Best Tributes, Covers, Dedications

A new one to consider:

Richard Lloyd has a new disc of Jimi covers. This takes a big, hairy set! I just bought it, and haven't fired it up yet, so no comment on the quality. The liner notes are ineteresting anyway, - it seems that Richard Lloyd and Jimi had a brief sort of friendship in the late '60s. This is a tribute to Jimi and the mutual friend who introduced them.

Will report when I've given it a listen.

Marty

PS Loomis, if you like Roky covers, you might want to check out Webb Wilder's version of "Don't Slander Me". Wilder is a GREAT cover artist and this track is a good example of that.

I've been through the new Richard Lloyd cover album (Jimi Hendrix) a couple of times and it's interesting. The arrangements sound "thinner" (less dense) and, while some of the original's "funk" appeal is lost, the "pop" appeal of the songs is enhanced. At the risk of offending, it sounds like a white guy covering Hendrix. Lloyd's playing is excellent, but unlikely to please die hard fans of the original. Worth hearing, but not earthshaking.

Marty

Dgarretson,

When I looked at your post again, I realized that Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs had done a Vol II of "Under The Covers". I'm a big fan of Sweet and, even though I found Vol I a bit disapointing (good song choices, cover versions a bit too tame and perhaps "respectful" of the originals for my taste), I set out to find Vol II.

A glance at the cover got my attention quickly. The track list looks like I dictated it. A dozen of my A list favorite candidates for cover versions, including one by Lindsey Buckingham and two!! by Todd Rundgren are included. (These are my two favorite rock artists.) I fired it up in my car on the way home from the store. Ah, well.

I find these covers (with the exception of a very interesting re-work of Yes' "I've Seen All Good People/Your Move") also too tame. They're all good, but I really wanted/expected more. The cds are still fun, but I really wish Sweet and Hoffs had taken a few more risks.

Marty

Dgarretson,

Thanks for the tip. "Blue Haze" appears to be right up my alley. I'll try to chase it down.

As to Matthew Sweet. Judging from the "Under the Covers" cds, I guess that he (and/or Hoffs) and I share very similar taste. He is a fine guitarist, but he always has an even beter player in his band for live shows (often Ivan Julian). I've seen him play a half dozen or so times when I lived in NYC.

The "Covers" cds make me wonder how much he just wanted a shot at some of the guitar parts - parts that he would often defer to his bandmate. He does them well, but not enough to redefine the songs, IMHO. In any case, I do like the Covers CDs, even if I can't shake the feeling that they could have been even better.

Marty