This blog presents our findings of our project work on Rock History. We have been researching on different topics. The entries represent the variety of our interests as well as musical taste... so enjoy...
Yesterday was written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney in 1965. According to Guinness world records, the song was covered more than seven million times in the 20th century. It was voted the Best song in the 20th century in 1999. 2000 it was voted the nr. 1 Pop song of all time by MTV and Rolling Stone Magazin. It was included in the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1997.
The first cover version was released by Matt Monro in 1965.
Yesterday
All my troubles seemed so far away
Now it looks as though they're here to stay
Oh, I believe
In yesterday
Suddenly
I'm not half the man I used to be
There's a shadow hanging over me
Oh, yesterday
Came suddenly
Why she
Had to go I don't know
She wouldn't say
I said
Something wrong now I long
For yesterday
Yesterday
Love was such an easy game to play
Now I need a place to hide away
Oh, I believe
In yesterday
Why she
Had to go I don't know
She wouldn't say
I said
Something wrong now I long
For yesterday
Yesterday
Love was such an easy game to play
Now I need a place to hide away
Oh, I believe
In yesterday
Some cover versions:
Marvin Gaye
Ray Charles
Frank Sinatra
A great song and great covers, but you still can`t beat the original by The Beatles!
The song was written by Bobby Scott and Bob Russell. It was first recorded by Neil Diamond but the first released version was by The Hollies in 1969, one year before Neil Diamond's.
Cover Versions:
Cher (1971)
The Housemartins (1988)
Gotthard (1996)
Barry Manilow (2007)
Ali Campbell (2010)
Cher - He ain't Heavy, He's my Brother (1971)
We prefer the original from The Hollies but the others are not bad either.
by Flavia & Annick
"Come Together" was released by the Beatles in 1969 and has been covered by some of music's greatest bands and singers such as Michael Jackson, Aerosmith, and Joe Cocker. The song was inspired by Timothy Leary's campaign for governor of California. It was mainly written by John Lennon and their version is more of a blues-rock. The pace is kept at a slower more even pace and has a more relaxed fun feeling to it. It is theorized though, about the song, that it refers to each of the Beatles specifically. For example; "he's one holy roller" allegedly refers to the spiritually inclined George Harrison; "he got monkey finger, he shoot Coca-Cola" to Ringo, the funny Beatle; "he got Ono sideboard, he one spinal cracker" to Lennon himself; and "got to be good-looking 'cause he's so hard to see" to Paul. Here is the original version of "Come Together" by the Beatles:
In 1978, hard rock band Aerosmith, was the first to successfully cover the song. They recorded it and included it in the soundtrack and film Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. In their version of the song we can see their more hard rock influence. Basically the lyrics and the music is the same but the tempo is sped up and played with an electric guitar to give it a more hard rock feel. Here is the "Come Together", Aerosmith version:
Then in 1987, Micheal Jackson, who owned the rights for the song, covered it for his film Micheal Jackson: Moonwalker. He then included a shorter version in his album HIStory: Past, Present, and Future, Book 1 and was performed live at certain concerts on HIStory World Tour. In Micheal's version of the song we can instantly see his pop influence coming through. He also speeds up the tempo like Aerosmith and there is still that rock feeling to it. But, he includes his own little pop twists and gives it new meaning. Here is "Come Together", Micheal Jackson's version:
And finally, in 2007, Joe Cocker covers the song on his soundtrack for the film Across the Universe. Joe's version is completely different from the original. In the beginning the tempo is slowed down so much so that it is almost unrecognizable if it were not for the lyrics. But as the song continues the tempo picks back up and you can instantly recognize it but it is still slower than the original. This changes the original fun feeling to a tempo and gives it a more ominous feeling. So here is "Come Together", Joe Cocker's version:
"Come Together" has also been covered by about 50 other singers and bands. But these three cover versions are probably the most popular, well known, and the most successful covers throughout the years. If you would like to see a list of all the other bands and singers who covered this song or learn more about this song please visit:
"People are still looking at Picasso ... at artists who broke through the constraints of their time period to come up with something that was unique and original. In the form that they worked in, in the form of popular music, no one will ever be more revolutionary, more creative and more distinctive than The Beatles were." - Robert Greenfield, Rolling Stone associate director
The Beatles had an immense influence on many aspects pop culture, including music (obviously), television, fashion, video games, television...the list goes on and on.
Many artists were greatly influenced by the Beatles, and adapted a style similar to theirs. The Beatles shifted the dominance of solo acts to bands, from mainly American acts to acts from the UK, and from professional songwriters to songs written by the artists.
