Snowbird Cover

[James Shannon]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzpiN6Ub0c0

Heres my latest youtube upload a cover of Snowbird.

[stambi]

Thank you. It is great. It sounds like Chet. You have a huge talent .

[Norm]

[Ray Bohlken]

James, I really enjoyed your playing on this one. You had a great tone and touch. I've been watching and listening to your other videos and enjoyed them as well. Please keep posting your playing when you do a new one. I look forward to seeing some more.
Ray

[PaulBennett]

James, please help me here as I occasionally hear the word 'cover' being used in strange fashion. To me a 'cover' has always meant the picture on the front side of the album...i.e. the cover for the record inside, more specifically the front side of the cover. Or even the picture on the CD package. How is it that you mean 'cover' as in Snowbird Cover?

[Ray Bohlken]

Paul, I'm not James, but what he is saying is he is covering the song "Snowbird" by playing a version very close to Chet's version.
Ray

[Vidar Lund]

I think that the expression "cover" is being used wrongly. I heard it first used in the early and mid sixties. British artists had a habit of re-recording hits by US artists for their home market, using exaxctly the same arrangements and instrumentation as the original recordings. The British versions were thus "covering" the originals like a wet blanket, without adding something worthwhile or original. To "cover" a song was thus by no means flattering to the artist, being rather close to plagiarism. A new version of an old song given an original interpretation, like playing a song that Chet and others recorded, in a different way, is not covering the song, in my opinion, just another new and hopefully original version.

[GaryL]

James,
That was great! Thanks for posting.
GaryL

[chet1952]

Super! you got a wonderfull Chesterize touch!

[PaulBennett]

Vidar and Ray, thanks for that great detailed historical explanation. They say half the world now speaks English and the US isn't far behind. Coming from UK makes sense for the definitional change. Our language changes daily and as music now generally just means 3 minutes of 'a series of sounds' including poetry, it's fantastic to find new players interested in Chet. As I avoid any entertainment, especially from So.Cal, I'm quite happy to maintain a great distance from the culture of the masses.

James...wow. Great, beautiful and without a sweat. And thanks for the introduction to MrBillSutton2 whose backing track makes it all cometogether. You've a great future with those fingers.