Freebird, and other cliche covers

[Medicine Man]

Yep, unfortunately a lot of crowds would rather hear a really terrible version of Gimmie Three Steps than a flawless version of In Memory of Elizabeth Reed.

This is true by personal experience. There was one guy in the back who has his mind blown by Elizabeth Reed, but the floor was empty until 3 steps. I think cover bands (in the USA) should have a competent version of all these songs on the back burner. Of course musicians are sick of these turds. It's really too bad drunk people don't have better taste in music. But they don't.

 

[ZAR14]

My list of over-played, Beat to Death songs would include....
Born To Be Wild
Rockin' in the Free World
Sunshine of Your Love
What I Like About You
and others....

 

[Shinbone]

For those of us in cover bands with girl singers I will submit:

• What's Up - 4 Non Blondes
• Black Velvet
• Anything by Janis Joplin

 

[40Hz]

I think how well Freebird goes over depends a lot on where you’re located.

 

[lfmn16]

What sayz you?

First I say I don't believe 99% of the people when they say they are tired of playing a lot of these tunes. I can't remember the last time I heard a band play Freebird, Stairway to Heaven, Dream on, Smoke on the Water, or many of the songs listed. They might be tired of hearing them on the radio, but not of playing them.

Second, and I've posted similar sentiments before, don't blame the song because you are to lazy to get off your ass and learn it right. Bands play these awful versions, wrong notes, missed signature licks, wrong words, tons of mistakes and then they say "This song sucks." No, YOU suck.

In my current band we're playing some of these tunes. I say, don't shy away from them, play them better than everyone else. People are always knocked out when we play Dream On because we play it as close to the original as possible.

Now get off my lawn and go learn the song THE RIGHT WAY!

 

[40Hz]

Anything by Janis Joplin

Considering there’s very few singers with the stage presence and ability to cover Janis Joplin without it turning into a bad joke, I’ll have to agree. Pity that. Because there’s some great bass lines and the opportunity to do some serious low end stylings with her tunes.

Last singer I heard who actually could do a creditable Joplin cover was Dana Fuchs.

 

[Paulabass]

Played Freebird once for $100. Drunk guy bet us that we couldn't. Four chords, and three groove change-ups.
At my jam every week is a woman who is developmentally handicapped. She is a big supporter of live music, spends lots of money, and is everything you want in a bar customer- except- She wants to sing Mustang Sally. She doesn't know the words, nor how to find the one. It's f'ing dreadful. The audience gives her big cheers for doing it, and we keep it to under two minutes. I can never listen to that song again (and the Commitments nailed it) with out hearing her catterwalling gibberish.

 

[MrLenny1]

Joe, you're right about Freebird. Tough tune to play correctly.
I worked in a trio where the BL never refused to play it.
It wore me out each time.

 

[Toddbass65]

Freebird really is a great song - I've never seen a bar band do it either, despite lots of "requests"...aka...guys laughing and yelling it. My current band is considering it...I hope to do it. I had the chance to run sound for the Artimus Pyle Band this summer and they closed the show with it....and absolutely tore it up! People went crazy at the end of the show. Artimus still loves playing it after all these years .

 

[NathOBX]

We've been known to bust in to the end part of Freebird for a few bars when some jackhole requests it. We also have an original that has a solo section with the same progression as the end part but in B not E; the drummer and i like to do the three accent hits in the end of the last bar a la Freebird. As far as other cliches...
Anything by Sublime
Superstition
Wagon Wheel
Ed Sheeran covers
Hey Joe
I may update later...

 

[hbarcat]

As a musician and a listener my only objection to hearing any of the cliche covers is not hearing them done per se, it’s hearing them done poorly. I have NEVER heard any local band do a truly good rendition of Sweet Home Alabama, for example. The same applies to many other tunes on the cliche cover list.

That's a really good point. As a 30 year veteran of cover bands, I've cone to realize that doing justice to any well known song that gets heavily played in bars is more than simply playing what's on the chart . Every song has a nuance and feel that represents the character of the original artist. It takes a very competent and experienced band to get that right if the objective is to be faithful to the original.

On the other hand, I wouldn't even consider playing in a band that wanted to do that. I can only be happy when my band has a unique sound that puts it's signature on every tune we play.

It takes just as much competence and experience to pull that off, but in a different way.

