Bucky Covington’s Lackluster Cover
On 10-28-2009
at 6:48 pm
I wonder what type of country music you would find on Bucky Covington’s iPod. You would probably find all of the classic artists, such as, Buck Owens, Merle Haggard, and George Jones. There might be a Sugarland song thrown in there, but that would be to impress the ladies. His rock collection would be just as diverse with the likes of The Rolling Stones, Cream, and Led Zeppelin. Of course, this might be a premature generalization. It probably only has music from the past 15 years. Bucky has shown that he is shallow-minded, musically, with the recent cover of Nickelback’s “Gotta Be Somebody.” I recently watched the video for this rock gem on CMT’s website, and I’ve gotta hand it to the video’s director. He knows how to follow the proverbial cliched country video check list to the letter. There are fans that are having way more fun than they should be having, and quick cuts from Bucky to the members of his band. Does this single and it’s video show that the recording industry will settle for anything. Where is the art? Why can’t today’s country artist step outside the boundaries and cover a pop single that has clout with the public and critics. Bucky is not the only one at fault. In the last 15 years, we have heard country covers of sub-par pop singles. Will we ever forget Alabama’s ghastly version of Nsync’s “God Must Have Spent A Little More Time On You,” or Rissi Palmer’s bland cover of Rihanna’s “Umbrella.” If these covers were part of a concept album, that would be one thing, but these singles are designed only for short gain.
There was a time when country artists knew how to take pop songs and tweak them to make them their own. They didn’t “countrify” them, they just conformed those songs to be more conducive to their style. This is an art form. Conway Twitty proved this when he mustered just as much soul as The Pointer Sisters’ with Slow Hand. Willie Nelson also proved this with the album Stardust. He stripped down standards like, “Georgia On My Mind” and “Someone to Watch Over Me,” and still made them sound fresh and new. And, who knew that Waylon could rock out with the best of them on “House of the Rising Sun.” However, just as appreciative as these artists were of popular music, pop artists have also shown their love for country music. Alison Bonaguro would disagree with me, but Pop artists have every right to cover a country song. The trick is to choose a good one. James Taylor is no slouch when he performed George Jones‘ “She Thinks I Still Care” on his live album, and no one can knock Elvis Costello’s reworking of Merle’s “Tonight the Bottle Let Me Down.” There is a downside to this, however. At a recent concert, Barry Manilow covered “She Thinks My Tractor’s Sexy.” This is an example of choosing the wrong one, or for that matter, a bad one. Waylon’s “Wurlitzer Prize” could have been the perfect choice, but I would probably would have preferred Norah Jones’ version on the Tribute to Waylon Jennings’ album.
I don’t expect Bucky or any of his peers to be creative as any of these, but if you can’t, why try? You’re not breaking any ground by covering someone who has just as much respect with critics as you do. But What do I know? This will probably be a top 20 hit because today’s country music fan doesn’t know any better.
I have heard Bucky’s version of Gotta Be Somebody and I think he does a great job. I have also seen the video and it is also very good.
Is your girlfriend a Bucky fan? Are you jealous? I think so. Were you at the concert? If so, you would’ve known that the crowd was like that the whole time.
Hey Todd-you are caught up on the pure country artists’ and their covers and boy do i agree with you 99%. If you allow me that 1% to disagree. Don’t think that Covington kid was as bad as you say. I liked his first single a few years back. Hate Nickleback but that Gotta be Somebody year or two ago was not horror and this cover–in my opinion–not bad. I’d give him a break on this one.
You have a right to your opinion, but do you know where the video was shot? Trust me, the people in the video were having a great time, loving it and absolutely should have been. Fans and hometown folk welcoming their Bucky back home!!! Wish I could have joined them and thanks to my “don’t know no better” taste…I like the song and the video.
Everyone has their own point of view so you have a right to have yours as I do mine. I respect that. I really like the new single and I think I have a wide experience and good taste in music.
I also want to say that Bucky chose this song because HE LIKED it and wanted to cover it as it was. I was at the concert and Bucky and his band were on fire. His shows are filled with great energy and the fans LOVE his shows so there are no pretences there.
I hope you get to experience one of his performances and enjoy yourself — only a small few do not (you can’t please everyone).
You have the right to share you opinion about Bucky or anyone else for that matter, but so do I. And I think Bucky is great and I love the song and I think he does a great job singing it. I also would not bash him unless you have seen him live. Maybe you should get out more often…
You must not have much to do with your personal time than to criticize artists’ remakes of songs. Get a life! I feel that his remake of Nickelback’s song was wonderful. A bit of sweetness and caress added to it. And as for his fans in the video go? How dare you! Grow up! I have seen Bucky, in concert, many a time, and he only gets better. Perhaps you may want to see him live in concert to better appreciate the man he is. PS: His band members are especially awesome, too.
Sorry you didn’t like Bucky’s latest song. I was actually unfamiliar with it, and heard Bucky’s version before I hit YouTube and saw the original. I was more impressed with the cover. I was lucky enough to be in the crowd during the video shoot. Maybe we had more fun than we should have been having, but we loved it.