Just Can't Get Enough

I can’t deny that some of the best songs I've ever heard emerged from past eras. I owe my diverse taste in music to my dad's own collection. From Joy Division and Depeche Mode to Ella Fitzgerald, I’ve always had a special place in my heart for the classics. Who doesn't love a great cover? I find that covers are just more interesting because each artist makes it his/her own. I love hearing a great song brought back and turned into something unique thanks to the personal touch of another artist.

So, I took three of my favorite cover albums and decided to share them with you. In these albums you’ll find rock anthems turned into jazz pieces, acoustic versions of pop songs, and Sinatra tributes that won’t disappoint.

Classics – She & Him (2014)

Apart from being a successful actress, Zooey Deschanel’s lesser known career is actually being half of the indie duo She & Him. Zooey shares her love for the oldies in YouTube videos wherein she does covers, something that eventually led to the release of their cover album.

In my opinion, this was bound to happen and we should thank the universe that it did. Zooey has this delicate voice that just screams the 50s, and she depicts this vibe beautifully. Accompanied with sweet instrumentals, this whole album just works for me, making me feel like I really am living in the 1950s.

The Covers Record – Cat Power (2000)

I know I don’t speak only for myself when I say: Who better to put out a cover album than Cat Power? Chan Marshall put her own spin to the classics and did not disappoint. Her voice fits perfectly with the melancholic and longing tone this whole album resonates. 

Cat Power is a perfect example of an artist who takes songs and makes it her own. For most of the songs in this album, she sang with a slightly slower tempo and had less instruments, making you feel the songs more. It’s as powerful as it is beautiful. This whole album just makes me feel peaceful and nostalgic, making me miss a time where I wasn’t even alive yet! That’s how amazingly talented Cat Power is.

Nouvelle Vague - Nouvelle Vague (2004)

“Nouvelle Vague” directly translates to new wave in French. If you were unaware, this French band’s style is taking songs from genres such as rock, punk, and new wave, then transforming them into jazzy, bossa nova tones with acoustic guitars, soft shaker rhythms, and smooth singing. 

Who would ever think of turning a rock song into jazz music? Well, Nouvelle Vague would, and this is why I find this band very interesting. Seeing as rock and jazz could be opposite genres, it’s amazing to see how it is transformed with a simple change in tempo, the exchanging of an electric guitar to one that is acoustic, and even due to the addition of eggshakers. It’s all fun and light to listen to. Whenever I listen to this album, I can imagine myself inside a jazz bar in New Orleans, sipping on a fancy drink while waiting for someone… yeahp, just the way I like it.

Article by Sara

Art by Sean

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Sara is an indecisive teenage girl. She likes horror films, breakfast food, and summer. In the future, she wants to become a model, writer, and ukulele superstar altogether. But for now, she spends her spare time reading or making crane origami.

 


Sean is a 15 year old muggle-born who is proud to say that he is perfectly abnormal, thank you very much. Peculiar in many ways, he is a far cry from that common stereotyped teenager.  He has a great passion for art, and would love to do nothing more than making collages and other creative thingamajigs.