Mike tagged me with the “Cover Meme,” in which we choose our vote for the best and worst covers of a song. My song choice is Jimi Hendrix’s Little Wing. The original is a classic- one of Hendrix’s best, in my opinion. It’s a slow, bluesy number with a very smooth, melodic guitar solo (by Hendrix standards). The only complaint I would make is that the chorus repeats the verse’s melody line:
The worst cover of this that I have heard is by none other than Derek and the Dominoes (aka Eric Clapton and friends). I really can’t figure out why they came up with this arrangement; they took a fairly perfect song and turned it into a plodding train-wreck. The intro alone is enough to make you turn it off:
The best cover of this song is by Sting who, in my opinion, captured the true inner beauty of this song. By reworking the chorus a bit, he avoided Hendrix’s repetitious melody line. And, the guitarist (Hiram Bullock) and sax player (Branford Marsalis) took the basic elements of Hendrix’s guitar solo and made it something amazing. I think this is a rare occasion when the cover is an improvement over the original:
Interesting note: Eric Clapton appears on the CD “Nothing Like the Sun” where “Little Wing” appears. However, he did not play on this track. I wonder why.
So, now my turn to tag… let’s see, how about Ken?
Jim Pierce, who blogs at confessionalbytes.blogspot.com, was formerly an atheist who discovered an old essay dating back to his atheist years was still online. He is now writing a series of posts arguing against his former beliefs (or lack thereof). In the first post of the series, he reprints his original essay. The 2nd post begins his rebuttal.
Good stuff.
Tags: atheist, debate, jim pierce, theist
This is a pretty cool video about a growing Lutheran church in Tulsa (yes, Lutherans in Tulsa!).
One aspect of liturgical worship I keep coming back to is intentionality. Many contemporary churches are blown to and fro, if not by “every wind of doctrine,” by every faddish worship concept. It’s one thing to be “culturally relevant,” it’s another thing to lose hold of the gospel to gain market share. Liturgy is grounded in nearly 2000 years of theology and tradition; it’s about as intentional as you can get. And, reciting words written in the 3rd and 4th centuries certainly keeps you grounded in historical truth.
Another interesting thing pointed out by one of the people interviewed is that everybody does the same thing in worship; it is a true corporate experience rather than the “do your own thing” approach that promotes individuality rather than unity.
Thanks to Paul McCain for this.