Last weekend I heard the Bee Gees disco classic “More than a Woman” on XM radio. It really is the epitome of ’70s disco music and while I grew up on this stuff (thanks to the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack which was a staple in everybody’s record collection in the late ’70s), Barry Gibb’s falsetto vocals can be a bit grating at time. But as I listened to the song, I was deconstructing it down to it’s bare core and was imaging it being performed by some bearded, indie folk rock act like Iron & Wine. In my head, it works.
The Bee Gees have been the subject of many tribute albums (like Melody Fair featuring contributions by Material Issue, Young Fresh Fellow, The Fastbacks) over the years and many artists have covered a song here or there but very few are in line with what I’m imagining.
So, I challenge somebody with the right connections and deeper pockets than mine to put my dream tribute album together. I’m thinking that Iron & Wine, The Fleet Foxes, Band of Horses, Jim James (My Morning Jacket), Deer Tick, Mark Kozelek (Red House Painters), David Bazan (Pedro the Lion), Grand Archives, and Jose Gonzalez should be on the list of acts invited to contribute.
And, to get things started, Ray Lamontagne and Damien Rice could properly record their cover of “To Love Somebody” for inclusion.
Am I missing any artists? In the folk/indie rock genre, who do you think would do a good job of covering a Bee Gees song? And, if you’ve stumbled upon any other good Bee Gees covers, let me know in the comments section.
