Tuesday, March 15, 2016

#BoTB: the Rhythms del Mundo edition

I'm back! The flu did me in for a couple of weeks, then life just... went a little wild. All's good though, and I'm happy to be back in the Battle of The Bands swing.

Got something a little different for you today. These aren't different versions of the same song, but rather different songs in similar covers. Perhaps you're familiar with the Rhythms del Mundo albums? As fundraising for Artists Project Earth, they create covers of pop songs in latin rhythms, very often with the original artists on vocals and some instruments. The first album, Rhythms del Mundo: Cuba, for instance, had none other than Ibrahim Ferrer and Omara Portuondo (of Buena Vista Social Club fame) as main collaborators. The results were... well, pretty amazing, I thought. And now I'm curious to see what you think.

Instead of pairing the cover version with the original, I decided to showcase three of my favorite songs in their Latino incarnations and let you be the judge of which works best (or least worse) as an adaptation.

Ready?

First up is Coldplay, Clocks. (Rhythms del Mundo: Cuba, 2006)



The Killers with Hotel California... (Rhythms del Mundo: Classics, 2009)



And, finally, the weirdest (but good weird) cover I've ever heard of Jimi Hendrix's Purple Haze. The fact that they kept Jimi's guitar (if not the vocals) just adds to the whole sense of unreality here. (Rhythms del Mundo: Classics, 2009)




So. What do you think? Which of these three sounds most like it was born to be Latino? Or, maybe, which one sounds least ridiculous doing the cha-cha? Let me know in the comments, and come back next Tuesday to find out how the votes played out. Also, take a hop over and visit the excellent battles being fought at these blogs, too:


Thanks for coming by, and for playing along with my weird battle today. Really looking forward to your thoughts on this one.

34 comments :

  1. Good to know you're feeling better, Guilie. This is indeed a weird battle :)

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  2. Good to have you back on the Battle front. I'm a fan of Buena Vista and all of its associated artists. Great musicians in this bunch.

    All of these versions work very well done in the Latin style. "Purple Haze" has almost a Santana-like sound. It's good.

    "Hotel California" works very well with the Latin touch, but the original has that Spanish flavor to begin with. Nice version of the song, but not as good as the original.

    "Clocks" was the cover that surprised me most. This version sounds like the song was composed to be played this way. Of the three choices this version works best for me--outstanding.

    I vote for "Clocks".

    Arlee Bird
    A to Z Challenge Co-host
    Tossing It Out

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    1. I can't tell you how happy this makes me, Lee... I'm so glad you got blown away with Clocks—it blew me away the first time I heard it, and I'm a fan of the original. That piano intro is... just brilliant :) Thanks for coming by — and Clocks gets the first vote!

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  3. There should be an award for most unique BOTB. This would definitely qualify! ☺ I'm so glad you're feeling better. So many people (including me) have been sick this year.

    The Coldplay cover wasn't bad but there was something about Hotel California that didn't appeal. Not sure what, exactly. Jimi Hendrix with a latin beat definitely tops the weird list but guess what? I liked it! My vote goes to Purple Haze.

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    1. Haha... I'm all for the Weirdest BoTB Award, Debbie :D And, somehow, I just knew you'd like the Purple Haze version ;) Thanks for the visit—and the vote!

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  4. The Latino flavour of all three songs is excellent. I like all version. They are all done very well. However, I really liked the Hotel California one especially. Excellent cover. All three really. But this was more to my liking.
    Welcome back! You've been missed!!!!
    Glad to hear you are feeling better.

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    1. Thank you, Jeffrey! I missed you guys, too. And I'm so glad you enjoyed this! First vote for Hotel California :)

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  5. Voting for Hotel California.

    "Clocks" just seems like the same vocals, but with a different background.

    I wouldn't recognize "Purple Haze" without you telling me that's what it is. I would have probably guessed it's a Carlos Santana song.

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    1. It totally sounded like Santana to me, too. I thought I was being biased (you know, being Mexican ;) ). Thanks for the visit—and the vote!

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  6. Dear Guilie,
    Definitely "Purple Haze" on the first spot, followed by "Clocks" and (weird) "Hotel California" on the third spot.!

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    1. Awesome! Jacques, thanks so much for coming by, and for joining the Battle of the Bands fun! Purple Haze is a good one — and currently tied for first place with Hotel California ;)

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  7. Really cool battle Guilie! The Jimi Hendrix one was definitely weird (but like you said, a good weird!). My favorite is going to be Coldplay/Clocks. Love that! Please give my vote to that one. Love the piano!

    Michele at Angels Bark

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    1. I hear you, Michele... That piano intro, and how it switches (so seamlessly!!) from the original to the salsa rhythm... Good stuff. Got your vote down for Clocks :)

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  8. I love Cuban music - really foot tapping and energetic. This is a hard one ..I think I'll go for Cold Play Clocks - I loved the video of the different street scenes, that band of rich saxophones, the b & w ...
    Glad to hear you're feeling better Guilie!

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    1. Thanks, Susan! Yeah, the video is very well done, too. Another vote for Clocks — and this one shoots up to first place!

