We live in an era where people such as Justin Bieber, SoMo and Greyson Chance have become famous in no small part due to their Youtube covers.
Cover songs have been around for decades and sometimes the remake trumps the original track. This is where this blog comes in. It is here that we will stack these covers against their predecessors to determine which rendition of the song is truly better.
These covers will be judged according to the following: how well or badly the cover deviates from the original song, replay value and the cover’s ability to connect with the listener.
The temperature may be 70s but it’s still December which means it’s time for the holidays. There’s a 50/50 split in the people I know who like this season and those who don’t. The Scrooges aside, I can remember watching Christmas films every year with my grandfather including “The Lemon Drop Kid,” a movie which was a little more adult than I was probably prepared for.
Still, the one part of that 1950’s movie that stuck out to me was this song. A song that has been covered time and time again through the years but it began in this movie.
“Silver Bells” was originally performed by actors Bob Hope and Marilyn Maxwell during a scene in the film. It was later covered by Bing Crosby and Carol Richards where it really became popular, but the original always stuck with me.
In 2011, Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward, also known as She and Him covered the song as a part of the indie duo’s Christmas album, “A Very She and Him Christmas.” It introduced the song to a new audience which gave “Silver Bells” a little more life than before.
Does this mean the updated version is any better than the holiday classic? Well for the last time, I’m here to determine that.
Round 1: Deviation? Good or Bad?
Considering the small range of instruments used in the 50s, “Silver Bells” was a well orchestrated song. The cover strips that in favor of ukulele chords. It’s amazing how different a song can sound in the hands of another artist.
I can admire the ambition of trying something new but, it doesn’t hit the mark the way a few other songs on the album do. Sometimes the best thing to do with a good thing, is to leave it alone.
Point to the cover. Score 1-0
Round 2: Replay Value
The cover — that ukulele really kills it for me. I can’t hang my lights and hang by the fire with a song that sounds a little too close to the “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” cover. It’s also a lot shorter than the original song so replaying the cover while doing anything productive could quickly become an annoying task.
Quite honestly the original could get a little old given time but at least theres a change in voices to get me through that.
Point to the original. Score 2-0.
Round 3: Ability to connect with the listener
I know that the cover is supposed to be different for a reason. It truly captures the vibe that She and Him goes for, but it just doesn’t hit that Christmas mark for me. The instant I hear the original, I want to do holiday stuff. Simple as that.
We know that the original was desired to put that spirit of giving in us and it still does 60 years later.
Point to the original. Score 3-0. Winner: Bob Hope and Marilyn Maxwell’s original. I can’t help but get more into the Christmas spirit when hearing the original song. I do like She and Him but they just don’t inspire me to break out the gingerbread and hot chocolate.
This is it. We’ve reached the end of the road. So many great covers have passed through this blog and it’s all thanks to those of you who came back every week to read about them. Let’s all remember that music is subjective and these opinions are my own. These covers feature talented artists in their own right and I’m not stacking that artist against another. I’ve had so much fun writing these and I’ll continue to find those good covers and tweet them out so be sure to look out for that.
Agree? Disagree? Tell me below and suggest some other covers to listen to. Send me a tweet @Joshua_Jackson_. Again, thank you for staying with me this semester and happy holidays.
