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Here we are at the Ides of March already. It's time for another BATTLE OF THE BANDS, and what do ya know? I'm late to my own party. Not really surprised are you? I'll also freely admit that I'm not exactly prepared.
I had entertained the idea of being clever and using a song by that Chicago 'garage band made good', 'The Ides of March'. I always liked the big brass sound of their hit 'Vehicle', but unfortunately I couldn't find a cover that was strong enough to give them any kind of a fight. Next, I flirted with another idea that has been rattling around my brain for a few months now, but don't quite feel it this morning (or is it getting on to afternoon? Seeing as how I just got up, I'm not sure).
BUT, this Saturday morning on the actual Ides of March, I am feeling this one. So, let's get on with it, shall we?
First up, the original; Joni Mitchell and her 'Big Yellow Taxi'.
Next, Counting Crows still lamenting that 'You don't know what you got till it's gone'.
Now you know the drill. Leave me a comment with your vote and tell me why you voted thew way you did. Remember to choose wisely, it is The Ides of March, after all.
Next, get yourself on over to the home of Mr. Stephen T. McCarthy and see what craziness he has for you in his BATTLE OF THE BANDS. I'll also trust Mr. McCarthy to have a link to other participants who are BATTLING it out today. (Ya'all know I'm normally to lazy to include all the links, but today I'm hopin' that link to STMc works. Yeah, it's THAT kind of a morning.)
If you're not a regular participant and want to host your own BATTLE, please say so in the comment box so that I, and others can visit your site also. I'll be back on the 21st with my vote, my reasoning (however unsound it might be) and the final tally. Thanks for your continued participation in this fun little event.
I don't like the Counting Crows, but I do like their version better. Seems smoother.
ReplyDeleteThanks Alex. That's an honest vote for their version of the song, seeing as how you really don't like the band.
DeleteI prefer Counting Crows on this song. Like Alex said their version sounds smoother, but unlike Alex I like most of what I've heard by Counting Crows.
ReplyDeleteThe Joni sings on this song always annoyed me somewhat. It's like she's trying to imitate some Jamaican accent or something--it just sounds kind of weird to my ears.
Better vocals on Counting Crows and I like the production values and arrangement of their version better.
Lee
An A to Z Co-Host
Tossing It Out
Smoother it is then. So far we have a shut-out going on here. Ha, ha, ha!
DeleteI don't want to say too much and tip my hand in this BATTLE, but I'm gonna remember your comment when I come back on the 21st. 'Jamaican accent' Ha! Was that TMI? I'm hoping it can be taken either way.
I had to look up "TMI"-- yeah I'm kind of dumb about such things. I haven't learned textspeak yet.
DeleteLee
An A to Z Co-Host
Tossing It Out
Sorry about that, but when it comes to textspeak never trust a dumb blonde. Often I get it wrong and nobody knows what I'm talking about.
DeleteThis is a song that has been covered a lot (Dylan even did a version), and I have never really found a version I liked better than Joni's.
ReplyDeleteI do like CC's take-nice pacing, and the pause towards the last chorus makes a great dramatic effect, but it still feels like her song to me. Plus, the "ooh-bop-bop's" in their version hurt my ears. At first I thought it might be Rickie Lee Jones, but I Googled it and it's Vanessa Carlton. Normally, I lover her stuff, but not so much here.
So Joni gets my vote. End of shut out.
So I am
OK shut out over.
DeleteLooks like blogger cut your last sentence a little short there. No worries, they do that to me all of the time. I actually thought most of the voters would agree with you and it could possibly be a shut out in Joni's favor. Glad to see that not happening either way here.
I think I started to write the last sentence, and scrolled up, and then forgot there was a fragment there....
DeleteEither that or
Wow...too bad Blogger cut out that one...
DeleteI solved the federal deficit, fixed Obamacare, and revealed who shot Kennedy in that sentence...but I can't remember any of it now.
No shut out. I vote for Joni as well, it's her song I believe, and she's from Winnipeg, Manitoba, a Canadian. She used to live on one of our Gulf Islands in BC. Her range is far superior to the Crows. She still has a good voice, too.
ReplyDeleteOK, Joni gets another one. I knew she was Canadian from Manitoba. Had no idea she ever lived in BC, but then why not. I'm thinking that's the most beautiful part of Canada.
DeleteNot a choice. Big Counting Crows fan here. Make mine Adam!
ReplyDeleteWell, there's a definitive answer.
DeleteHave to go with #2. Felt much more easy sounding
ReplyDeleteHey, aren't you Canadian. Jumping ship there, eh? got you down for Counting Crows.
DeleteYou actually hit one of the songs on my list this time... hahahaha. Of course, I was undecided about how to work the match-up. I really like the Amy Grant cover of this song (best of all). So, I think I might have pitted her against the Counting Crowes and left the original out of it (Joni Mitchell). However, I am going to vote for the Counting Crowes as Alex and Arlee. I think the song is sung better, smoother vocals, more interesting instrumentation... the only thing I don't like is the bop bopping from Vanessa Carlton... the rest of her contributions on the song are great.
ReplyDeleteWhen I say "sung better"... I mean that, for some reason, Joni Mitchell sounds odd on this track. Clipped maybe. I am not sure what is going on with her, because I really like most of her songs. And that ending.... oh dear. I know that she laughs, but it reminds me of myself when I totally screw up a song while singing karaoke. I laugh because OMG what just happened to my voice???? And that is how I feel about how she wraps up Big Yellow Taxi.
