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seedarklyxeroWelcome to the Third Sunday Throwback edition of SeeDarkly Sunday DisCOVERies where the goth/industrial cover songs come to us from the 20th century!
First time here? Click here for details from first entry.
Last Sunday I teased that this week's entry would be thin and white due to the rising of a black star. I had no idea that within the following 24 hours the Duke would pass from this mortal coil.:
David Bowie - Sorrow
It has been a strange and sad week. The world seemed, for a while (depending on where your attention was,) to have forgotten its ill-will and spent a long moment after the death of David Bowie grieving his loss, celebrating his life, and sharing the many ways he influenced us all. Not strictly "goth" as a musician, Bowie showed us through his artistry and style that whatever strange thing we might be, it was all completely acceptable to be that. After all, it was perfectly fine for Bowie to be what he wanted to be and he was unquestionably respected for it. Many goth/industrial artists mark him as their inspiration: The Cure, Siouxie and the Banshees, Joy Division, Nine Inch Nails, Gary Numan, Depeche Mode, and so many more! Some even got to work with Bowie on various projects, tours, and other collaborations. Many have covered his music... one such artist was the feature of the second entry of this blog.
But who inspired Bowie? Artists who cover songs by other musicians tend to do so because of such inspiration. Looking back at the distinct selection of songs Bowie chose to cover, you find rock icons like Pink Floyd, The Velvet Underground, The Who, The Kinks, Bruce Springsteen, The Rolling Stones, The Stooges, Neil Young, and George Harrison. He even went on to write music for and compose with some of those artists. He also covered R&B forerunners like Eddie Floyd, Nina Simone, Martha and the Vandellas, & Chuck Berry.
In 1973, Bowie released his seventh album featuring only covers of songs from the mid-sixties by his favorite artists. One of the tracks from that album was Sorrow. What's interesting here is that, from a personal hand-written note by Bowie in the liner of the album, he appeared to credit his love of the track to a cover of it by The Merseys, who released it as a successful single in London in 1966.
The original version of Sorrow actually was first recorded for the 1965 album Hang On Sloopy by The McCoys. They released it later that year as the b-side to their second single from the album, which was a cover of Fever by Little Willie John.
Bowie's version of Sorrow was not significantly received by audiences when released. But it was also not what anyone could call "forgettable" either. This obscure gem from Bowie's collection found itself recently included on the soundtrack of John Cusack's (also obscure and not well-received) 2008 film War, Inc. In truth, none of his solo studio-recorded covers were huge hits of any kind compared to many of his popular original works. They were, however, the songs that moved him and he felt an urgency to tribute and share.
This cover is a beautiful rendition of a track that began as a simple bluesy folk ballad, transformed by the Thin White Duke's talent to a provocatively mysterious flirtation with the memory and loss of cherished love. Of many emotions that have been expressed and are shared by millions of fans following Bowie's passing, Sorrow is among them.
The Cover:
click here for his video for the track
The Original:
Next week:
The new X-Files show debuts that night, so both the original and covering artists of next week's track will be "X"-philes... of a sort. x_x
Comments, suggestions, discussions, etc... welcome!
As of this posting I'm at Arisia in Boston and will be spinning there tonight for a timey wimey throwback dance, where DJ Dirge and I are very likely to play a song or two from David Bowie. Check my site for my schedule and click the links for details there for that and other upcoming events. ^_^
Explore the darkness,
-Xero
Previous DisCOVERies
Jan 10 - Unwoman - Careless Whisper (WHAM!)
Jan 03 - Columbine - Head Over Heels (Tears For Fears)
Dec 27 - Comasoft - Let's Go All the Way (Sly Fox)
Dec 20 - The Crüxshadows: Happy Xmas (War Is Over) (John Lennon)
Dec 13 - Rotersand - Santa Claus Is Coming To Town (RoterSanta) (Harry Reser/Tom Stacks)
Directory of All DisCOVERies
First time here? Click here for details from first entry.
Last Sunday I teased that this week's entry would be thin and white due to the rising of a black star. I had no idea that within the following 24 hours the Duke would pass from this mortal coil.:
David Bowie - Sorrow
It has been a strange and sad week. The world seemed, for a while (depending on where your attention was,) to have forgotten its ill-will and spent a long moment after the death of David Bowie grieving his loss, celebrating his life, and sharing the many ways he influenced us all. Not strictly "goth" as a musician, Bowie showed us through his artistry and style that whatever strange thing we might be, it was all completely acceptable to be that. After all, it was perfectly fine for Bowie to be what he wanted to be and he was unquestionably respected for it. Many goth/industrial artists mark him as their inspiration: The Cure, Siouxie and the Banshees, Joy Division, Nine Inch Nails, Gary Numan, Depeche Mode, and so many more! Some even got to work with Bowie on various projects, tours, and other collaborations. Many have covered his music... one such artist was the feature of the second entry of this blog.
But who inspired Bowie? Artists who cover songs by other musicians tend to do so because of such inspiration. Looking back at the distinct selection of songs Bowie chose to cover, you find rock icons like Pink Floyd, The Velvet Underground, The Who, The Kinks, Bruce Springsteen, The Rolling Stones, The Stooges, Neil Young, and George Harrison. He even went on to write music for and compose with some of those artists. He also covered R&B forerunners like Eddie Floyd, Nina Simone, Martha and the Vandellas, & Chuck Berry.
In 1973, Bowie released his seventh album featuring only covers of songs from the mid-sixties by his favorite artists. One of the tracks from that album was Sorrow. What's interesting here is that, from a personal hand-written note by Bowie in the liner of the album, he appeared to credit his love of the track to a cover of it by The Merseys, who released it as a successful single in London in 1966.
The original version of Sorrow actually was first recorded for the 1965 album Hang On Sloopy by The McCoys. They released it later that year as the b-side to their second single from the album, which was a cover of Fever by Little Willie John.
Bowie's version of Sorrow was not significantly received by audiences when released. But it was also not what anyone could call "forgettable" either. This obscure gem from Bowie's collection found itself recently included on the soundtrack of John Cusack's (also obscure and not well-received) 2008 film War, Inc. In truth, none of his solo studio-recorded covers were huge hits of any kind compared to many of his popular original works. They were, however, the songs that moved him and he felt an urgency to tribute and share.
This cover is a beautiful rendition of a track that began as a simple bluesy folk ballad, transformed by the Thin White Duke's talent to a provocatively mysterious flirtation with the memory and loss of cherished love. Of many emotions that have been expressed and are shared by millions of fans following Bowie's passing, Sorrow is among them.
The Cover:
click here for his video for the track
The Original:
Next week:
The new X-Files show debuts that night, so both the original and covering artists of next week's track will be "X"-philes... of a sort. x_x
Comments, suggestions, discussions, etc... welcome!
As of this posting I'm at Arisia in Boston and will be spinning there tonight for a timey wimey throwback dance, where DJ Dirge and I are very likely to play a song or two from David Bowie. Check my site for my schedule and click the links for details there for that and other upcoming events. ^_^
Explore the darkness,
-Xero
Previous DisCOVERies
Jan 10 - Unwoman - Careless Whisper (WHAM!)
Jan 03 - Columbine - Head Over Heels (Tears For Fears)
Dec 27 - Comasoft - Let's Go All the Way (Sly Fox)
Dec 20 - The Crüxshadows: Happy Xmas (War Is Over) (John Lennon)
Dec 13 - Rotersand - Santa Claus Is Coming To Town (RoterSanta) (Harry Reser/Tom Stacks)
Directory of All DisCOVERies