss for me. I found the vocals annoying.

ZZ Topp - "Gimme All Your Lovin & Waitin for the Bus/Jesus Just Left Chicago" I love me some zz topp in all forms and periods but would definitely say the older period zz is my favorite. Hands down...

Sturgill Simpson - "Best Clockmaker on Mars" Sturgill Simpson is an amazingly diverse and talented muscian/guitarist. My first exposure to SS was when he appeared on SNL with a horn section and gave an absolutely smoking performance. As I mentioned earlier in this thread I went saw him live a few years ago and it was a fantastic evening of music. When he put out Sound an Fury I was blown away. If you haven't watched his scifi animated film that this music is supposed to accompany then I would highly recommend it.
In February 2020 I was out in New Mexico for work and the pandemic was just beginning to come into focus - it was still somewhat abstract at that point but each passing day brought it closer to home. I had to spend the weekend out there due to issues with work so i decided to take a drive to Carlsbad Caverns for a hike. I was actually staying in El Paso, TX (lived there on and off in my life) and had been to CC before. At any rate I was driving across very barren desert with practically no one else on the road and Sturgill SImpson's Sound an Fury was my soundtrack for most of the way. It was very surreal....and then I was hiking in a subterranean fantasy world that only amped up the weirdness.

Sturgill Simpson on SNL

 

[Bryan^H]

Just askin...any fans of SK8 Rock?

 

[BobO'Link]

The OJays - I know the name but have never heard their music. I liked it. Started out mellow and relaxing and eased into the passionate vocals. Cool.

I mostly know The O'Jays from their early 70s hits:

"For the Love of Money":



"Love Train":



"Back Stabbers":

 

[ChristopherG]

mcrad - Chuck Treece - never heard this before but I liked it. So sk8rock = punk
drunk injuns - "For Real" pretty much the same comment. Raw and simple. Like it.

 

[ChristopherG]

I mostly know The O'Jays from their early 70s hits:

"For the Love of Money":



"Love Train":



"Back Stabbers":

Just watched the Live at Darryl's House that featured The O'Jays. They sang all these songs trading lines with Darryl Hall. Quite enjoyable.

 

[Bryan^H]

mcrad - Chuck Treece - never heard this before but I liked it. So sk8rock = punk
drunk injuns - "For Real" pretty much the same comment. Raw and simple. Like it.

Absolutely...Sk8rock is just a specified type of punk, but I like it. Added Agent Orange -Bloodstains because that just has to be in any Sk8 rock list.

 

[ChristopherG]

I'm going with a mixed bag from the 60s today.

Some 60s funk soul - J.J Jackson "But It's Alright"



Also from the 60s but on the other end of the spectrum I give you Brewer & Shipley's "Witchi-Tai-To"



Finally rounding out today's time capsule from the 60s is The Band with "Chest Fever"

 

[BobO'Link]

Sturgill Simpson - Kind of a country foundation with rock horns/backing and a nice swing. Don't like his voice and couldn t understand most of what he sang (very mush-mouth). Put a better singer in front and I'd happily listen to this on a semi-regular basis.

McRad / Chuck Treece - Is one the artist and the other the song title? No matter... it sounds like Punk. That genre, much like "thrash metal," all sounds pretty much the same to me, incredibly repetitious with no dynamics to speak of and every song sounding like the one before/after, so I just don't listen to it much at all. It's not a style I enjoy.

J.J Jackson, "But It's Alright" - An old favorite. A friend's brother's band played this one regularly. I loved that shot of the 45 which still had the knock-out in place. Those were normally screeners sent to radio stations - let them play them on the turntables without adding or popping up a 45 block to the pin. That made it easier to play albums and 45s back-to-back.

Brewer & Shipley, "Witchi-Tai-To" - I've never heard this one before. Nice vocals and harmonies. Listen carefully to the background guitar and you hear the exact sequence used in J.J. Jackson's "But It's Alright."

The Band, "Chest Fever" - Another old favorite, but with Three Dog Night instead of The Band. I heard the TDN first and it just doesn't sound right coming from The Band, even though they wrote and originally recorded it.

Three Dog Night - "Chest Fever":




This is what I think of when I think The Band:

The Band - "The Weight":



The Band - "Up on Cripple Creek":



The Band - "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down":

 

[Walter Kittel]

Too much to comment upon, but I will make a few observations...

Todd Rundgren is a guy Ive always wanted to like, but his voice is an acquired taste that I never acquired. And his covers were again too similar to the original versions. Why listen to them over the originals? (Although the guitar work on from 6 to 9 was pretty cool, but then his vocals trying to imitate Jimi, ugh.)

I am not a very big Todd Rundgren fan but I really do like "I Saw The Light". It has a real pure pop sensibility that just works; just a really sweet song.

Bob posting about The Band reminds me to recommend Martin Scorsese's The Last Waltz. If you've never seen it, highly recommended. It is a concert film featuring the group The Band and a large number of guest performers.

Christopher's mentioning Daryl's House reminds me of KT Tunstall's appearance with Daryl Hall and his band on Conan O'Brien's show a long time ago, performing "If Only". The Conan appearance features a better performance of this song, but it isn't available on You Tube; so here is an alternate version which still works pretty well.



- Walter.

 

[John Dirk]

Since we have been dealing with cover versions of songs, here is one that I enjoy. I think the singer (Haley Reinhart) does a good job of capturing the feeling of the original and provides a strong rendition. (BTW, I first heard this on an episode of A Discovery of Witches)...



- Walter.

Nice enough song. I especially like the opening drums. Reminded me of marching band way back when.

 

[John Dirk]

Stone Temple Pilots:

Plush
This sounds good but very generic as far as the genre goes.

Creep
This one's nice. Soothing and relaxed without that "heavy" sound. Just one question. What the ??? is he talking about?

Interstate Love Song
...And there's that "heavy" sound again. This one's a bit too "in your face" for me.

Vasoline
Again, kind of unnecessarily loud with that guitar.

Plush - (Acoustic)
Again. Nice song but I did prefer the standard version.