Great non-Beatles song...

... with a random Beatles reference.

Nilsson...I just can't quit the guy. And for someone who operates a blog about The Beatles, this is fortuitous, as there's no shortage of shared history between the two acts. The list encompasses press conference plugs, surprise late-night phone calls, transatlantic visits, cover songs, tribute mash-ups, collaborations (both sonic and cinematic), epic booze-and-coke benders, best-man wedding duties, and so forth. I've already blogged about much of this, but here's one Nilsson-Fab intersection that I've yet to highlight: Harry's shout-out to The Beatles in "Don't Leave Me."

Off 1968's Aerial Ballet - a delightful hodgepodge dotted with classics - "Don't Leave Me" is full of the tricks, surprises, and wonders that have always set Nilsson apart. Foremost, take notice of how the song begins and where it is by the end. It's a full-on transformation: from subdued and plaintive to effervescent and whacky. In part, this is thanks to the range and elasticity of Nilsson's legendary voice. As with Roy Orbison, his vocal acrobatics often lead you on little adventures. There's also the unconventional use of just a single chorus, the closing half-minute stuffed with Nilsson's signature "nonsensical melodic mortar" (in the words of Grantland's Sean Fennessey), and - getting to the point of this post - the appropriation of "beep beep beep beep yeah" from "Drive My Car" that comes out of nowhere right in the middle of the track. Why is it there? Hardly matters. All I need to know is that it's Harry and The Beatles.

Re: They got it covered

I should've included this in the post I wrote yesterday about recent Beatles/solo-Fab covers. It's the Flaming Lips' thoroughly spaced-out stab at "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds." On the whole, Wayne Coyne and his merry band of psychedelic indie-rock pranksters stay true to the 1967 blueprint, but there is one notable deviation: when the chorus goes vertical, it's like a controlled explosion that slowly ascends rather than the original's sudden leap to the stars. It's a very Flaming Lips kind of touch for a very Flaming Lips kind of song.

While we're on the topic, here's the Lips' cover of "Revolution", and here's their interpretation of "I Am the Walrus."

They got it covered

Need a fix of recent Beatles/solo-Fab covers?

- Here's Arctic Monkeys' take on "All My Loving." It's a slowed down, less anxious version. Only several steps removed from a Roy Orbison-style torch song (though not so hopeless, and with a fuzzy-squeal solo lodged in the middle). The Monkeys played this cover at MSG almost 50 years to the day after The Beatles appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show for the first time.

- Here's the War on Drugs, an indie rock act from Philadelphia, revealing something that perhaps should've been obvious long ago: John's "Mind Games" was always a jammy Southern-rock anthem waiting to happen.

- Finally, here's Broken Bells (that is, the duo of Danger Mouse and Shins leadman/professional Kevin Spacey-lookalike, James Mercer) with a starry electro-pop revamp of "And I Love Her." Kudos for the clever "guest spot" by Ringo and the expertly placed sample of "I Am the Walrus." In my view, this is a perfect Beatles cover: an homage that artfully tinkers with the original but retains the core intentions and core emotions.

Beck's "Love"

Pitchfork writes:

"On February 14, Starbucks will release a new compilation of covers for Valentine's Day, titled Sweetheart 14. The collection will feature recordings by Fiona Apple, Vampire Weekend, Phosphorescent, and Jim James, among others. Beck also contributes a cover of John Lennon's 'Love', which you can stream above now via Revolt /Consequence of Sound."

Follow those links or have a listen below. Beck certainly puts his stamp on John's moving, mournful, all-time classic ballad off JL/POB. This is "Love" by way of Sea Change, Beck's 2002 LP. No longer lower-case and unadorned but spacious and echoey, with reflective sheen galore. Beck doesn't quite pull it off - "Love" will always work best as an intimate, vapory whisper - but I still admire the effort.

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A Beach Boys/Beatles party

I’ve been listening to Beach Boys’ Party! quite a bit of late. As I’ve written elsewhere, Beach Boys’ Party! is a studio record that’s meant to sound like a hootenanny, complete with audience involvement, giddy chatter and lyrical flubs. In August of 1965, Capitol Records told the Beach Boys they would need to release an album for the Christmas season. Because Brian Wilson’s next planned project – Pet Sounds – was too ambitious to fit that timeframe, the band sought a quick fix in the “live party” concept. (Side-note: From a party album to Pet Sounds? What a titanic shift.) They also sped up the process by mainly recording covers, including three songs by The Beatles. Herein lies the album’s relevance to this blog. Below is a rundown of those covers.

- "I Should Have Known Better"

A standout from the band’s early-period repertoire and a personal favorite, “I Should Have Known Better” is easily the best of the bunch. Everything works. Its tone is perfect for the album’s staged atmosphere of merriment; the lyric and the melody make for a natural sing-a-long; and the Beach Boys perform it well, even adding some signature “bow-wows.” If only they would’ve scrapped their abbreviated version in favor of the whole song.

