![]() ![]() This is Americana of the jazziest, swankiest variety - think Sade transplanted south of the Mason-Dixon. That’s probably part of the joke - not that three burly bluegrass dudes singing a quasi-feminist ode to full female posteriors really need extra comedic ammunition.Įven without that silky saxophone so integral to the original, the Lowhills do right by George Michael’s chart-topping 1984 hit about doing a lover wrong. ![]() Technically speaking, these guys are all about that treble, as their version of Meghan Trainor’s 2014 pop triumph is decidedly lacking in low end. The Blueshine Brothers, “All About That Bass” ![]() “Oh my gosh,” sings Anderson at 2:10, taking things to the hokey-jokey extreme, “Look at that banjo!” Anderson and her band for transforming a salacious 2014 hit (Nicki Minaj’s “Anaconda”) based on a sample from a similarly saucy 1992 hip-hop jam (Sir Mix-a-Lot’s “Baby Got Back”) into a classy bluegrass/ragtime number suitable for grandmas and small children and everyone in between. Forget the Charlie Daniels Band when the devil goes down to Georgia, he goes partying with guys like Rob. It is a hoot, though - especially when his buddy in the straw hat shows up with a pair of spoons and adds some crazy clatter to the satanic jamboree. Now all the Spreaders need are some polka-dot flying-V banjos.īluegrass and thrash metal share a fundamental need for speed, so banjoist Rob Scallon’s rendition of this Slayer gem isn’t such a stretch. Dig how Doc Buck Knife lovingly adapts that classic Randy Rhodes guitar intro for mandolin, and how doghouse bassist Bud Hole delivers the lyrics in a plainspoken everyman style that underscores Ozzy’s message of peace, love, and understanding. ![]() These Bay Area dudes are all about metal covers, and their take on Ozzy Osbourne’s signature song is silly yet also kind of sincere. If Billybo’s rendition lacks love, there’s plenty of goddamn foolishness. Now, this Banjo Billybo character doesn’t much care for the song, as he explains at the beginning of this YouTube clip, but that doesn’t stop him from hee-hawing his way through a chuckle-worthy version. In the 2011 smash, the heartbroken British songstress sings of stopping by an ex’s house in hopes of rekindling the romance, even though the bloke’s happily married. One takeaway from Adele’s “Someone Like You”: Love makes you act like a goddamn fool. The history of pop music is just one big crazy train, and when Nicki Minaj passes Bill Monroe en route to the party in Ozzy’s car, she gives him a funny little wink that he totally gets. In doing so, they remind us that good music is good music, and that certain songs transcend time and place and instrumentation. In the list that follows a variety of old-timey pickers, pluckers, and strummers tackle modern-day pop, rock, and rap favorites, using bluegrass like one of those Instagram filters that make digital photos look like dusty old Polaroids. But that’s poppycock the real way to test a tune’s mettle is to break out the banjos and mandolins and see whether it stands up to the bluegrass treatment. Some say the true measure of a song’s merit is whether it sounds good with just vocals and acoustic guitar. ![]()
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