I agree with the claim made in the post title*, but that raises an interesting question: what qualities make a sped up version successful.
* One theory -- there are more interpretive options available when slowing a song down than speeding it up.
On the other hand, James Taylor singing Every Day. Do a little more heroin, James, you're not calm enough yet.
I don't know if it's an improvement, exactly, but the Voodoo Glow Skulls' "Charlie Brown" is also good. (pointed out to me by Ted Barlow!)
Have you ever heard "Summertime" performed as it was in the original production? A bouncy little number that fair rocks along. Disastrous.
re: 4
A lot of Tin Pan Alley 'standards' seem to be like that, before jazz musicians and jazz singers get their hands on them. Jaunty.
Stop oppressing us, Ben!
I refute you thus! *kicks rock, plays Scooter loudly* (also: incessantly)
Original 'Try a Little Tenderness,' which, actually, on relistening, is pretty good, but still not as good.
I'm sad that you don't like Hansard et al's cover.
These kids are pretty bad ass. I want to go to New York and put $5 in their bucket.
I'm sad that you don't like Hansard et al's cover.
On another listen, I'd retract "sucky". But I still don't care for it all that much!
"The Merry-Go-Round Broke Down" was of course greatly sped up for usage in Looney Tunes.
Neb's titular claim holds for the Cowboy Junkies' "Sweet Jane" as compared to the Velvet Underground's original. Although there is something about Lou Reed's voice ....
I love Natalie Maines' cover of "Mother". (It's relevant because the Dixie Chicks are also odiously named?) It's not slowed down, though, because to slow down Pink Floyd you'd have to take enough bennies to be comatose.
Neb's titular claim holds for the Cowboy Junkies' "Sweet Jane" as compared to the Velvet Underground's original
To BALB, the titular claim doesn't allow one to make any inferences about a particular cover.
IT could be true, for example, that there are 4 times as many slow covers as fast covers, and 2 times as many good slow covers as fast covers. Making both the titular claim true as well the claim that, "a higher percentage of spend up covers are good compared to slowed down covers."
13: Bennies are amphetamines. Geez, mom.
Why aren't you in school right now?
The Dead cover reminds me of Philip Glass.
Well, if you'd been in school, you wouldn't have seen me do it.
Ani DiFranco's cover of "The Poet Game" is good (and slightly slowed down compared to the original).
I love Natalie Maines' cover of "Mother".
I was a bit disappointed to find it was a cover of "Mother" by Pink Floyd rather than "Mother" by The Police.
14: To BALB, the titular claim doesn't allow one to make any inferences about a particular cover.
Quite right on all counts.
Kris Delmhorst has nice acoustic covers of many Cars songs, here's a slow one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sti2quR_4dQ
22: I really love that cover, far more than the original. And I do like Greg Brown in general. I was at a music festival that featured both of them, and I was really hoping (pointlessly) that they'd duet it. Or have a play off. Alas, no.
Neb's titular claim holds for the Cowboy Junkies' "Sweet Jane" as compared to the Velvet Underground's original.
Two Nice Girls' mashup of "Sweet Jane" with Joan Armatrading's "Love and Affection" has a strong claim to being the best cover of that particular little ditty. And it is very slow.
I really love that cover, far more than the original.
I just got that album last week, and there are several covers that are very good. In particular the sequence of tracks 2-4 (with Ani Difranco, Iris DeMent, and Ferron) are all great. That's a strong start to the collection.
Whoops, I am the Kris Delmhorst fan of 27.
A fast cover that is IMO great is Mariachi El Bronx's version of Love Sick by Dylan. Lots of Leonard Cohen covers succeed for being sped up-- Rufus Wainwright's version of Everybody knows works for me. The Pogues basically sped things up when they did covers. Elmore James sped up Dust my Broom from Robert Johnson.
I'll add Cat Power's "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" which not only slows the original down but cuts out the most recognizable part of the song. Let's call it equal to the original rather than superior.
The Residents' version of "Satisfaction" is very good, and Snakefinger's guitar solo is wonderful.
A sped up counter-example: Club Nouveau's "Lean On Me" is way better than Bill Withers'.
Richie Havens's cover of Rocky Raccoon is much better than the original, and I think sped up.
chris y's 29 is so right. nosflow's 34 is also very right, as I'm sure are lots of other people's takes. I just wanted to add the link.
Two Nice Girls' mashup of "Sweet Jane" with Joan Armatrading's "Love and Affection" has a strong claim to being the best cover of that particular little ditty. And it is very slow.
Yes! I'd forgotten all about that.
30: That album taught me that I like Greg Brown's songs more than I like Greg Brown singing them. It's lovely.
It's lovely.
Agreed. I've been listening to it on and off this afternoon and it's a really strong album. Add the Gillian Welch, Mary Chapin Carpenter, and Robin Lee Berry covers to my list of stand-out tracks (and I'm sure others will stand out on at a different time -- I haven't listened to it enough for my impressions to completely settle in).
Slowing stuff down tends to take a lot of the dance out, even while musicians can put other stuff in. Ragtime played slowly can be a wonderful surprise -- much harder to play well that way.
31 - Steely Dan dramatically sped up "East St. Louis Toodle-Oo" compared to Duke Ellington's original. Almost a different song. Of course, Rodgers and Hammerstein should be sending flowers to John Coltrane in Musician Heaven for his "My Favorite Things."
OutKast has an awesome nice (fast) version of My Favorite Things, too.
21: I did a think about that version.
Nice. I'll think about that.
Teddy Thompson's covers of George Jones' "She Thinks I Still Care" and Leonard Cohen's "Tonight Will Be Fine" benefit from both slower tempos and the voice of Teddy Thompson.
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A friend of mine just had someone pull a gun on her when she tapped the back of his car with an umbrella to say "don't back up onto me" so I think maybe I'll stop smacking cars that almost run me over. It's so satisfying though. But yeah.
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If it works that well to change behavior, maybe you should start pulling a gun on cars that almost hit you. I think it would probably be legal here, if you had a concealed carry permit.
Also I hope she called the cops on the guy.
Jesus fucking christ, Smearcase. What the fuck is wrong with people?
She said she didn't get a good look at the plates so there seemed to be no reason to call the cops.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JW3BrH1kxuc
A couple more covers from Jerry, just to keep your day going.
48 Never had anything worse than curses. But I just slam them with my hand, rather than using a weapon. But she should have reported it even if she knew that the cops couldn't do a thing. Dude who pulls guns on people when he gets annoyed is dangerous and likely to do it again. With a description of the guy and the car, next time he goes nuts the cops might get him and maybe she could id him.
While this version of The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down by Glen Hansard et al is only slightly slowed down, it is still infinitely glorious. Plus it has Lisa Hannigan. Swoon.