Tune du Jour: “Going Underground” – The Jam
THE CLASH of Cover Tunes: Down By Law vs. Da Lata feat. Floetic Lara vs. Lostprophets vs. The Bad Shepherds
VOTE, COMMENT, then DO SOMETHING NICE FOR YOURSELF
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The greatest 3 minutes of music ever? Well, in my world, just maybe …
Just love this song. In my mind it is the perfect pop rock song. Perfect beat, perfect lyrics, perfect length. It doesn’t matter how many times I’ve heard it, the next time it queues up I invariably immediately get excited and start singing along (and even that does not detract the song).
The Original
The Jam:
THE CLASH of Cover Tunes
Down By Law vs. Da Lata feat. Floetic Lara vs. Lostprophets vs. The Bad Shepherds
Down By Law:
Da Lata feat. Floetic Lara:
Lostprophets:
The Bad Shepherds:
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 
Down By Law sings and plays well, but the acoustic rendition robs the song of its power and punch. They were also hindered by poor sound.
The second act was surprisingly good, although I’ve never heard of them.
In voted Lostprophets, even though they sound more like the original than the others.
Don’t know The Bad Shepherds. They get some points for originality, but not enough to get the vote.
Yeah, this is another repeat post from years ago, although, The Bad Shepherds are a new addition.
I just can’t get enough of this song! I’ve listened to all versions multiple times this morning and love it all.
Can I split my vote in quarters?
I may have to spend the afternoon delighting myself with these covers before I pick a winner.
Get back to you later …
Okay, a decision must be made.
Down by Law’s minimalist acoustic version works quite well and their video is nothing if not inspiring. This is a very good cover.
Da Lata adds her own to the song. I don’t even know what genre of music you would call it but it was quite nice. And female vocals on this song were refreshing.
Lostprophets put forth a straightforward gem of a cover. There was an even better version floating around that they did in a radio station but, sadly, it seems to have been taken off of the web now. The problem is that the lead singer, Ian Watkins, is a despicable wretch of a human being and it’s hard for me to separate the degenerate from the song.
The Bad Shepherds really make the song their own with a very interesting offering. I discovered these guys while researching this song. Turns out that they have some interesting takes on a number of great early new wave tunes. You will be hearing more from these guys.
Well, I honestly could have gone with any other of the competitors but, as for today, Da Lata’s reconstruction delighted me the most.
That was a fun listen. I liked all efforts although lostprophets found fourth place by playing in straight because nobody can play this better than The Jam. An all time favorite song of mine. Down By Law fooled me. After their last cover I kept expecting the horses to come flying out of the gate any moment. Never happened. Enjoyably low key and lo fi. Bad Shepherds did a nice clean version accentuating the lyrics and some fiddle but the day belonged to Da Lata with a brilliant reinvention that sounded so natural it could have been their original. Electric bossa nova bliss.
The Jam at their peak – early 1980. This single debuted at #1, all the more amazing because the band only had one other UK Top 10 single at that point. Hearing how great this song is, I still cannot help but shake my head and wonder why Weller broke up this band 2 years later, never to play another song together again at any venue. Imagine Springsteen calling it quits out of the blue after Born To Run or Beatles after Sgt Peppers or the Who after Tommy, the Stones after Let It Bleed and U2 after The Joshua Tree. Think of all the classic and essential music those artists when on to make. The Style Council had a couple cool tunes, and Weller’s 35 year solo career has seen a lot of commercial success and some excellent albums. He developed into a fine song-writer. But Weller has never achieved with his solo music anywhere near the vitality, excitement, and inspiration as he did with the Jam. Foxton and Buckler never fully came to terms with it, and neither have many of the people who bought this single.
As Doug said, it’s tough to listen to and watch the Jam video and think about what might have been, had they continued for a few more years. I give Weller credit for following his vision, but I really couldn’t stand The Style Council and there’s very little of his solo stuff that I’ve liked. As for the covers, I couldn’t get past Down By Law’s tinny version; it sounds like I’m hearing it over a cellphone speaker.
Da Lata’s version was surprisingly catchy and had me tapping my feet, but I went with the Lost Prophets for their rocking rendition.
really enjoyed the Celtic twist by the shepherds, but The Lostorophets really rocked it Jam Style and were tough to top!