Saint Etienne - He's on the Phone

There are days when life surprises me. My Saturday was such a day. I woke up very lately, and felt sick and worn in the evening. I should had stayed at home. I was, however, invited to a pre party and went there against my better judgement. I arrived lately with no real expectations on the night out. I did not know what would happen more than that we would stay in Lund.

We came to the night club at Småland's nation shortly after midnight. I had only been there twice before and both times felt lost, despite being in good company. This night would change that.
Once inside, we found a room with the video game Supar Mario Bros. projected on one of the walls. Super Mario Bros. was one of the favourite games of my childhood and I had not played it in ages. In my first attempt, I died on course 1-2 and said that something was wrong with the controller. That is a common excuse, but I would prove with my second attempt that this was true. I changed controller and managed to get to course 8-4, despite playing after I had drunken a couple of beers and another couple of drinks. A nice acquaintance of mine sat on my right side together with his friend. They were likeable and cheered me on. On my left, a short blonde girl sat and criticized everything I did. She insinuated that I was sober when I went through the difficult sections. That was not really true, but I let her get away with it. She said she had drunken a drink in every room in her student corridor at the pre party and I believed her. I should had hated her digs at me because I got nervous when I advanced to the more difficult courses, but she was rather cute as she lisped while pretending to be cool and arrogant. An audience had gathered inside the room towards the end. To their joy, I managed to finally put Bowser in the lava on the last level with only two lives left. I celebrated a triumph I had not experienced since I was a kid.

After that, we wanted to celebrate and moved to the dance floor where we were welcomed by He's on the Phone. The female DJs were actually quite bad, but to put on that particular song at exactly that time was a hit.

What an intro. Sylvie is probably even better, but I never understood the music video of that song. I do not really understand why I am posting a Saint Etienne song on a Monday night which has become Tuesday, but I suppose I just need to. Like some kind of therapy. I want to be reminded of what life is like when I am happy.

Right now, my student corridor is extremely boring. Some nice people live here, but it is sad that the fruit flies are most living things on weekends. One more month and then I will be spared this shit.

Your covers blown

I came to think about cover songs I never get tired of. Some of my favourite covers are listed below, but I do not rank the songs this time. Covers should be fun. Pretensions are saved for future posts.

Eva Cassidy - Over the Rainbow
Introducing this list with anyone else than Eva Cassidy would be like forgetting Dennis Bergkamp while you are talking about great football players. First, you buy the compilation Songbird. Then you play the tenth track Over the Rainbow. 3:19 into the song is heartbreaking. I could fill this entire list with Eva Cassidy, and not a single song would be a filler. After you have dried your tears you may as well continue with Fields of Gold (by Sting) and cry some more. Then Kathy's Song (by Simon and Garfunkel). Eva Cassidy is for us who believe that music can be larger than The Embassy and their laptops that froze just in time for the encore at their so called "concert".

The Maybellines - This and That by Acid House Kings
Say Yes If You Love Me is fantastic, but any band can make one hit. It is therefore ironic that a cover song made me understand the greatness of Acid House Kings. After further listening, I realised I had discovered two good bands at once.

Sambassadeur - La Chanson de Prévert by Serge Gainsbourg
The soundtrack of spring 2005 is still played with pleasure, with "skip track" on the remote within reach. Sambassadeur made half a record to love forever.

Pet Shop Boys - Always on My Mind
If I made ​​you feel second best, I'm so sorry, I was blind
You were always on my mind
You were always on my mind
 
Tell me, tell me that your sweet love hasn't died
Give me one more chance to keep you satisfied
Satisfied

I do not know the whole story behind Always on My Mind, but I know it was recorded by Elvis and that he never did justice to the song. When I think of Pet Shop Boys I think of two songs, It's a Sin and Always on My Mind. The DJs at the discotheques should play Pet Shop Boys more often.

Saint Etienne - Kiss and Make Up by The Field Mice
Some people have made up their mind in advance and already decided to hate. There is no point in trying to reason with people who call Saint Etienne "worthless, braindead euro which only worked because the girl was hot". It is their loss. Saint Etienne is the only British band from the mid-nineties I still listen to a lot today and that is hardly a coincidence. Kiss and Make Up is a brilliant cover of the sleepy original by The Field Mice.

The Arrogants - Shellshock by New Order
It is unusal that good covers do not sound more or less just like the original. Shellshock in this version sounds so much The Arrogants that not even the most hardcore New Order fans would recognize it. That is good for me as I adore The Arrogants while I rate New Order as a good band only.

Kathryn Williams - Hallelujah by Leonard Cohen
You don't really care for music, do you?

Laura Watling - Sunday Came and Went by The Castaway Stones
Laura Watling is perhaps the new Amelia Fletcher of the 2000s. This comparison may sound stupid to most people, but to me it is ingenious here and now.

The Shermans - Plastic Bouquet by Tara Emely Needham
I really need to find the original. The Shermans' version sounds like music to grow up to in a nursery. That is of course a compliment.

Belle and Bebastian - Poupée de Cire, Poupée de Son by France Gall
Sorry ... Sorry if my French was bad.
Ohh lovely Isobel, you have nothing to apologize for. Unlike France Gall, you can sing this song.

The Lucksmiths - There Is a Light That Never Goes Out by The Smiths
Everyone will sooner or later come to a time in life when one discovers The Smiths. The Smiths have not been and will never become the most important band in my life. In the same way I stopped listen to The Cure, I have also left The Smiths behind me.

The Lucksmiths cover reminds me though about what I saw in The Smiths. No other band can describe a miserable night out better. And this version brings a new meaning to the lyrics. I have always wondered if they were about a very good friend or love.

Honorable mention for their good effect on a dance floor:
Blondie - Hanging on the Telephone by The Nerves
Supergrass - Some Girls Are Bigger than Others by The Smiths