We rarely feature a cover, or a tribute band, in these pages but I’m prepared to make exceptions and one of the reasons for them is if the song is a classic. Just to see what spin an artist or band can put on them.
And there’s no denying that Mike Scott’s (The Waterboys) ‘The Whole of the Moon’ is a classic. Moreover, and even though I’m a big fan of hers anyway, Fiona Apple’s almost eviscerating cover a few years ago from the series The Affair, reading the lyrics off a scrap of paper and looking like she’d just got out of bed, still lingers in the memory and it is sad it has never been released as a single.
So how does Nilsen’s Southern Harmony measure up to doing justice to this timeless masterpiece?
They’re from northern Norway, have produced three albums, written many songs for other artists and their songs have been featured in several TV series and movies.
They perform for the pleasure of playing music. They say “Sometimes we get tired of ourselves, and take on other artists’ songs, strip them to the bones, and see what happens.”
Stripping something to the bone sometimes doesn’t have the desired effect, not to mention lopping a whole minute off it and ignoring the most intense lyrics while adding an instrumental break that wasn’t in the original.
That doesn’t mean I don’t like it. In fact it’s good to hear a different take on something iconic and I had never anticipated a country version could carry the same message effectively.
I just wish they’d given it the full nine yards.
Find them on: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nilsenssouthernharmony
