Under The Covers, Vol. 1

Matthew Sweet, Susanna Hoffs

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 18, 2006)
• Original Release Date: April 18, 2006
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Shout Factory
• ASIN: B000EQ5QFE
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (66 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,641 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Sid (Matthew Sweet, after his character's name in the Austin Powers band Ming Tea) and Susie (Susanna Hoffs, who joined him and Mike Myers in belting out "BBC" on the soundtrack) are in as fine voice as ever on Under the Covers, Vol. 1, a 15-song collection of tunes first made famous by the likes of the Beatles, the Beach Boys, the Mamas and the Papas, and the Who. And man, were they born to sing this stuff. Both the Bangles and Sweet discographies are derivative--in the best possible sense--of late-'60s pop-rock, and who didn't love the Merry-Go-Round, Grass Roots, Simon & Garfunkel, and Big Star covers Hoffs and company scattered among their originals? Recorded at Sweet's home studio in the Hollywood Hills, the album opens strong with "I See the Rain," a Marmalade song from 1967 that Jimi Hendrix called the year's best British single but was a hit only in the Netherlands. Maybe Sweet's stinging, ringing fretwork (he plays most of the non-percussion instruments on this disc) and Hoffs's throwback vocals will rectify that, nearly 40 years later. The two proceed to nail the Beatles' "And Your Bird Can Sing," one of the high points on Revolver, and score similarly with Fairport Convention's "Who Knows Where the Time Goes?" (Hoffs in full ballad mode), the Stone Poneys' "Different Drum," the Who's "The Kids Are Alright," Love's "Alone Again Or," and a pair of Neil Young numbers, "Cinnamon Girl" and "Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere." Some of the selections do miss the mark--Hoffs's smoky-sweet backing vocals seem a little misplaced on Dylan's "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue," and "The Warmth of the Sun" was probably the wrong Beach Boys track for Sweet to attempt (Brian Wilson himself strains at those high notes nowadays). But by and large this is a delightful power-pop excursion. Van Dyke Parks's liner notes, keyboards, and string arrangements make it that much better, as do Sweet collaborator Ric Menck's drums, Ed Fotheringham's illustrations, and Henry Diltz's photographs (Hoffs looks as stunning today as she did when laying down All Over the Place). --Benjamin Lukoff

More Sid & Susie

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Product Description
What do alt-rock/power pop heroes like Susanna Hoffs (The Bangles) and Matthew Sweet do on their time off? They get together in Matthew's comfy home studio and record a stunning album of their favorite '60s pop hits and rarities, of course!

The two first worked together in conjunction with Mike Myers as members of the band Ming Tea, appearing in all three Austin Powers movies and soundtracks. Now they've struck out on their own with Under The Covers Vol. 1, a tribute to their favorite '60s acts, including The Beatles, Bob Dylan, Neil Young,The Who, and cult favorites like The Velvet Underground,The Zombies,The Left Banke, and Love. Leaving the songwriting to others lets Matthew and Susanna focus on singing, and the results are breathtaking. For extra authenticity, they even asked Van Dyke Parks (most famous for his work with the Beach Boys)to play keyboards and write string arrangements. It all adds up to a rock fan's dream come true.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sid and Susie tell it like it is: let's pay well deserved awareness to some forgotten `60s gems!!!, April 18, 2006

By	Matthew G. Sherwin (last seen screaming at Amazon customer service) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)

Run to me whenever you're lonely.
Run to me if you need a shoulder
Now and then you need someone older,
so darling, you run to me.

These are some of the memorable lines of the song entitled "Run To Me' by The Bee Gees at the end of this CD; and like the rest of this CD the effect really packs a punch-the message all throughout this CD that Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs want to give us is that some songs are just plain too good to ever be forgotten. Under The Covers is a great album of `60s songs as well as a tribute to these songs. Of course, the amorous hint of being "under the covers" lends a distinctive romantic and nostalgic flavor to the entire album.

Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs have teamed up as a fictional couple named Sid and Susie to produce this awesome album of great 1960s music. Indeed, even the title of the album shows what the CD is really all about: great songs from the 1960s being covered (sung) by Matthew and Susanna. Matthew and Susanna not only sing passionately throughout this album; their complete emotional involvement cries out to you to really pay attention and to relish every single minute of it.

The CD starts out with a great track by The Marmalade entitled "I See The Rain." The guitars really rock and Matthew and Susanna really let their hair down for a great rendition of this song. Keeping up the great momentum is the next track written by none other than The Beatles, "And Your Bird Can Sing." It's a beautiful song that will move you; and the musical arrangements are very well done.

Other great songs that I particularly enjoyed and found moving were "Monday Monday" by The Mamas and The Papas and "Alone Again Or" by Love. Then there's the song called "Cinnamon Girl" by Neil Young and Crazy Horse-it really rocks, guys! Matthew and Susanna sing very well and I loved the musical arrangements.

As Amazon notes, there are good liner notes by Van Dyke Parks.

The quality of the sound is excellent throughout, even on my personal portable music player. I recommend this CD for any fan of great music from the `60s that has faded just a little bit too soon and way too unfairly. Oh, come on-with songs like "Who Knows Where The Time Goes?" combined with Hoffs's great vocals this is a sure hit CD. I sure wouldn't mind having volume two! SMILE

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Susanna Hoff's best work by far, October 3, 2006

By	Francis P. Defalco "Frank de Falco" (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Hoffs and Matthew Sweet are clearly having a whopping good time with this album of covers from the 60's which includes well-known and not so well-known songs. The song selection offers an intriguing mixing of obvious choices such as "Monday, Monday" with surprises like the Beatles' rarely played guitar masterpiece, "And Your Bird Can Sing." The arrangments are slavish to the originals, but the material is played and sung with more than enough gusto to compensate for the lack of originality. Hoffs' voice shows a surprising vigor not evident in her Bangles work, especially on "Different Drum" on which she goes toe-to-toe with the original version by the Stone Ponys featuring the classic vocal from a young Linda Ronstadt (although Hoffs' version does lack the charm of the distinctive Southern twang of Ronstadt's voice). Hoffs' voice is well complimented by Sweets', and the two provide some surprising harmonizing on songs like "Different Drum. This is a feel good album if there ever was one and as such it delivers the goods.

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Taste, No Revelations, November 9, 2006

By	Patrick Burnette (Crawfordsville, IN USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

"Under the Covers" is a solid album covering '60s and '70s pop tunes. Sweet and Hoffs have the talent and production chops to put together convincing remakes of some well known songsand some exciting obscurities. Mostly it works well, although Sweet should never again attempt early-period Beach Boys (he just can't sing up there effectively). The album is more a celebration of Sweet and Hoff's great taste (and Sweet's guitar prowess) than an album with anything urgent or fresh to say. It's a pleasant listen and a good way of getting lots of great tunes in one place. But it doesn't really do anything all that innovative or moving.