Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoffs - Under The Covers: Vol. 2
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Artist: Matthew Sweet & Susanna HoffsEdition: Music CD
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language)
CD Release Date: 2009-07-21
Music Label: Shout Factory
Soundtracks:
- Sugar Magnolia
- Go All The Way
- Second Hand News
- Bell Bottom Blues
- All The Young Dudes
- You're So Vain
- Here Comes My Girl
- I've Seen All Good People: Your Move/All Good People
- Hello It's Me
- Willin'
- Back Of A Car
- Couldn't I Just Tell You
- Gimme Some Truth
- Maggie May
- Everything I Own
- Beware Of Darkness
Music reviews of Under The Covers: Vol. 2
Music Review: These COVERS Aren't Pulled Up All The Way!
Rating: 3 Stars
Having loved VOL. 1 of UNDER THE COVERS by Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs, I was really looking forward to VOL. 2. Knowing it was going to cover the '70's, I really expected it to rock (I've long felt that the '70's were the "rock" decade, with the '60's being the "vocal" decade, the '80's being the "singles" decade and the '90's...well, we won't discuss the '90's!!).
Sadly, nothing could be further from the truth ~ most of VOL. 2 is light-weight, ill-arranged and lacking in any kind of edge whatsoever. In fact, it almost boarders on kareoke. Hoffs fares best, but that's not saying a whole lot.
Things start off nicely enough with the Grateful Dead's "Sugar Magnolia." The arrangement is crisp and clean, with lovely harmonies. Hoffs' lead vocal is easy-going and smooth, gently caressing the lyrics. One of the disc's true bright spots.
The Raspberries' "Go All The Way" doesn't fare as well...sounding silly and dated, it sports vocals that are feather-light. Maybe if they had cranked it up a notch or ten, and really ROCKED it, this might have worked, but, as it is, it's VOL. 2's first major disappointment.
But it's nothing compared to the next track. Fleetwood Mac has been my favorite band for the last 35 years, so I was jazzed to know that they had made the cut and were going to have a song on VOL. 2. Unfortunately, Sid and Susie's take on "Second Hand News" is an absolute disaster. Lacking the intensity, edge and sexual heat/frustration/anger that propelled the original, this version just kind of plods along. Sweet's lead vocal is TOTALLY uninspired, while Hoffs is no Stevie Nicks. And haven't we heard enough of Lindsey Buckingham's guitar pyrotechnics by now? Time to get a new schtik, Mr. B.!
Derek & the Dominos' "Bell Bottom Blues" has a nice groove to it, what with it's stinging guitar riffs and soaring backing vocals. Plus, it's almost sexy (versus sad) hearing Hoffs plead "Do you want to see me crawl across the floor?/Do you want to hear me beg you to take me back?/I'd gladly do it."
Next up is the disc's biggest mis-fire, an god-awful take on Mott the Hoople's "All The Young Dudes." Once again, stripped of the original's sexual heat and playfulness, Sweet's lead vocal is a laughable train wreck, while Hoffs' bleating backing vocals are woefully out of place. And what's with the lyric changes ("I want to KICK you")? C'MON!!!!
Far better ~ and, actually, the album's best cut ~ is the pair's take on Carly Simon's signature song, "You're So Vain." Like Fleetwood Mac, Carly has been my favorite female vocalist for almost 40 years, so after the debacle that was "Second Hand News", I was a little worried. I needn't have been; it really feels as if they took their time with this cut. It's a little darker, a little edgier, than the original. Hoffs is in fine voice throughout, with equal parts hurt and anger brimming over. Sweet's harmony vocal conveys a sense of awe, astonishment and mild disgust, while the arrangement is tight, taut and together. Still a classic, even after 37 years!
Tom Petty's "Here Comes My Girl" is another mis-fire....Sweet's lead vocal just coasts along, while Hoffs' sugary backing track is (once again) waaaay out of place. The original song always felt like it took place in a back alley or on a street corner....this version feels like it takes place in a mall.
Yes' "I've Seen All Good People" starts out nicely enough, with some gorgeous acoustic guitar from Steve Howe and a lovely lead vocal from Hoffs. However, the track just goes on WAY too long, ending things on an absolutely monotonous note.
Todd Rundgren's "Hello It's Me" has a nice vibe to it, offering up Sweet's best led vocal on this version of the series.
"Willin'", the Little Feat trucker anthem that Linda Ronstadt pulled off so well, burys Hoffs under it's weight...her sweet voice just can't handle and/or convey the resignation, weariness and, well, weight. Nice try, but this one end's up in the "Miss" column.
Big Star's (relative) obscurity works to the pair's advantage on "Back Of A Car." The duo manages to turn the track into their own, resulting in an almost Bangles-esque rocker.
Another high point is Rundgren's "Couldn't I Tell You." A spirited arrangement, a great lead vocal from Hoffs and shimmering backing vocals all add up to a killer cut (I particularly like the call-and-respond bridge, as well as the way Hoffs practically spits the lines "Keep your head and everything will be cool/You didn't have to make me feel like a fool"). Brilliant!!
John Lennon's "Gimme Some Truth" doesn't fare as well. Once again, Sweet's lead vocal seems forced and almost cartoonish, while Hoffs seems SO out of place. One of rock's greatest roars, reduced to a sad, silly little whimper.
The gender-bending works a little better with Rod Stewart's "Maggie May". Hoffs offers up a wounded, weary lead vocal, while special mention has to be made of Greg Leisz' atmospheric mandolin playing (Still works after all these years!).
Things wrap up with a delicate take on Bread's "Everything I Own" and a haunting version of George Harrison's "Beware Of Darkness." "Everything I Own" shines like a muted diamond, while "Beware The Darkness" creeps along, all sinister and soulful. Definitely one of Sweet's better lead vocals!
So.....would I buy a VOL. 3? Without a doubt. I just hope that, if there is one ~ and it sounds like there might be! ~ Sweet and Hoffs do it because they WANT to, not because they feel they HAVE to (You can't shake the feeling throughout much of this disc that Sweet was more concerned about getting back to his recently released solo album, while Hoffs was mainly thinking about the upcoming Bangles release). The concept is still a good one....it's just the execution that's been short-sheeted (As with all my reviews, I'm docking the disc half a star, not for not including the lyrics, but because even the play-by-play song choice commentary sounds forced and campy this time around).
Description of Under The Covers: Vol. 2
Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs delighted rock and pop fans when they teamed up as Sid 'n Susie to record an album's worth of '60s classics called Under the Covers Vol. 1. Now, three years later, Under the Covers Vol. 2 finds our heroes moving forward through rock's back pages to take on another decade: the '70s. From power-pop like The Raspberries and Big Star to the soft-rock of Carly Simon and Bread, and from the classic-rock of John Lennon and Derek and the Dominos to the prog-rock of Yes, Sid 'n Susie offer a pretty thorough survey of the state of rock, just before the Sex Pistols. Features guest appearances by Lindsey Buckingham of Fleetwood Mac, Steve Howe of Yes, and George Harrison's son, Dhani Harrison.Alternative Rock CDs
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