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Simple Days Fly By

8/24/2013

I was reminded of more carefree times at the library yesterday, as a sweet little blonde girl (perhaps age four) wanted to tell me something but didn't know my name. So she came up with a name based on what I was doing at the time; "Hey, picker-upper" is how she started her sentence.

It was the cutest thing, reminding me of raising my daughters ages ago. Simple moments like that don't happen that much to me lately.

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Covering the Stones: Possibilities

8/11/2013

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John Batdorf & James Lee Stanley--All Wood and Stones II (Beachwood Recordings):

Remember Todd Rundgren's 1976 album Faithful, where he constructed note-for-note
versions of his favorites by the Yardbirds, Hendrix and more? Is that what we want in a cover version--technical accomplishment? My feeling is that this sort of precision ultimately leaves listeners cold. On the other hand, there are plenty of covers that radically re-write the original version to such a degree that one wonders why the artist even bothered (they could have just made up their own words and no one would have accused them of ripping off half of a song).

John Batdorf and James Lee Stanley's second album of Rolling Stones covers--the first was released in 2005--strikes a solid balance between insightful interpretation and, well, faithfulness. If you're looking for the grit of the original songs, you won't find it. But
All Wood and Stones II is loaded with inspired arrangements (beautiful acoustic guitar work that harkens back to JB's 1970s duo, Batdorf and Rodney) and impressive singing. The harmonies might even recall the Beatles more than the Stones, yet it never feels like Batdorf and Stanley are overreaching.

Take "Get Off My Cloud," which adds a slightly different sounding chorus to what is already one of the Stones' finest early songs. Were you ever able to decipher Mick Jagger's final verse? You can now; it's funny and almost weird to hear a British Invasion star wishing for peace of mind. "Play With Fire" (a simple but haunting chord progression from Keith Richards and more cutting lyrics from Jagger) is another that gets a great arrangement; same for "Miss You," which has a structure very much unlike the 1978 Stones version. The more forgettable tracks on this tribute album are the ones that still stink from radio overkill, save for "Miss You." It's still on the radio too often, but the duo explore its possibilities and end up reminding us what was stellar about "Miss You" in the first place.

Batdorf and Stanley's fresh versions don't replace the originals, and you might wish for more (any?) funk, more murkiness. Most of All Wood and Stones II works for me because it brings to light how underrated the Jagger/Richards songwriting team is as far as rock history goes. Would you really rather hear something Leonard Cohen wrote?

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