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  9. Guilie, glad to see you back swinging with the BoTB again! I love the flavor added to these cover songs!! I think my favorite is Clocks. I felt like doing the cha-cha-cha or just shake-shake-shake, which ever happens this song got me to movin'! Fun battle!

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    1. The cha-cha or the shake-shake — I like that, Cathy :) Glad you enjoyed these covers! And got you down for Clocks. Thanks for coming by!

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  10. They were all superb, and any one of them could be the winner, but for me, their version of "Purple Haze" does it.

    My battle has slipped down my page a little, so here's the URL: https://thesoundofonehandtyping.wordpress.com/2016/03/15/battle-of-the-bands-im-a-man/

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    1. So happy you liked these, John — and yes, I'm with you: Purple Haze got a unique re-do here. Thanks for the URL — off to visit and listen now :) (And got you down for the weird Hendrix-does-Cuba song ;) )

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  11. First up is Coldplay, Clocks. (Rhythms del Mundo: Cuba, 2006) gets my vote. I love that song!!

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    1. Awesome, Dixie! I love that song, too :) Thanks for coming by!

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  12. Hi Guilie - good to know you've thrown the flu off. I like these Artists Projects Earth ... and I really liked the Coldplay one best. They've finally opened the Hendrix museum and Handel museum together .. same house, different floors - fascinating ... I went early on - but it wasn't open yet - now I must go back. Cheers Hilary

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    1. And I'll be looking forward to hearing all about your visit! What an amazing thing, Handel and Hendrix as museum neighbors :D Glad you enjoyed these, Hilary — and one more vote for Coldplay!

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  13. Tight battle, foe me it was between Purple Haze and Hotel California and Purple Haze gets my vote

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  14. Interesting battle, Guille. I guess all that down-time with flu allowed you the time to come up with something really clever this go-round!

    I'm voting for Clocks, and I want to tell you why! (Girl, that was GREAT!). I loved that the band sounded so much vocally like Coldplay. I don't know if that is always the case or a real stretch for them, but it worked. The fact that they took the music and made it sound latin (and excellent!) blew me away. It was so good to these ears that I think I might prefer to the Coldplay original. I can't say that for any of the others. None were bad, but none knocked my socks off like Clocks. Only fitting given the time change, right???

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    1. Robin, I know exactly what you mean... This Clocks cover really does give the original a run for its money — and, given that it's not even the same musical genre, I think it's an achievement. (By the way, it is Coldplay on vocals... the Cuban guys just did the music, kept the original vocals ;) )

      One more vote for Clocks!

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  15. Glad you're feeling so much better, GUILIE!

    This was certainly a different approach to BOTB. The one song I am unfamiliar with in its original form is 'CLOCKS' by COLDPLAY, so to me that one had no "standard" by which to judge it.

    I did not care for 'HOTEL CALIFORNIA' at all. For one thing, I did not like the vocalist. And then I also felt that it was just too "busy". Funny, this seemed to me like it would have been an ideal song for the "Latinized" treatment but it's the one I actually liked the least.

    I didn't really care for 'PURPLE HAZE' at first either, but toward the end it really got pretty hot and I really enjoyed the fireworks it closed with.

    But my vote goes to 'CLOCKS'. I really dug that one all the way through. I wonder if part of the reason I liked that one best is because it's the only one I had no preconceived notion about and so I was able to judge it from a "blank chalkboard" point of view. But regardless, I enjoyed it and I'm willing to bet that I probably like it much more in its "Latinized" form than I would the original.

    ~ D-FensDogG
    'Loyal American Underground'

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    1. It's funny, Stephen; I also thought Hotel California would've been more of a blow-me-away in its Latin version. Weird, right? Maybe, though, it is precisely because the original already has a bit of a Latin beat to it that the "Latinized" version sounds busy... like, overdone, somehow. And really interesting that, being unfamiliar with the original Clocks, you found that one the most appealing. Yes, preconceived notions get in the way of these things — but I'm really, really glad you enjoyed this.

      Thanks for the visit!

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  16. I prefer Clocks over the other two. Maybe because I know the other two well and don't know Clocks but, regardless, this one seemed to gel the best with the theme. I almost gave it to Purple Haze because, at first, it didn't work for me but then it seemed to really get into it and be inspired by Hendrix. It reminded of of Carlos Sanatana a bit. I didn't care for Hotel California at all.

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  17. Finally making my way back here to vote. I listened to all three versions earlier in the week from my phone. I have to admit I enjoyed all three and found merit in each.

    My vote goes to the first 'Clocks' by Buena Vista Social Club. I love their sounds and what an exception video (I know it's not supposed to count, but it was GREAT!)

    Amazing how well each song lent itself to the 'cha-cha'. This wins my 'Most Interesting Battle' for this go-round. Thanks I really enjoyed myself here.

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  18. Clocks was a really great cover! Who knew? They get my vote. Nice twist on the battles.

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  19. Clocks was a really great cover! Who knew? They get my vote. Nice twist on the battles.

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