I have been thinking about this a lot recently. I think it can relate to a lot of other aspects of our life. Subtly, and unconsciously, this stark difference in artists interpretations of songs can be thought of as a representation of our contrasting interpretations of situations, of art, of relationships, of experiences.
I'm getting too deep, I'm in over my head. But I think it's a way of remembering that everything that happens in our lives can be seen in many different ways and from many different perspectives.
Here is my example. When I first noted the idea for this blog post, I just wrote 'Wicked Game'...this was purely going to be a comparison of 5 of my favourite covers.
But I think there is much more to it. I have taken something different away and I developed a different meaning from each of these covers.
The original 'Wicked Games' is by Chris Isaak. In conjunction with the film clip, I find this version extremely lustful, and the most significant and stand alone line for me is "I don't want to fall in love with you". In this version of the song, I found myself being drawn to this lyric, and I unintentionally based my whole meaning around this, around the lustful idea that Chris Isaak doesn't want to fall in love with her. Now I know this may not be the intended meaning of the song, but it is what I got from the song.
Chris Isaak's was the first version I was aware of, my parents played Chris Isaak in my home throughout my childhood, although, I never gathered this lustful and sensual interpretation through my younger years...which I think is normal. This meaning simply came to the fore as I got older and took note of the lyrics, mood and filmclip.
This is purely my interpretation of this version of the song, it is nor right nor wrong, although simply how my mind developed meaning. I am 100% sure that there are a hell of a lot of people out there that would disagree with me on this whole statement, so see for yourself.
I heard Thelma Plum's version of 'Wicked Game' live at the end of last year at the Woodford Folk Festival. I found this version of the song extremely emotional and sentimental. Thelma Plum really made this song her own and I can't put into words how thankful I was that her version was available on YouTube.
Originally I thought that it was the whole atmosphere of the festival, and Thelma's set and my love for Thelma that caused me to find this version extremely emotional and very sensitive. But upon listening to the below YouTube video I still feel the same way.
I feel heartbroken when I listen to this cover, I interpret the lyrics as a love song, a break up song of someone heartbroken and missing...needing someone they have lost.
I think this is my favourite version of 'Wicked Game' as I draw the strongest and rawest emotion from it.
This third version is performed by London Grammar and to tell the truth I hadn't heard this cover until a couple of weeks ago. I find this cover extremely unusual and somewhat unsettling, I think this might be caused by the fact that the meaning I draw from it is so different from any other meaning I created from other version.
London Grammar are absolutely exceptional in making songs their own and this cover is no exception. This cover really created a scene in my mind, I imagined a story or a film in my mind when listening to this song.
Again, I find this version heartbreaking especially in comparison to the original, although it is not the same interpretation as the one I got from Thelma Plum's cover. This time it is the feeling of missing out. To me, London Grammar have positioned me to feel as if the singer, in this case Hannah Reid, is wanting someone they simply cannot have. As if Hannah is telling someone they love that is is a "wicked thing" they are doing causing her to fall in love with them...'them' being someone they simply cannot have.
I think i have really over thought this cover, but I do find it heartbreaking and I am in awe of how different my interpretation of this version differs from Chris Isaak's original.
I find it difficult to express my opinion of Lana Del Rey's version of 'Wicked Game' as my meaning is purely created from the music and not the clip below. Although I wanted to put a link to allow you guys to view it, I created my meaning of this this version long before I ever saw this video, so if my meaning contradicts the clip...apologies.
I find this version fairly similar in mood to Gemma Hayes cover to tell the truth...and I feel like there may be some Lana del Rey fans and some Gemma Hayes fans that are a bit put back from that.
Although it is somewhat contradictory to the lyrics, I find these versions seem as if they are sung from the perspective of someone who isn't in love with the person they are singing to. I don't know, I don't find these versions as heartbreaking as the others, nor as lustful as the original. I think, similarly to Chris Isaak's cover, I tend to focus on the lyric "I don't want to fall in love with you"... I don't know, I didn't find either of these versions the strongest of covers emotionally. Although they are beautiful, I think that they were not recreated at all, they seemed more so covers than versions in the way that the artists did not really make them their own.
Finally, James Vincent McMorrow. I find this more acoustic version of 'Wicked Game' absolutely stunning in its simplicity. Definitely up there with my favourite versions, I think James has recreated the song to show very raw and stunningly relatable emotions.
This version is almost the exact opposite in vibe to Chris Isaak's original in my opinion...Sometimes with recreations of songs, it bugs me when they are super super different, I don't really know why, although I think that James has got it just right. It isn't so different that it is unrecognisable, although he has completely made the song his own and brought a whole new meaning to the lyrics.
Overall, Wicked Game was simply my main example of the way one song can be interpreted and therefore presented differently by different artists. I find it fascinating that the original song by Chris Isaak has been listened to by all of these other artists and been interpreted completely differently by each artist.
I am amazed by the talent that all of these artists have to recreate such a well known song and give it a completely new and original meaning.
Congratulations
- Stella Grace xxx
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Chris Isaak: http://www.chrisisaak.com/
Thelma Plum: https://www.facebook.com/thelmaplum
London Grammar: http://www.londongrammar.com/home/
Lana Del Rey: http://www.lanadelrey.com/?country=au
Gemma Hayes: http://gemmahayes.com/
James Vincent McMorrow: http://jamesvmcmorrow.com/
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