Have a safe and happy Halloween, everyone! Please be extra safe in your activities tonight whether you're a child or an adult!
To get you in the mood, here is This is Halloween covered by Las Vegas rockers Panic at the Disco as heard on the re-release of the Nightmare Before Christmas soundtrack from two years ago.
There are two versions of this song on the re-released soundtrack, the other being Marilyn Manson's version. In my opinion, this cover is not that special as it is mainly just a sound alike version of the original and not a very good representation of the band.
In 2000, Aida, the Broadway musical featuring music by The Lion King composers Elton John and Tim Rice, made its debut and was an award winning hit. Based on the opera of the same name by Giuseppe Verdi, Aida was originally meant to be an animated feature, but Disney decided to stick with the stage. However, the musical is being developed into a live-action feature that should hit theatres in 2010.
A year before the Broadway production premiered, Elton John recorded all of the songs from Aida with famous pop stars. The album was released and is considered to be a 'concept album'. Even though this album was released before the official Broadway cast recording, I consider this to be a cover album so I will be posting tracks, starting with this one by the SPICE GIRLS
Today's cover is a track from the selection of music heard in Club 33, the exclusive, thousands of dollars membership, 14 year waiting list, club and restaurant hidden inside the Disneyland park.
Since us regular joes probably won't have the privilege of being members of Club 33, the only chance you will get to hear this music is this site!
Does anyone have any information on these tracks? Such as the musicians and recording dates?
BENA LOBO is a Bossa Nova artist from Rio de Janeiro whose style includes Samba, Jazz, Reggae, Funk, and Pop. However, for this cover of Under the Sea, Lobo went for a pure Bossa Nova groove and created one of the more interesting covers of the Little Mermaid classic.
The song can be found on a now out of print Bossa Nova cover album called BOSSA DISNEY that was released in 2001 in Japan.
TVXQ is the name of a popular boy band from Korea who have been together since 2004 and have been growing in popularity ever since.
The band, who name is actually Tong Vfang Xien Qi and is also known as Dong Bang Shin Ki, started out as an a capella group but quickly found their calling the the J-Pop (or K-Pop in this case since they are from Korea) side of the music world, which has made them a hit in Japan.
While most of their music is in Korean, a fair deal of it is in English, including this cover of A Whole New World which can be found on the Japanese exclusive DISNEYMANIA PRESENTS POP PARADE JAPAN.
Did everyone go out and buy Sleeping Beauty on DVD last week? I didn't because I already bought the 2-disc Special Edition that came out a few years ago. Now I'm told that there is a new version that has an even wider aspect ratio than the last release? You gotta be kidding me.
Anyway, today's cover is of Once Upon a Dream from Sleeping Beauty. The song comes from an adaptation of a piece Tchaikovsky wrote for his Sleeping Beauty ballet in the late 1800s.
Pyotr Tchaikovsky was written to by Ivan Vsevolozhsky, the Director of the Imperial Theatres in Saint Petersburg, who asked him to write a new ballet and after much discussion it was decided that it would be based on the famous fairy tale, Sleeping Beauty.
However, Tchaikovsky was not so sure about writing a new ballet because his last one, Swan Lake wasn't so popular. But it was made and by the early 1900s it became the second most popular ballet of its time. But Tchaikovsky wouldn't get to see the popularity of his ballet grow outside of Russia, he died in 1893.
This cover is by MOCEDADES wrote recorded it for their 21st album, MOCEDADES CANTA A WALT DISNEY.
Today's Disney cover is the Jungle Book's Bare Necessities sung by reggae legend TONY REBEL.
Tony started out as a reggae singer in Jamaica in the late 80s. He recorded a few indie albums until 1992 when he was signed to Columbia. He has recorded many albums throughout the years and is still active today, although he does a lot more DJ work.
This version of Bare Necessities is really fun to listen to, especially when Tony gets cooking toward the end of the track.
Not all of the tracks on NIGHTMARE REVISITED are good. And since today is Terrible Track Friday, I am going to share with you this terrible cover of Jack's Obsession by SPARKLEHORSE.
