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In keeping with the season, here is a New Year's themed BOTB post, timed to be posted as the ball drops.
Just in case you forget how this works...it's not really that difficult.
I post two versions of a song.
You listen to them.
You pick the one you like best and say why in the comments.
Since you're up, and obviously sober enough to work a computer, check out these other bloggers who are doing the same thing.
Far Away Series (the one to blame for all of this)
STMcC Presents BATTLE OF THE BANDS
Tossing It Out
Your Daily Dose
Curious As A Cathy
The Creative Outlet of Stratplayer
The Sound Of One Hand Typing
Since it is the dawn of a new year (2015 if you can believe it) the song today is New Year's Day.
First, the original classic by U2...
and next, a cover from Steve Morse (Dixie Dregs, Kansas, Deep Purple, Flying Colors, as well as a boatload of solo material)
Listen, vote, get back to the party.
Happy New Year!
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To me this is pretty much a toss up. The cover is well done but not particularly revelatory. Fine guitar work though.
ReplyDeleteI prefer the leaner more roughshod U2 version. Besides I have to vote in contrary to our buddy McCarthy and I think we both know where his vote will be going.
Lee
Tossing It Out
I actually picked this song because of the guitar work on the cover-I found it far more interesting than the U2 original.
DeleteNot that there were a slew of New Year's Day themed songs to pick from...
I'll be by in the afternoon to listen... or maybe tomorrow. Got Time Machine to do in a bit...
ReplyDeleteTomorrow will be too late. The year will be old by then-it depreciates by 30% on January 2.....
DeleteI see that you decided to ring in the new year by rattling Stephen T. McCarthy's cage. Not sure that was so wise since he can actually reach out and touch you... and probably in not a good way.
ReplyDeleteMoving on... I LIKE U2. I know that statement will have Mr. McCarthy gagging and hacking. Whatevs. I stand by it. I'm a child of the 80s. I love love love The Joshua Tree and Rattle and Hum. Two of my favorite records. The song Bad, not found on either of those, is one of my favorites. I also really like When Love Comes To Town with B.B. King and All I Want Is You. That's just to name a few. I really like U2. I've even tried to karaoke a few of their songs... an experiment with less than desirable results I must say. Although I can do I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For adequately.
I knew as soon as I hit play on the second video that they weren't getting my vote. They don't have the Edge and that makes all the difference.
U2 for me.
P.S. Blowing kisses at you Stephen....
Well, McCarthy is close by, but they don't call me the Artful Dodger for nuttin'...
DeleteI do like U2 as well, but as I say in my comment to Lee, have always found the guitar somewhat lacking. I like JT, but have always felt Rattle & Hum was far and away their best piece of work-mainly because of the song you cite (WLCTT).
However, I'd encourage you to go back to the second video and just listen to the guitar-not to change your vote, but to see why I thought these two were worthy of being pitted against each other.
"GAGGING AND HACKING"...
ReplyDeleteNothing changes on New Years Day.
Nothing happens in U2 songs.
This is actually one of U2's most listenable songs, and that's really saying... nuttin' at all.
I was all prepared to vote for the cover version (as you all knew I would) but as I listened to it I began to think: Gee. Steve Morse does nothing too.
The song sounded so similar to the original that I began thinking maybe I'd vote it a tossup, or even vote for U2 simply because they wrote and recorded it and it's no worse than the Steve Morse cover.
But then at the 3:15 mark, we finally started getting some interesting playing and a really cool guitar tone that appealed to me. So now I'm thinking: Alright, well at least it's not the U2 guitarist (Edge?) just strumming the same couple chords over and over.
So, as predicted by the others, my vote ultimately goes to Steve Morse. Although I will add that I liked this song better by him only very marginally, because it's really not all that much different from the original.
[*Waving back to Robin*]
~ D-FensDogg
'Loyal American Underground'
POSTSCRIPT:
LC, you've shut down your USSR political blog?
Not a surprise vote...
DeleteThe USSR blog is on hiatus, with this one to follow in a few days (have Christmas music posts scheduled through the 6th).
Taking a break-January looks to be busy at work anyway, so this will help cut down time in front of a monitor.
Geez - must be my day for wanting vocals of one version tracked onto the other. Though I'm not U2 material, neither am I into the 2nd version's vocal - however there's something more pleasing about the challenger's guitar and that's my story...
ReplyDeleteI vote... All Star Salute to Christmas... riffing right along! Nice one. Happy 2015 to you!
That guitar did it for me as well....
DeleteI go for the original. I am traditional I guess and I was expecting the 2nd one to actually suck for me but it was quite good I just am one who actually likes the guitar from the first better and the singer
ReplyDeleteNo wrong answers here!
DeleteHello! Just surfed over from BotB. I'm going to have to go with the U2 original - this came out when I was a tweener and U2 was a rock band and not a pop band, and WAY before they became so commercialized. Don't get me wrong, I think the band is an important band and love their humanitarian side. However, I've only liked a few of their songs since Rattle and Hum.
ReplyDeleteSteve Morse is great and I do love his guitar talent, but Bono's voice - especially the pre-millionaire Bono's raw, rebellious voice - just slays me.
Kim @ This Belle Rocks
Happy New Year! Let's start 2015 with a little sympathy.
Yeah, the band really started to believe their own press, too.
DeleteI admit it too - I like U2. OLD U2, before all the success made Bono's ego explode to outrageous levels. But those early albums (Boy, October, and War) from when they were an unknown band are great.
ReplyDeleteAnd while I think Morse does some great playing on the cover, the U2 version is the clear winner for me.
Hope your 2015 is great!
I don't hate U2, but think they got overhyped in the 90's and 00's.
DeleteWell, this one surprised me, as did the story of Morse. I'm going with Morse, MUCH to my surprise, as just a hair more vivid.
ReplyDeleteI kind of thought this would be U2 by a landslide...
DeleteWell, it was a toss up for me also. Both versions are exactly the same; except U2 is rough and blaring and Morse has a quieter vocals and guitar. Maybe I'm still hung over, so I'll give my vote to the softer Morse sound :)
ReplyDeleteI don't like U2 and I REALLY don't like Bono (Bonehead), so I figured I would vote for the other guys out of sheer dislike, but when I listened, I'm with most everybody else,there isn't much difference. So, I'm gonna stick with my original plan and go with the other guys, they didn't do it better or very different, but at least it's not U2 and Bonehead.
ReplyDeleteI... can't stand U2. At all. Like McCarthy said, this is a more listenable song of theirs, but still not something I like. And Steve Morse's version really isn't anything groundbreaking, but it's not Bono, so... Steve Morse it is!
ReplyDelete