 

[bherman]

I'll add one - Simple Man, Lynrd Skynrd. 3 chords, goes on for what seems like days.

 

[dlb1001]

I had a Deep Purple tribute that lasted one gig about 2 years ago. We did Smoke On The Water, as recorded. It was one of the most awesome covers I've ever done. That song is fun to play, and somewhat challenging, too.

Jazzed up version of "Smoke On The Water"

 

[THUNDERGODX]

I was in a band that did FreeBird when it was still new. We had two guitarists that nailed their parts perfectly. It was always a blast to iplay it.
I was in a band later, that when someone yelled "FreeBIRD" we would immediately jump into the fast part and play it for about eight progressions and bombastic end and stinger.
We would get applause and cheers at the the end as if we had gone through the whole thing.

 

[bound'n'blocked]

Dreams I'll Never See is my absolute favorite to play. It's hard to find a lead that can do all 32 bars of the solo, though. I've been in a couple. The vocals are right in my wheelhouse so it rocked when we did it.

When I played it I played guitar, and me and the other guitar dude would split it up. He would play the beginning, and when it got to that part where it kind of breaks down slower in the middle of the solo, i would take over and play the cleaner part, then he finished it out. Made it fun!

BnB

 

[Plectrum72]

Most of the songs people are bringing up are 40 years old or older. I don't think they've been overplayed for at least 20 years if not longer. I think for most crowds in bars and clubs these days the songs are either a bit of nostalgia (older crowds), cool retro (middle aged like me), or relatively unknown (young crowd).

 

[Turbo Sparky]

Don't stop and Blister are two DEFINITES; totally over them! IMO covers are covers, not tributes. While it's nice to hear a positive, clear, definitive "cover" there are NUMEROUS songs that WERE good when they were FIRST released, but too many times...played over and over and over and over...even when FM was king that totally RUINED them/it for me.
Dry heaves for me:
Living on a prayer, Don't stop, Blister, Hysteria, Cherry Pie, Stairway, Young Guns theme, Smoke on the water, Walk this way (Aerosmith version. Would LOVE to hear a cover of the RunDMC version!), Sweet Home Alabama (except the Russian Army version.), Freefallin', VooDoo child (Stevie Ray version), etc.
Covers that I would love to hear done well:
Spanish Castle Magic, Kashmir, Search and Destroy (Iggy and the Stooges), Kick out the jams, Long Way back from hell, In a gada da vida (Full), Juke Box Hero, Party at ground zero and others. "Classic" is at about 30 years right? Most of "cover" songs are +40...vintage. Oh yeah, one vintage cover that only a handful, or less, that knocked it out of the park...War Pigs.
Just my opinion. Save the "hate" for someone else. "Covers" are covers, not tributes. If "you" cover" it, do it like you mean it, not as a filler.

 

[TinIndian]

Played Freebird once for $100. Drunk guy bet us that we couldn't. Four chords, and three groove change-ups.
At my jam every week is a woman who is developmentally handicapped. She is a big supporter of live music, spends lots of money, and is everything you want in a bar customer- except- She wants to sing Mustang Sally. She doesn't know the words, nor how to find the one. It's f'ing dreadful. The audience gives her big cheers for doing it, and we keep it to under two minutes. I can never listen to that song again (and the Commitments nailed it) with out hearing her catterwalling gibberish.

I've always said I'll do Mustang Sally if I find a singer that will NAIL it like that guy in The Commitments! Brilliant!

 

[TinIndian]

My Own Worst Enemy is number one on my list anymore. Completely over that song.

As far as Freebird goes, I've heard that song done a great many times over the years, some are phenomenal some, well, not so much. I played it a ton years ago and am still over it. That said, a few months back we were at a gig and got the inevitable "FREEBIRD" from the crowd. On this occasion the lead guitarist actually started playing it and the next thing I know the whole band has joined in except the lead singer. Since he was going to wimp out on it I stepped up to the mic and I sang it. It definately fell into the "not so much" category but it was a hell of a lot of fun and the crowd ate it up. Very uncharacteristic for this particular band which is a bunch of suck the life out of everything we do over thinking software engineers. Probably why it was fun, they didn't have time to suck the life out of the song and had to play it rather than dissect it. Kills me.

 

[stringthrough]

Funny how many tunes musicians hate or even refuse to play is what the audience loves to hear.