show & tell: cover songs

I won't go into all of the awkward details, but at one point over the weekend I found myself nursing a nosebleed in a vacant lot in a strange city. As I stood with my head tilted back, in the dark, blocks away from my car, I fell into kind of a trance as I watched the palm trees sway in the breeze and tried to make out the tune that was in my head. I realized that it wasn't just in my head, but in the distance, there was music, familiar music, live music; the high crash of the cymbals and the occasional substitution of enthusiasm for virtuosity giving it away. I don't know who the band was, just another college band on a Saturday night in America, but they were "Taking Care of Business."



The cover song is an important element of our Post-Modern existence (or wait, are we Post-Post-Modern now?), and not limited to music at all. In photography, for example, we've got a background of common images that we've been taught with and sometimes revisit and "cover," creating new renditions of popular images, or simply tipping one's hat to a picture that has inspired.

example A) myself, back in grad school, covering Stephen Shore:

mine. forgive the color/sloppiness. This is the only one scan I could find and it's not worth the time.

©Stephen Shore, Yosemite

example B) Brian Widdis covers Meatyard:

© Brian Widdis

© Ralph Eugene Meatyard

Brian writes, "At the time, I justified it by claiming that since it was for a band and the style suited their music, that it was a legitimate choice. Fair enough, I suppose, but not something I would feel comfortable with today."

example C) Justin James Reed sings the classics:

© Justin James Reed, Coeur d' Alene, Idaho, 2004

© Ansel Adams, Moonrise, Hernandez, New Mexico 1941

example D) you.

That's right, please, send in your photographs that honor and/or rip off images that have inspired. Make 'em 600 pix high, label them with your name, and include any title, link info, or public apology that you want run with it. (Just don't make me type or search for anything- this is a cut & paste operation) Also, make sure to put "cover song" in the subject heading and try to include a .jpeg for the image you're covering (or a link to it anyway).

send 'em my way: shawn@photolucida.org

Many thanks to Justin & Brian for helping get this started. By the way, if you teach, you should offer extra credit to students for creating/contributing. Maybe I'll assign that in class tomorrow...