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. . .

- "Tell Me Why"

Another success, though a few notches below the first. Despite being a self-pitying lament, the song maintains a high energy level and boasts a roaring chorus – both of which likely appealed to the Beach Boys. I just wish they would’ve had more people join in for the climactic line, “'Cause I really can’t stand it/ I’m so in love with you.” It deserves more oomph.

. . .

- "You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away"

A brutally mournful piece, the original is just not compatible with a revelrous environment. And while the Beach Boys limit the background noise on their rendition, there’s still enough included to ruin the performance. The boisterous pre-chorus “Hey” and the accompanying giggles strike precisely the wrong note. Heavy ballads need to be played straight.

. . .

The Beach Boys also recorded a cover of “Ticket to Ride” for the album but I couldn't find a proper version on YouTube.

Born on this day

Two titans of popular music entered the world on this day. Happy Birthday, Elvis (b. 1935), and Happy Birthday, David Bowie (b. 1947)! It's beyond me how January 8th is able to contain the historic greatness of both. Every other day of the year should take notes. Assorted links, etc. below.

Re: Elvis...

- Read about the day that Elvis and The Beatles met.

- Watch The Beatles reflect on the encounter.

- Here's Elvis covering "Yesterday" and "Hey Jude."

- John on the King: "Before Elvis there was nothing."

Re: Bowie...

- Here's a past birthday post I wrote that features some song links, including Beatles covers.

- Concerning the Beatles reference in "Young Americans."

- Concerning the (possible) Beatles reference in "Life on Mars?."

- Finally, here's one from the obscure file: Bowie performing a live cover of "This Boy." Though the sound is muffled, you can tell he's right at home, especially when the vocal goes big and expressive.

A mini Beatles Bible

I finally got around to reading Rolling Stone's "The Beatles: The Ultimate Album-by-Album Guide." I strongly recommend it. As a source of facts and analysis, it's thorough, insightful, witty and entertaining (albeit slavishly laudatory). Every album from the band's official canon is profiled in detail, and every track (including non-album singles and b-sides) is given a blurb-length treatment. Just don't bother with the musician testimonials; most of them range from dull and forgettable to vapid and incomprehensible.

Below is a smattering of facts, quotes and historical tid-bits that I found worthy of note:

- Paul on the spoils of success: "A Liverpool boy with this tanned beauty in my MG going out to dinner. It should have been 'Can Buy Me Love,' actually."

- I wasn't aware of this gender-modified cover of "And I Love Her." It's smokier and more textured than the original.

- In the chapter on A Hard Day's Night, Douglas Wolk posits that the album only has 13 tracks (as opposed to the early standard of 14) because, before the last recording session, Ringo came down with tonsillitis and pharyngitis, resulting in a schedule change. The band left for a tour shortly afterward, with Jimmy Nicol filling in for Ringo.

- "The Beatles covered more songs by Carl Perkins than by any other songwriter."

- "Ticket to Ride" was the first Beatles song to hit the three-minute mark. It was also their first song "built track-by-track rather than recorded live."

- According to Paul, George Martin's initial assessment of "Tomorrow Never Knows" took this form: "Rather interesting, John. Jolly Interesting." Ever the decorous, unfazed gentleman.

- The "Kinfauns demos" = "possibly the greatest 'unplugged' session in pop-music history."

- "Back in the U.S.S.R" was recorded just days after the Soviets and other members of the Warsaw Pact invaded Czechoslovakia and thwarted the Prague Spring.

- "Our relationship was platonic, believe me" - Paul wryly commenting on his English sheepdog Martha, who apparently wasn't the eponymous lass in "Martha My Dear."

- "Julia" was John's "only solo vocal performance on a Beatles recording."

The Beatles @ the 2012 Olympics

Paul was one of the major attractions at Friday's Opening Ceremony, but - from a Beatles-oriented perspective - it shouldn't be overlooked that the Arctic Monkeys also performed. That's because the popular British rock 'n' roll quartet played a cover of "Come Together." The studio version is below; it's a straightforward rendition. I hold the perhaps incautious opinion that Alex Turner's voice is one of the heirs to John Lennon's.

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Re: The Beatles and the Beach Boys

For the purposes of The Daily Beatle, my long-running Beach Boys kick will conclude with this post. Below is a rundown of basically every entry on the site that mentions the group once dubbed "America's Band."

- "There's a Place" vs. "In My Room";

- The BB's cover of "With a Little Help from My Friends";

- Another cover: "I Should Have Known Better";

- News about the original Smile being released;

- Today in music history: Pet Sounds;

- Yet another cover: "Tell Me Why";

- Marking Dennis Wilson's birthday;

- In praise of Pet Sounds;

- Brian Wilson, Rubber Soul and the '60s;

- Paul on Pet Sounds;

- Lastly, The Beatles and the Beach Boys.