The Beatles are also considered the primary innovators of the music video. To promote their songs, they sent music videos to television networks instead of appearing in person. They used techniques, such as slow motion and reversed film, that had only been seen in experimental filming.
"Lack of feeling in an emotional sense is responsible for the way some singers do our songs. They don't understand and are too old to grasp the feeling. Beatles are really the only people who can play Beatle music." - John Lennon in May 1966, talking about the artists covering their songs Over the years, many people have covered Beatles songs. Among the most notable are: Oasis, Jimi Hendrix, Joe Cocker, David Bowie, Keith Moon, and Peter Sellers. For a complete list of all of the artists who have covered the Beatles, go to: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_artists_who_have_covered_The_Beatles
Here is an example of "We Can Work it Out," covered by Stevie Wonder, Deep Purple, and Four Seasons, as well as younger bands, such as the Plain White T's.
The Beatles also influenced fashion. They are known for their "mop-top" hairstyle. During their early years, they often wore suits, and in later years, they tended to go more towards Indian and Hippie styles. It became common for new bands to dress in suits, and the Indian and Hippie styles also quickly caught on. In addition, Beatle boots became quite popular starting in the 1960s.
The Beatles also had many appearances in modern television shows, such as the Simpsons:
Beatlesque is a term referring to bands that were influenced by the Beatles and make music that sounds like the Beatles' music. There are many famous Beatlesque bands, such as: Oasis, Coldplay, Michael Jackson, Led Zeppelin, Queen, Panic at the Disco, U2, Green Day..
Green Day, Last Night on EarthOasis, She's Electric
Since 1995 the four professional musicians of the band Patchwork have been performing two types of tribute concerts in France and abroad. Patchwork is a French cover band from Grenoble. At the moment they're not really popular in Europe only in France but who knows maybe they will someday.
The Legends of Rock
This show is a flash voyage through the last fifty years of Rock and Pop music. Rediscover the rebellious rhythms of the fifties, the gentle, sparkling melodies of the sixties, the "flower-power"guitar riffs of the seventies as well as the powerful sounds of the eighties up to the present.
From their masterful musical interpretation to the authentic precision in costume, scenic movement and props, Patchwork reincarnates the legendary artists who left their indelible mark on Rock History: Elvis Presley, the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Queen, AC/DC, U2, Lenny Kravitz, Red Hot Chili Peppers...
Yesterday... The Beatles
This show resumes the career of the Beatles. From Love me do in 1962, to Let it be in 1970, Patchwork skips through the milestones of the "Fab Four's" repertoire interpreting the greatest of their legendary hits.
Alternating the group's black retro-style suits with their famous technicolor "Sergeant Pepper’s" uniforms, Patchwork takes you away into the magic universe of the boys from Liverpool..
By: Fabian Kolly Sweet dreams: From 1982 to today's house version.
Original: Eurythmics - Sweet Dreams 4:48
Recorded in 1982 and released in January 1983.
It’s the most famous song of the group Eurythmics, the music video for “sweet dreams” was filmed in January 1983, shortly before the single and the album were released. The video received heavy airplay on the MTV channel and is widely considered a classic clip from the early-MTV era. The lyrics are about the people in your live who want to profit from you in every place of the world. The message is to don't care about this people and to moving on.
Sylvie Vartan – Déprime 3:33
It’s a readaptation of the original song, the melody is exactly the same but the lyrics are completely different and they have no common with the original lyrics. This cover version was wrote in 1983. The lyrics of the french version are about a someone who is in a depression and who's medicament is the love of someone else.
Marilyn Manson cover: 4:39 min The cover version from Marilyn Manson is the first single from the remix album, Smells like Children. Marilyn Manson added some extra lines to the lyrics that are not present in the Eurythmics version: "I wanna use you and abuse you/I wanna know what's inside you." and "I'm gonna use you and abuse you/I'm gonna know what's inside you".
The lyrics are quit the same than in the original version but they seem much harder because of the video and how the singer sings them.
It’s a much harder version than the original and the clip is very bizarre.
Recorded in 1994 and released in 1996.
Steve Angello Remix: 5:50
Recorded in 2005, the song is longer and haves more electric components and stronger bass.
Benny Benassi remix: 3:29
The lyrics are the same and from the same singer but over the normal melody the DJ placed bass and electronic elements.
I also found many other cover versions and remixes, but they are not so important for me because I want to show the evolution from the original song to the electro house version.
The Baseballs, a famous cover band from germany, were founded in Berlin in 2007. They cover a lot of popular pop songs which they turn into a rock'n'roll song.
They're not just like all the other cover bands, they're really like a band from the fifties with their style.
