Today's post title is a line from Björk's 1995 song, Cover Me.
Björk shared that,
"When me and Nellee decided
to work together again on Post, I wrote this to him.
I guess I was trying to make fun of myself,
how dangerous I manage sometimes to make album making.
And trying to lure him into it.
But it is also a admiration thing from me to him.
I wouldn’t have trusted anyone else."
The song's second verse goes like this
This is really dangerous
Cover me
But worth all the effort
Cover me
Which could be interpreted a caution - and invitation - to the daunting prospect of covering a Björk song.
Not for the faint hearted, most artists wouldn't even attempt it, and you've got to have some nerve to follow through with it. Many have tried, many have failed.
And whilst I don't think any version can even hope to better the original, what they all helpfully demonstrate is that, despite a reputation for esoteric music with mind-bogglingly complex vocal and musical arrangements, at the heart of it all, Björk writes deceptively simple, brilliant pop songs.
Hyperballad seems to be the discerning musician's Everest, and I've included four brave ascents here.
Robyn is herself a superlative songwriter and performer, but surely even she must have felt a teensy bit nervous performing the song with the Icelandic Symphony Orchestra to a live audience that included Björk herself a few rows from the front. No wonder Robyn keeps her eyes closed for most of the performance!
The other three versions of Hyperballad are all by artists that are new to me.
Jacob Collier's wardrobe choices may bemuse, but his piano playing doesn't. His version of Hyperballad, just vocal and piano, with even flourishes of the latter to showcase but not show off.
Chris Thile and Aoife O'Donovan are both known for work with Nickel Creek and Crooked Still respectively, bands I've heard of but know next to nothing about. This version of Hyperballad comes from Chris; Live From Here touring show, with strong vocals from Aoife and effecting mandolin playing from Chris.
Last but not least, a nine-minute live version by Tom Barton, built up entirely from his own vocal loops and beatboxing. It's an engrossing listen.
I had to include the Murmuration Choir version of All Is Full Of Love because it was performed in my birthplace Bristol, though as you will see, the audience were all lying down for this one, as it also doubled as a sound bath experience.
The only version that was familiar to me coming into this post (pun intended) was El Guincho's singular take on Cover Me, which inspired not only the headline/title, but also the main image.
The image by musician and photographer Scott Hansen, adorns the cover of Enjoyed, a remake of Björk's second album Post issued as a free download by Stereogum in 2008. El Guincho aka Pablo Díaz-Reixa is among other hand-picked artists such as Liars, Xiu Xiu and Dirty Projectors, all offering up their own tribute. The latter's contribution even led to a collaborative EP with Björk.
You may like some of these, you may hate them, but any lead you to either more of the artist's own music, or listening to Björk again today, then that's good enough for me.
1) Hyperballad (Live @ Polar Music Prize): Robyn (2010)
2) Venus As A Boy (Like A Version, Triple JJJ, Australia): Kali Uchis (2019)
3) Come To Me (Live @ The Line of Best Fit, End Of The Road Festival): Moses Sumney (2017)
4) Undo: Jaden Raso (2021)
5) Hyperballad (LIve @ Mahogany Session, Heritage & Arts Centre, London): Jacob Collier (2023)
6) All is Full of Love (Live @ Steiner Academy, St. Matthias, Bristol): Murmuration Choir (2019)
9) Hyperballad (Live @ Live from Here): Chris Thile ft. Aoife O'Donovan (2019)
10) Hunter (Live @ Liepajas Pludmale, Latvia): Sus Dungo (2012)
11) Army Of Me (Lockdown Version): Dead Christine (2020)
12) Cover Me: El Guincho (2008)
13) Hyperballad (Live): Tom Barton (2011)
No comments:
Post a Comment