Tune du Jour: “Left of the Dial” – The Replacements
THE CLASH of Cover Tunes: The Ataris vs. Lowlands vs. Challenger 7
VOTE, COMMENT, then DO SOMETHING NICE FOR YOURSELF
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The Original
The Replacements:
THE CLASH of Cover Tunes
The Ataris vs. Lowlands vs. Challenger 7
The Ataris:
Lowlands:
Challenger 7:
SPACE
Oh the disharmony! Much like Harlan County there are no neutrals here. It is your solemn responsibility to decide which cover song prevails. In other words … Which Side Are You On!??!
Disclaimer: Votes cast from Florida may or may not be counted.
cover me impressed 
Great song! The Replacements created a cherished anthem for underground bands.
I often enjoy acoustic versions of rock songs. The Ataris does an impressive version.
Something about Lowland’s singer’s voice that bothered me.
Challenger 7 knocked out competent straightforward rendition.
The Ataris …
I almost feel like recusing myself, and letting Replacements fans take over today. Hard to tell the difference in the four versions. I think I voted Lowlands.
This is a long time favorite of mine. Paul Westerberg wrote this for a woman he was seeing who was also touring with Zuzu’s Petals (It’s A Wonderful Life reference). None of them fucked the song up so I enjoyed all three. I voted for The Ataris because it was nice to hear an acoustic version for a change. After hearing that it was nice to have the crunch put back into it. Lowlands went on for an extra minute as if it was the last song in their set. -2 points for that.
Okay, I voted for the Ataris… It’s funny that this was written for someone Westerberg was seeing because it’s got that Replacements snotty anger in there. I think the Ataris version has some of that.
By the way, wasn’t there a discussion about getting thrown out of shows on here the other day? I got yanked off the stage and thrown out the back door of the club at a Replacements show in Tallahassee. I did manage to talk my way back in.
Tough call between the Ataris and Challenger 7. Paul Westerberg is a good songwriter, so it’s not surprising for acoustic versions, where the lyrics are highlighted, to sound good. But sometimes, acoustic versions are too tame, and I fall back on the rocking versions. But the Ataris did such an earnest version here that I went with them, although I do think Challenger 7 did a very good job.