Ten Things Thursday

I know; it’s not as nicely alliterative, but we were otherwise occupied on Tuesday. Here are ten song remakes I like better than the originals:

1. 32 Flavors, as sung by Alana Davis. It’s an Ani DiFranco song, but I like Ms. Davis’ version better; it’s slower, earthy, full of longing and just lovely. Ani is edgy where Alana has a smoky depth that this song needs.

2. Give a Little Bit, as imagined by the Goo Goo Dolls. We heard the Supertramp version on the radio the other day and, since the girls have grown up with the Goo Goo Dolls, I had to explain to them that Supertramp did it first. They expressed a definite preference for the Goo Goo Dolls’ take on it, and I have to agree.

3. Never Going Back Again by Matchbox Twenty, from the tribute album to Fleetwood Mac. This one was a little bit of a stretch for me; I’m not a huge Fleetwood Mac fan, but I really do like this song. I like the orignial, but I think Rob Thomas gives it a little something that edges his version into the lead for me.

4. This Must Be the Place (Native Melody) by Shawn Colvin. This song was originally done by the Talking Heads, but Shawn’s version is much prettier. This song is one of Mr. Chili’s and my wedding songs (the other is The Power of Two by the Indigo Girls). If you listen to the words, you’ll find that the song is about finding home in another person (”out of all those kinds of people, you’ve got a face with a view”) and Shawn does a better job of conveying that emotion than David Byrne did.

5. Love is Alive by Joan Osborne. This woman is fantastic, and I love her edginess. The Gary Wright version, while fun, just doesn’t have the same kick.

6. American Woman as done by Lenny Kravitz. The Guess Who did a great job with this song, but Lenny adds a sexiness that Burton Cummings just didn’t have. Plus, Lenny’s guitar work in the last third of the song just rocks. Lenny’s “UH!” toward the end doesn’t hurt, either.

7. Hey Ya by Obadiah Parker. I really, really like the Outkast version, but I’m not always in a hip-hop, rockin’ kind of mood. This acoustic version of the song is surprisingly satisfying, given that hip-hop doesn’t alway translate very well in to one-guy-with-a-guitar, unplugged interpretations. This one works.

8. Someday We’ll Be Together by Vonda Shepard. I’ve never been a fan of Diana Ross, and though I always liked this song, I always thought it could be more than Diana Ross did with it. Vonda nailed it for me.

9. Fever by Ray Charles with Natalie Cole. This is one of the (many) fantastic songs off the Genius Loves Company album, and Natalie Cole has a gorgeous voice that weaves beatifully with Brother Ray’s. Yeah, Peggy Lee could kick this song, but I love the duet just a little better.

 

10. Ain’t No Sunshine. I’m going to cheat on this one - it’s one of my all-time favorite songs and I have it in six different versions plus the Bill Withers’ original. I love the original, which is where I’m cheating - I don’t think I like any of the remakes more than Withers’ version, but I do like a couple of them at least as much: Sting did a gorgeous interpretation, as did the Neville Brothers. It’s a great song as a jazz instrumental, too, and I’ve got that in the Boney James cover. I also have it interpreted by Michael Bolton (shut up), Grover Washington, and Rodney Jones. It’s a great song, and as long as people keep remaking it, I’ll keep collecting it.