It's bound to happen that some of us will come up with the same song on our lists. I keep wondering if we'll actually see two 'published' BATTLES hosting the same song. Of course, since we don't all post at exactly the same time, I suppose someone could see that 'their' song has been used and make a 'quick change', but then I usually hit that publish button before I look at the other posts. Anyway...
DeleteGo you down for Counting Crows.
I've never really been a Joni Mitchell fan; I've never owned even one of her albums. In fact, the only song of hers I can think of off the top of my head that I really, really like a whole lot is 'Help Me'.
ReplyDeleteIn boxing, when there's a fight for the title, the challenger can't merely beat the reigning champion and win the title. To strip the current champion of his title, the challenger must beat the champ CONVINCINGLY. That's just the way it's always seemed to be. In other words, the champ gets the benefit of ANY doubt.
That's how I feel about this BOTB match-up. The Counting Crows version is fine - nuttin' wrong with it. But they didn't do enough to take Joni's championship belt from her on this song. It's her song, and her version is spunkier, snappier, jazzier, and I kind of like it. I vote for Joni.
I've already forgotten who said it, but one commenter above said something about Joni sounding like she's trying to do a Jamaican accent, or words to that effect.
I don't hear that at all. It just sounds like Joni Mitchell to me. (And, by the way, that's one reason I was never a real fan of hers; she had such a distinctive voice and singing pattern, or lyrical rhythm, that almost all of her songs always seemed to sound the same to me.)
If we wanna talk about a singer putting on a fake (and very badly faked) Jamaican accent, we need to mention Sting (formerly of The Police). Here's this dopey, White, English guy who was constantly trying to make himself sound like a Jamaican, mon! That put-on accent of his irritated the crap outta me; I just wanted to punch him in the mouth, hoping it would knock that phony accent out of it.
Sting was such a poseur that I could barely stand to listen to him. I'd start station surfing just as soon as I heard those fake-Jamaic lyrics emanating from my car's radio. That was one annoying English bloke!
~ D-FensDogg
'Loyal American Underground'
There is a lot here that I agree with and I'm tempted to enter into a discussion, but surely then I surly would tip my hand as to how I intend to vote. I don't want to do THAT.
DeleteSting being the 'safe topic', I will say that I agree with you wholeheartedly. Nothing worse than a 'fake' singing accent. I tend to feel that way about Bono of U2, not sure if it's a phoney accent or not, but he definitely seems like a supreme poseur to me and I can barely take a few seconds of his music. When he shows up somewhere to 'talk' (mostly about himself) I want to gag and either leave the room or change the channel (if I have control - since I don't watch much TV, it would usually be somewhere else). Another annoying fake bloke!
Oh, you shouldn't even get me started on U2.
DeleteI've said a million times that they are the single most overrated Rock group in history. (Keep in mind that you have to be generally highly rated to begin with in order to be the MOST overrated.)
I first heard of U2's existence from David Caruso. He was a big fan of theirs from the beginning and he recommended them to me one day on the set of 'Hill Street Blues'.
My friend Pooh eventually got really into their "music" and wound up owning several albums.
I thought they were boring to the extreme! They seemed to know only two chords which sounded like this: Huh-Uh. So musically, every song seemed to sound like Huh-Uh, Huh-Uh, Huh-Uh, and the only variation from song to song was how fast or slow they played Huh-Uh.
The songs start out at a certain pace and maintain that pace all the way through without any variation in the time, not even in a bridge. And their instrumental breaks... Ha! Nothing happens. I mean, seriously, they have a musical break and NOTHING happens, except that Bono stops singing and the guitarist ("The Edge"?) continues his rhythm guitar playing... Huh-Uh, Huh-Uh, Huh-Uh...
U2 was boring, Boring, BORING!!! I have no idea how they became so popular because, to me, they sounded like a teenaged garage band that never left the garage, or graduated to a more sophisticated musical level.
~ D-FensDogg
'Loyal American Underground'
Another one we agree 100% on. Makes you kind of wonder... In all of the creative arts there are so many talented people out there, some of them make it big and get the recognition they deserve, while others are passed over. Then there are the losers and poseurs who manage to SOMEHOW become stars. It doesn't seem to make sense. At times it doesn't seem to have anything to do with talent.
DeleteYou guys sound like my son... another veteran U2 hater.
DeleteApparently an intelligent sort of guy.
DeleteEven though I like CC, I'm going with Joni on this one all the way. This is one of her earliest songs, she sounds so young and fresh and her message was so hip for the time. Yet here we are, who knows how many years later, and the message is still relevant.
ReplyDeleteShe does sound young and if I had used one of the videos of her actually singing you would see JUST HOW YOUNG is was when this was recorded.
DeleteI have to go with #1, tough choice
ReplyDeleteI'm always glad to hear that it was a tough choice. That seems to make for a better BATTLE. Thanks for the vote.
DeleteSuch different versions of the same song. I love that string guitar in Joni's, but her voice grates on me with its choppy lyrics. I do like the techno sound of the Crows, and the guys voice is smooth, makes the lyrics and not just the music worth listening to. I'll go with Crouching Crows for this one.
ReplyDeleteGottcha down for the Crows.
ReplyDeleteI also noted that you posted a BATTLE this time. SO, anyone else reading this stop on over at donnahole.blogspot.com and see what she's got.
Wow, this has to be the first one where I've heard both songs and already had a pre-formed opinion on which I liked better. But I still listened one more time just to be sure, and yep, I still like the Counting Crows version better. Which is funny, because this might be the only Counting Crows song I've ever liked...
ReplyDeleteIt seems you're not the only one who is not a fan of CC, except for this song. Thanks for giving it a fair trial and listening to both. appreciate your vote.
DeleteLove those musical stylings. :-)
ReplyDelete