The Flaming Lips are the eggmen

In preparation for two New Year's performances with Yoko Ono Plastic Ono Band, the Flaming Lips recorded a cover of the song that arguably gave birth to their sound: John's psychedelic masterpiece "I Am the Walrus." While the original is a thrillingly weird aural feast, the Lips' rendition is just graspingly weird and coarse to the ears. Much like their take on "Revolution," it's an exercise in oddity, not an attempt at artistry. The one grace note comes at the end when the band starts chanting, "Smoke pot, smoke pot, everybody smoke pot," which I'll interpret (perhaps too charitably) as a self-mocking acknowledgment that drugs will surely be blamed for everything bizarre about the song. Go here to watch and listen.

Wilco's "I'm Only Sleeping"

In comparison with the original, Jeff Tweedy and co's live acoustic rendition is unadorned, nimble and alert. I don't think I've heard anyone attempt a truly faithful cover. It would probably be a losing effort. Wilco's, on the other hand, is a modest winner, with its easy, even if routine, charm.



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A true Beach Boy

On this day in 1944, Dennis Wilson - brother of Brian and Carl, cousin of Mike Love, drummer, and late-blooming talent - was born. Dennis, of course, was a member of the Beach Boys and, later, a solo artist. Overshadowed by his more naturally gifted siblings, Dennis left a legacy that in great measure is unrelated to his abilities as a singer-songwriter and musician: he was the wild, self-destructive Beach Boy; he was the lone member of the group who avidly surfed; and he was, at one time, a friend to Charles Manson. But, as songs like "Forever" demonstrate, he did eventually come into his own. Described by Brian as a "rock and roll prayer," "Forever" is one of pop's finest love songs - a ballad of aching beauty powered by Dennis' sad, weary vocal. What a moving line this is: "Let the love I have for you / Live in your heart and be forever."

Dennis drowned in 1983 at the age of 39. RIP.

"Forever":


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I was also hoping to post the Beach Boys' cover of "You've Got to Hide Your Love Away," which features Dennis on lead vocals. Unfortunately, it's not available on YouTube.

Nilsson covers The Beatles

I've been on a Harry Nilsson kick of late. Several weeks back, I watched the newish documentary, Who is Harry Nilsson (And Why Is Everybody Talkin' About Him)?, and wrote about it here. Subsequently, I bought his most celebrated record, Nilsson Schmilsson, and a greatest hits compilation. Both have been very rewarding, set apart by Nilsson's pop smarts, generous personality, and spellbinding voice.

Previously on the blog, I'd done posts about Nilsson's covers of "She's Leaving Home" and "You Can't Do That", and laid bare my affection for "Mucho Mungo/Mt. Elga," a shimmering choral treat from the Lennon-produced album, Pussy Cats.

Below is another instance of Nilsson crossing paths with The Beatles. It's a cover of Paul's pristine and reverent ballad, "Mother Nature's Son." Nilsson replaced horns with strings, but didn't deviate much beyond that. He didn't need to because, as always, his rich voice is the main attraction. All of Paul's vocal garnishes from the original - the "dooos," the humming - seem tailor made for Nilsson.



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"Revolution" revamped

In honor of Steve Jobs, indie rock veterans the Flaming Lips crafted a cover of "Revolution" that was recorded using nothing but iPads. The accompanying video, featured at the O Music Awards, is here. You'll need to side-scroll for a while at the bottom of the page and then bypass a much-too cleavaged Yoko Ono to get there. When you do, you may find yourself nonplussed, even annoyed. The song's novelty (which is admittedly quite cool in the abstract) quickly wears thin, and what remains is a sonically grating, robotized misfire. I suppose it's close to what you'd expect of a tribute from the kooky, stunt-happy Lips. If anything is of interest, it's the band's decision to tap John's moment of vacillation from the original version of the song - "And when you talk about destruction / Don't you know that you can count me out/ In." Beyond that (which isn't much), the song offers little else.

Thursday Beatles cover

Below is a stellar performance of "Don't Let Me Down" by '90s alt-rockers Garbage. Nimbly moving from forceful to restrained and then back, Shirley Manson's voice suits the material quite well.



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Thursday cover

Though the sound quality is a bit rough, it's still a pleasure listening to David Bowie cover "This Boy." He possesses just the voice for the song's more eruptive sections.



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Friday cover

From the Sucker Punch soundtrack, "Tomorrow Never Knows" by Alison Mosshart (lead vocalist for the Kills) and Carla Azar. Of significance, it's nearly 5 minutes longer than the original, adding a roaming instrumental break in the middle.



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Amy Winehouse, RIP

The wildly talented but troubled singer, 27, was found dead in her London apartment earlier today.

Here she is doing a cover of "All My Loving":


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Saturday cover

Here's Miles Kane and co. thrashing their way (and how else could they do it?) through "Hey Bulldog."



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Super '80s Beatles cover

Here's Robert Palmer trying out "Not a Second Time":



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