Feature Series – Part 1
I started this page about six months ago on New Year’s Day 2023. For the most part, I have been featuring covers of the music of my youth and early adult life as a way to demonstrate how that music still resonates with people today as it gains new audiences as a result of new artists and groups not only paying tribute to these songs, but in many instances making them their own. To commemorate the six month mark, I decided to do something a little different, with some recent covers from Scott Bradlle’s ensemble, Postmodern Jukebox (PMJ), that I have featured before (DUTC#’s 5,8), and with individual singers from PMJ (DUTC#’s 15,18).
For this eight part series, I will be featuring one song per week, seven of which showcase original songs recorded between 2000 and 2023, with the outlier being one from 1979. I am familiar with all the featured artists, except for this first one, as South Korean girl groups (K-Pop) are just not my thing. The idea came to me after listening to PMJ’s cover of Blackpink’s (shown above) 2018 song “DDU-DU DDU-DU.” I listened to the original immediately after listening to the cover, and that is when the proverbial “lightbulb” lit up in my head for this eight part feature. Not only am I going to showcase music from the 21st century, but all of these covers are done in musical styles so far removed from their originals, it is sometimes difficult to know that you’re listening to the same song and lyrics. A perfect case-in-point is this first song by Blackpink. This K-Pop group exploded in 2018, and this particular song was part of the reason. Now, trying to find out what the title means in English was an adventure in and of itself. I stopped at three resources because they all had different takes on what the meaning was. One said: It is either “Come Here, Over There,” or “Take off Like a Rocket,” because those two are identical, which is supposedly “describing the experience of being in love.” Yet another had it meaning: “Look at me Now,” or I’m the Best.” At least these two are vaguely similar. And finally: The words are supposed to represent “gunshots, while simultaneously exclaiming: “How You Like That.” PMJ decided to avoid the translation confusion altogether by doing an instrumental version in “ragtime” style. Just piano, double bass, and drums and boy do they cook. I really had to listen to both several times before I could tell that it was the same song. Consider for a moment that PMJ have taken a song by a South Korean girl group and covered it in a style of music from around 100 years ago! In fact, every cover for the entire series features covers done in musical styles that predate the originals by several decades, sometimes more. For me, this takes the concept of “covers” to a whole other level. Hyperbole? Perhaps, but as always, you the listener can judge for yourself.
PMJ “DDU-DU DDU-DU” Blackpink cover. Feat. Scott Bradlee (Piano, arrangement), Wild Bill (bass), and Roger Ross (drums).
Blackpink “DDU-DU DDU-DU. Live at Coachella 2020.
Los Angeles 2023
- Next up: Part 2 Ed Sheeran’s “Bad Habits”
I like watching them with the sound off
I’ll bet you do.
You never cease to surprise with your song choices! Personally I never saw the appeal for KPop but I seem to be in the minority. I like the arrangement on the PMJ cover, very creative!
Why thank you. Me neither! Yes , PMJ’s arrangement is really good.