A few notable Bowie covers have popped up in the news recently and are worth a mention here. The first is by new band The Last Of The Shadow Puppets, a union of Artic Monkeys singer Alex Turner and Miles Kane’s of The Rascals. Their first album, The Age Of Understatement, will feature their take on In The Heat Of The Morning, one of Bowie’s best early recordings if you ask me, that is actually a 40 year old song as of this year. It’s a unique selection for a cover so it should make an interesting listen. The album hits stores April 21st.
Next, Tulsa act Radio Radio has been covering I’m Afraid of Americans in concerts. Many of the Radio Radio songs I’ve heard have a strong bass line, so the choice is well suited for their style. LiveDaily.com gave the song a rave review, suggesting their version rivals Bowie’s own interpretation, if that is somehow possible (hehe). The tune is not included on their debut album so I’m working on tracking it down elsewhere. Americans has been reworked before by Trent Renzor, a band called “Q,” and most recently by Fashion Bomb on the unfairly-titled cover compilation, 2. Contamination.
Life on Mars has also been given the cover treatment by jazz trio The Bad Plus. Earlier this month they did a recorded show at the Linda Norris Auditorium in Albany, NY, and their performance of the song caught the attention of reviewer David Singer who wrote:
They followed with a roaring version of David Bowie’s “Life On Mars,” which had its unrecognizable but vicious Bad-Plus moments. As always, they either crept back into the tune or explosively broke free to rejoin the Bowie song.
Their rendition can be heard on their last album, Prog.
To hear a wide range of other Bowie covers, open up the player at the BowieZone.net and choose the “Bowie Covers” playlist.