Award winning American songwriter Beck has posted a new Velvet Underground cover online, the first in a series to be made available.
Beck Hansen is an unpredictable chap. After the alt folk of ‘Mellow Gold’ the singer roped in the Dust Brothers for the oddball hip hop of ‘Odelay’ before reaching for some spandex on the white boy funk of ‘Midnight Vultures’.
Last year’s album ‘Modern Guilt’ was a typically strong collection, partly influenced by electronic music yet still retaining a strong love for absurd songwriting. As he matures, Beck seems ever more capable of surprising his fans, yet his latest move seems outrageous even by his standards.
Relaunching his website, Beck has introduced a section named ‘Record Club’. The concept is simple – Beck will gather some musicians and cover a classic album in its entirety, with no prior rehearsals.
In order to show what he means, the songwriter has covered ‘The Velvet Underground & Nico’ with Beck posting the first track online today (June 19th). The album is the first by the group, and the only one to feature tragic chanteuse Nico.
Released in 1967, ‘The Velvet Underground & Nico’ boasts artwork by Andy Warhol and has gone on to become hugely influential. Even Brian Eno was moved to make his oft repeated comment that everyone who heard the album seemed to have formed a band.
Beck has released his cover of the album’s opening track ‘Sunday Morning’. The quiet before the storm, the original version features hushed vocals from Nico, and it is interesting to see how Beck interprets the song’s arrangement.
The singer has promised to release a new song every two weeks on the website, with future collaborations expected with the likes of MGMT and many more.
To listen to Beck’s cover of ‘Sunday Morning’ just click HERE!
