"Sloop John B"--Dwight Yoakam

     I can count on one hand the number of rock songs---if that is even a classification of music these days—I like from the last decade or so. Country music was once a refuge for those like me who cannot stand rap, pop, or dance, but these days even country artists are using Autotune. The change in style is sacrilege, but what is sacred these days, anyway?

     When searching for MP3 these days in both rock and country, I find virtually nothing worth keeping later than circa 1999 and frequently much older. It has gotten to the point where I am finding more videos like the above in which a traditional country artist covers a classic non-country song. Many of these covers feel like an homage to an era of both rock and country which are long gone and not likely to return save for a back to basics star to catch fire in both genres.

     There is often disdain for covers.  Doubly so when the cover jumps genres. I am not a fan too often myself. But I am feeling the nostalgic rage for the past with better songs in both rock and country. Countrified covers of rock songs are soothing a sore spot I did not know I suffered. So I am going to post a few in the next few days and maybe into the future as long as the quality of what I find suits me.

     I am a fan of Dwight Yoakam and the Beach Boys, so the former's cover of “Sloop John B” is a natural place to start. Yoakam is much like the late Johnny Cash in that when he adds his twang to a song, it becomes his. I will grant you the original by the Beach Boys is still my favorite version, but “Sloop John B” is right at home as a country song.