Golddiggas Headnodders And Pholk Songs - Beautiful South (The) > Reviews > COVER me in honey

Author's product rating:   

Originality	Definitely a cut above the rest
Lyrics	Standard
Quality and consistency of tracks	Flawless
How does it compare to the artist's other releases	Outstanding
Value for Money

Advantages:	Not for the Complacent
Disadvantages:	Preconceptions can be wrong

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

I hate cover-versions. FACT
In my mind a cover-version is an act of legalised plagiarism. They provide an insight into the lack of talent of a performer, whose management team can’t find anything better to do than cash in on someone’s celebrity status.
And what really gets my hackles up is the army of fans who proclaim the performer a star, completely bypassing the fact that the original artist, who wrote/sang the song, did all the hard work.

Just look at ‘Call On Me’ by Eric Prydz. Five weeks at number one. And throwing in a video of scantily clad women has managed (for the most part) to disguise the fact that it nothing more than an over synthesised cover-version of Steve Winwood’s Valerie.

I love the Beautiful South. FACT
When I listen to music, I don’t want my delicate lugholes assaulted by computer generated drum & bass or the inane ramblings of gangsta rappers telling me how their hoe is really a b*tch. I don’t want Britney grunting or Christina screeching.
I want words, mood and above all, feeling.

Whereas the Beautiful South may not be, how can I put it, overly cheerful, they are able to convey their souls through their music and affect me on a deeper level.

So, when I heard about this album, I had a real dilemma on my hands. To buy, or not to buy, that was the question. (Oh dear, sorry Shakespeare)

Weighing up the options, I finally decided that I had to have it, if only to keep my B.S collection complete. But shelling out £12.99 at HMV hurt more than I thought it would.

When I got home, I decided that I would play it once to check that it wasn’t damaged, and then shelve it with the rest of the B.S cds.

The first thing I noticed, having managed to extricate the album from the endless plastic wrappers, was that the CD was not supplied in a normal case. Instead it is housed inside a little book, which forms the notes for the album. This is a pleasant little thing, hardbacked so as not to damage the CD, which is full of some interesting artwork, and very little else. The actual notes are incredibly thin on the ground, but fortunately they do identify the original artists of the song, which is a good thing and segues neatly to the playlist.

1. You’re the one that I want.
2. Livin’ thing.
3. This will be our year.
4. Ciao.
5. Valentine.
6. Don’t fear the reaper.
7. This old skin.
8. Don’t stop moving.
9. Till I can’t take it anymore.
10. Rebel prince.
11. Blitzkrieg bop.
12. I’m stone in love with you.

Now, I consider myself to be reasonably knowledgeable about music from the eighties and before, and with the exception of number 8 (S Club 7), all of these titles would appear to be from that era. And yet, I can only recall about 50% of these songs, and name the original artists of even fewer.

See how many you can remember, and try to name the artists, and I’ll give you the answers at the end of the review (if you behave).

As songs for ‘covering’ go, this is far from the obvious playlist, but it does fit well with the B.S. attitude of throwing a curve ball at their listeners.

Fortunately, the first song is one of the few that I know well, so I felt reasonably safe ramping up the stereo and lying down to listen to what the band had come up with.

BIG MISTAKE.

Yet again, B.S. has served its own brand of cover-version by taking a well known song and giving it the Hull twist. I don’t want to go too deeply into what they have done to this, or any of the other songs, as it would ruin the surprise, suffice it to say, “You won’t see it coming”.

And so the album continues. All the songs have a vague sense of familiarity about them, but it is difficult to pin them down.

Normally, I like to review all the individual songs on an album, giving points for technical merit etc, but I feel this album deserves more than being broken down. It would be like looking at your loved one and, by analysing their nose, their mouth etc trying to working out just why you love them, when the reality is that the entire package forms much more than its constituent parts and gives your loved one the soul that you so adore.

I will, however, briefly mention two of the best songs, which stand out just a little from the rest. Strangely, they are also two of the songs that I hadn’t heard before.

VALENTINE – a softly sung ballad.
Unemotional and hard-nosed as I am, I was surprised to find a tear welling up in the corner of my eye when I listened to this one. Beautiful, full of feeling……..words do not adequately express this song, but I guarantee that it will melt the most stoic of hearts.

CIAO – a bright, cheerful pop song.
The male and female voices sing point and counterpoint, playing off one another brilliantly in an oddly funny argument, something akin to the “Na ne na ne na na” arguments of a school playground.

As I said, these are two of the best songs, but this is like choosing your favourite Ferrari, or picking out the prettiest supermodel, ie a meaningless choice between aspects of perfection.

CONCLUSION

Having stated that I don’t like cover-versions, it may seem hypocritical of me to like this album. However, I think that the group has done enough of their own work on these songs that they could classed as completely new arrangements, rather than the standard fodder of re-released sameness. If only other groups would take a leaf out of the B.S. book and try to inject originality into their covers, then perhaps I would have less disdain for the whole genre.

As for this album, I only bought it a few days ago, and I must have played it at least 50 times. The entire package is excellent, bring a new twist to some older songs and making the obscure accessible.

When I bought it, I thought it would just end up gathering dust on the shelf, but the fact is that it is more likely to get worn out long before it encounters even a speck of debris.

ANSWER
You’re the one that I want Olivia Newton-John/John Travolta
Livin’ thing E.L.O
This will be our year The Zombies
Ciao Lush
Valentine Willie Nelson
Don’t fear the reaper Blue Oyster Cult
This old skin The Heppelbaums
Don’t Stop Moving S Club 7
Till I can’t take it anymore Brook Benton
Rebel prince Rufus Wainwright
Blitzkrieg bop The Ramones
I’m stone in love with you The Stylistics