You can correct me if I'm wrong, but this cover is so unfaithful to the original that it should just be another song all together. Some people may find the new melody and bad falsetto voice pleasant to listen to but I find it to be boring and monotonous.
Some of the more unique tracks on NIGHTMARE REVISITED are the instrumental tracks that introduce us to a wide variety of artist that we wouldn't normally listen to. Such is the case with the YOSHIDA BROTHERS whose specialty is the shamisen.
The shamisen is an ancient Japanese three-stringed instrument similar to a guitar. It is a sound I'm sure you have heard. If you listen to the track it will be the first sound you will hear.
The Yoshida Brothers have become pseudo-celebrities due to their modern approach to playing the instrument which is much more rapid and percussive and set to modern instruments like drums and synths. On Nabbed, the Yoshida Brothers add electronic elements which melds the vintage qualities of the shamisen with the elements of modern music perfectly.
A bit more on the artistic side than their usual fare, THE ALL-AMERICAN REJECTS have contributed their rendition of Jack's Lament for NIGHTMARE REVISITED, a compilation album of Nightmare Before Christmas cover songs.
This is a really good cover. It keeps the feel of the original but also gives it a really different sound. And I really like how Tyson Ritter actually sings the lyrics rather than speaks them as Danny Elfman, the singing voice of Jack Skellington, does in the film.
This song comes just in time to remind us that these boys are still active. Their new single, Give You Hell, is currently getting radio play and their third studio album is out in two months.
I hope all you Canadians had a great Thanksgiving! I know I did and I sure enjoyed the day off of work! But now I'm back and it's time to dish out some more covers!
What I missed telling you yesterday due to the holiday is that October 13 is The Nightmare Before Christmas' 15th anniversary. A few week ago Disney released NIGHTMARE REVISITED, a compilation album of hard rock and indie rock bands covering all the songs, including the score, of the movie's soundtrack. The result is a wonderful surprise and this week I'll be sharing with you four of the track off that album.
The opening song is the Overture which actually doesn't appear in the film, but is included as the first track on the official soundtrack. It is a really well-written piece by Danny Elfman which encompasses all the major themes of the movie and strings them all together in a beautiful medley.
Covering the Overture is the Denver indie rock band DEVOTCHKA. This quartet formed in 1997 and their musical style is comprised of Romani, Greek, Slavic, Bolero, Mariachi music with American punk and folk roots. This, coupled with their unique instrumental make up, which includes accordion, sousaphone, bouzouki and theramin, make them a delight to listen to.
If you have never heard of DeVotchKa before, I would suggest checking them out. You may have already heard some of their work as they wrote and recorded the score to the indie film Little Miss Sunshine.
To conclude When You Wish Upon a Star Week I have posted a live cover that Jason Mraz Live performed at Java Joe's on April 20, 2002 in Ocean Beach, California.
Jason uses this song as a vehicle for improv with his buddies Bushwalla and Gregory Page. While it is fun to listen to, this cover may be for Mraz enthusiasts only.
And now for something completely different: A Eurobeat version of When You Wish Upon a Star!
LOLITA is a Eurobeat project that usually contains very fast synth lines but in this song they trade the synth for an electric guitar. The vocalist is Elena Gobbi Frattini who has been singing with the group since 1995.
Jazz is the musical style for day three of When You Wish Upon a Star Week and out of the numerous jazz versions of this song, I have chosen this cover by JIMMY SCOTT.
Scott began his career as a male jazz vocalist in the 40s but his career really took off when he signed to Ray Charles' record label, Tangerine, and recorded FALLING IN LOVE IS WONDERFUL which was produced by Charles.
He disappeared in the late 60s but made a comeback in 1991 which has survived to this very day. Now he usually plays Vegas.
Jimmy Scott has a genetic disorder called Kallmann's syndrome which prevented him from reaching puberty and has stunted his growth at five feet. This caused his voice to remain much higher than a typical male voice and gave his sound a distinct, romantic feeling that has won over many fans.
that was released in 2001 in Japan.
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