First Spin
Monica Blaire & The ReBeL Yell Reimagine '80s Pop Hits
Although I'm a '70s baby, I was an '80s young lady and that decade moreso than any others defined my musical tastes. I listened to everything back then--from Scritti Politti to The Dazz Band to Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton to Kurtis Blow. But by and far two of my favorite artists from the era of fluorescent colors, fingerless gloves and lace everything were Madonna and WHAM! I still keep the old school hits from these artists in heavy rotation on the iPod. So imagine my sheer delight upon coming across two new school artists, Detroit's Monica Blaire and Philly newcomers The ReBeL Yell, who have taken '80s songs from my faves and updated them for the '00s.
I love what both artists bring to their respective remakes. Blaire takes Madonna's Pop confection "Material Girl" and transforms it into a soaring, soulful ballad with a full orchestra and choir backing her up. Dare I say that I like her version, which can be found on her upcoming Back to the Future, Vol. 1, better than the original. The ReBeL Yell (made up of Domini Quinn SupaStar, Khari Mateen and The Roots' James Poyser) stays true to the original funk of WHAM!'s "Everything She Wants" but add more electro-soul to the mix with a dash of Hip-Hop thrown in. This is one of my favorite WHAM! songs, so topping the original would have been a hard feat, but The ReBeL Yell get an A for effort. I'm definitely looking forward to hearing more from these cats whose debut album, Love & War, drops in August.
Monica Blaire: "Material Girl" Refix
The ReBeL Yell: "Everything She Wants"
Monica Blaire [Official][MySpace]
The ReBeL Yell [MySpace]
Tags: audio, george michael, madonna, monica blaire, the rebel yell, wham!
Comments
I forget how many great songs came about in the 80's. Never heard of Monica Blaire, but she's on my watch list now. Her version of "Material Girl" is so tongue-in-cheek, but so good at the same time! That "Everything She Wants" felt a little phoned-in. Just made me appreciate the vocal skills & passion of George Michael even more.
cjayconrod | June 12, 2009 11:38 PM | PermalinkYeeeees! Long live The ReBeL Yell!!!
Best in Show | June 12, 2009 7:13 PM | PermalinkAs an 80's baby myself (est. 1982), a brotha can appreciate Madonna, WHAM!, and all the other music icons that made the decade unique. I like the Monica Blaire rendition of 'Material Girl' (like not love), but I'm really not feeling Rebel Yell's version of 'Everything She Wants.' Sorry, but it's too close to the original.
Eighties songs are a tricky thing to revamp because the "experimental/heavy synth" sound is so associated with the decade that if you don't arrange the "new" version the right way, it ends up sounding like a bad impression.--And let's face it, there's only one George Michael.
Possibly the best example of the RIGHT way to do them would be to listen to Zo! and Tigallo's Loves the 80's album. I didn't think anyone could revamp Joe Jackson's 'Steppin' Out' or Level 42's 'Something About You'; making them fresh for a new generation yet preserving the mystical sexiness (as only the 80's could do it)--but somehow Zo & Phonte did it & I couldn't have been more impressed.
FireMadeFlesh | June 12, 2009 3:57 PM | PermalinkHave you heard Monica version of Luther's Promise Me? it's off that same Back To The Future.
keyknow | June 12, 2009 3:22 PM | PermalinkYou know how I feel about Monica already, that's my girl man. She can DO.IT. Love this version.
As for "Everything She Wants" - ouch...sorry, this one is a miss for me. You know that list of songs you don't ever want to personally see covered? Well this is one of them for me.
Tha Connoisseur | June 12, 2009 3:07 PM | PermalinkButta you keep dropping gems like this and I might have to ask you to jump the broom:) I never heard of this sista but I see she did drop and LP back in 2006 on Amazon, when is this joint dropping?
stoneyisland | June 12, 2009 2:10 PM | Permalink