SONG OF THE DAY: April 13, 2010

Edie Brickell: A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall
From Edie Brickell And The New Bohemians: Ultimate Collection (Hip-O, 2002)

Perhaps one of my favorite covers of all time is Edie Brickell's cover of this Bob Dylan classic. It may be better than the original. At the very least, Brickell's singing voice is an easier pill to swallow. The New Bohemians do a great service by not overplaying the arrangement and simply letting it ride.

Originally, this song appeared on the soundtrack to Oliver Stone's “Born On The Fourth Of July,” which is apparently now out of print.

SONG OF THE DAY: MARCH 5, 2010

Donovan's "Atlantis" from 1968. There was a guy named Paul McCartney who provided some background vocals on this track. Not sure if anything else ever came of Mr. McCartney, but his presence on this one is surely felt. If only someone else had believed in him, I think he definitely could have cracked the top 10 at least once.

On a serious note, I dig the spoken word intro that lasts nearly 2 minutes. It really helps to build the song before its release. It's certainly a different approach, and one you don't hear in pop music today.

SONG OF THE DAY: MARCH 3, 2010

Came across this song today by B.o.B called "Put Me On." With his cadence and voice, he sounds a bit like Phife from A Tribe Called Quest on this particular song. I checked his MySpace page, and he does have more to him than just trying to fit in with a backpack crowd. "Put Me On" certainly appealed to me the most, however.

-Familiar sample - check (definitely paying homage to ATCQ without overly biting)
-Sing-songy hook - check
-Radio friendly - check. (When was the last time you heard a hip hop song that didn't have to be majorly altered or have suggestive lyrics littered throughout?)

If you like the song, you can also vote for the video on mtvU's The Freshmen.