Cover of ”Wild Honey,” included in U2’s All That You Can’t Leave Behind album (2000). I played it with acoustic guitar in a lower key.
** EDITOR’S NOTE: **
It feels odd to refer to Federico as a guest performer, considering how many of his performances he’s shared with the Laptop Sessions blog. He’s back again today with another excellent video.
As I discovered last time he covered U2, I enjoy the band’s music so much more when Federico is the one performing it! 🙂
Well, U2 fan or not, I hope that you’ll enjoy his cover song version of “Wild Honey.”
Stay tuned for more great new material coming soon to the blog!
Editor’s note: this post was originally published before December 2015; the exact original date is uncertain.
Welcome to what feels like “just another manic monday” (damnit, I just had to quote the Bangles – shoot me now). One of the busiest days of my…entire…existence. And I still found the time to bring a session to you today. Session-a-day must roll forth. Getting right there to the end of 2008 will see the release of 365 videos between four performers. Simply amazing that we are nearing the end of the year.
Ok, away from that, today’s session. I have to admit, this is a song i’ve known how to play for a long time, and i’ve kept it in store for a day like today where practice time was small at best. A hit by U2 from their album “The Joshua Tree” is the song “With or Without You”. This song, similar to a previous session by Tom Petty “Learning to Fly”, features a repeated four-chord pattern that plays through the entire song. Again, however, the original song is not based on an acoustic guitar so again, making it a Laptop Session is really interesting.
I did a decent job singing this one, but did mistime one word, and one chord slightly. Since I imagine many youtube viewers don’t read the entire description, i was sure i’d have to filter out some comments about those very small mistakes.
Anyway, enjoy this session — the next day’s post was 100KJim’s newest session!
Editor’s Note: Unfortunately, Jeff’s acoustic cover song music videos are no longer on YouTube, but we decided to keep his cover song blog posts up. We figured these music blog entries would be good for posterity’s sake and because Jeff always gave such insightful posts each Session. We hope to see Jeff’s impressive catalog of acoustic rock songs here on the Laptop Sessions cover songs and original music blog again in the future. But, for now, please make sure to check-out hundreds of other acoustic cover songs from all of your favorite bands here on the Laptop Sessions music blog!
Editor’s note: this post was originally published before December 2015; the exact original date is uncertain.
Editor’s Note: Unfortunately, Jeff’s acoustic cover song music videos are no longer on YouTube, but we decided to keep his cover song blog posts up. We figured these music blog entries would be good for posterity’s sake and because Jeff always gave such insightful posts each Session. We hope to see Jeff’s impressive catalog of acoustic rock songs here on the Laptop Sessions cover songs and origianal music blog again in the future. But, for now, please make sure to check-out hundreds of other acoustic cover songs from all of your favorite bands here on the Laptop Sessions music blog!
To see how it’s played in the cover song music video, CLICK HERE!
“A Winter’s Tale”
The Moody Blues
Intro: F Bb F Bb F C F
F Bb
The nights are colder now
Am Bb
Maybe I should close the door
F C Dm
And anyway the snow has covered all your footsteps
Gm C
And I can follow you no more
The fire still burns at night
My memories are warm and clear
F
But everybody knows
C Bb C F
It’s hard to be alone at this time of year
F Bb
It was only a winter’s tale
Just another winter’s tale
And why should the world take notice
F C
Of one more love that’s failed?
F Bb
A love that can never be
Though it meant a lot to you and me
F
On a world-wide scale
C F
We’re just another winter’s tale
Instrumental: F C Dm Dm/C/Bb C F
While I stand alone
A bell is ringing far away
I wonder if you’re here
I wonder if you’re listening
I wonder where you are today
Good luck, I wish you well
For all that wishes may be worth
I hope that love and strength
Are with you for the length
Of your time on earth
CHORUS
Instrumental
CHORUS
Instrumental (x2)
Sing the following over the end of the instrumental:
Bb C F C – F
We’re just another winter’s tale.
** These chords and lyrics are interpretations and transcriptions, respectively, and are the sole property of the copyright holder(s). They are posted on this website free of charge for no profit for the purpose of study and commentary, as allowed for under the “fair use” provision of U.S. copyright law, and should only be used for such personal and/or academic work. **
Hello and welcome to another all-new edition of the Laptop Sessions. To kick off another full week of new material, I’ve reached into the Moody Blues catalog of songs — specifically from their 2003 album December — to bring you a cover song version of their cover of the Mike Blatt and Tim Rice song “A Winter’s Tale.”
Now, although I am an English teacher, this is not to be confused with the William Shakespeare play “The Winter’s Tale.” Not only is there a notable difference in parts of speech (namely the indefinite – “a” – versus the definite – “the” – articles), but there is also a big difference in tone. Still, “The Winter’s Tale” is quite a trip. Consider, for instance, that this play contains one of Shakespeare’s most infamous stage directions: “Exit, pursued by a bear.” What I find the most interesting is that there is contention over whether he used an actual bear for the original productions, or simply a man dressed in a bear costume.
I would assume the latter, but the former is just so much more fascinating…
But this is all beside the point.
“A Winter’s Tale” is one of those songs that is indisputably beautiful, sung perfectly by Justin Hayward. For those who have seen them in concert recently, you may have noticed my apparel is a nod to Hayward’s typical onstage wardrobe. That wasn’t too difficult to arrange, as I simply removed my tie and jacket and voila! Of course, this is also one of those songs that, upon playback, forces me to remember I’m a rhythm guitarist hammering away at what is such a subtle, pretty song at heart. During our MoU Christmas concerts, Mike would front the band on this one, fingerpicking and taking the lead — and for good reason!
The reason I’m standing up is because the song simply didn’t sound right when I played it sitting down. I found I was having trouble getting comfortable as I played it.
Of course, the majority of the song being played on barre chords didn’t help either…
Several takes and several strained ligaments in my hands later, you’ve got yourself a new Laptop Session.
As a final note about the song, I found it very interesting that this song, originally written by songwriters Mike Batt and Tim Rice, hit #2 on the UK charts back in 1982. Batt teamed up with Rice to write the song for performer David Essex. Another interesting bit of trivia is that Batt went on to produce Justin Hayward’s solo album Classic Blue between 1988 and 1989 at Abbey Road Studios in London. Classic Blue, ironically, is an album of covers. The track listing includes three songs written by Batt, as well as classics from Brian Wilson, Lennon/McCartney, and Led Zeppelin.
I hope that you enjoy this installment of the Laptop Sessions, and I encourage you to hurry back for more. If you missed the music review, you should know that I just kicked off a top five albums of the decade countdown, with a new album revealed and reviewed each weekend, culminating in my full “Top Thirty Rock Albums of the Decade” list and my review of the number one rock album of the decade.
Thus far, the Barenaked Ladies’ Maroon (2000) has cinched the #5 slot. Which album will rank as the fourth best album of the decade?
You’ll have to tune in to the Weekend Review to find out…
