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Pop Rock Nation

Author: Money Mike

  • Shoulda Been a Hit: “I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man”

    jordanCovering a Prince song is a dicey proposition. Not only with the man himself, as he’s not terribly fond of others recording his music, but…how can you outdo Prince? A couple of artists have gotten it right. Chaka Khan’s “I Feel for You” is better than the original, as was Sinead O’ Connor’s take on “Nothing Compares 2 U”, which he wrote for The Family back in ’85. That said, for every “When You Were Mine” by Cyndi Lauper, there’s a “When Doves Cry” by Ginuwine (ugh) or “Purple Rain” by LeAnn Rimes (double ugh…and yes, LeAnn Rimes re-recorded “Purple Rain”. Go listen if you think you have the stomach for it).

    So, the last thing you’d imagine would be a credible Prince cover by a former New Kid on the Block, right?

    “I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man” was one of my favorite songs from Prince’s magnum opus, “Sign ‘O the Times”. It’s a near-perfect slice of pop-rock with an interesting narrative and some fantastic guitar playing (although it’s kind of buried in the mix). It’s deceptively peppy, considering the subject matter (Prince meets unhappy girl at a bar, girl falls in love, Prince says hey, I’m good for a quickie but I’m not the type that’ll stick around forever). Knight’s version (which you can find on his 1999 solo debut-I believe it’s out of print but you can find copies cheap online) completely recasts the song as a sorrowful ballad, bringing out the heartbreak of the lyrics. It’s a pretty ballsy move, but it works. It’s also helpful that Jordan doesn’t try to oversell the song, instead letting the story unfold without adding any extra drama to an already dramatic scenario.

    Somehow, despite the fact that it was the follow-up to a Top 10, Platinum single (“Give it to You”), “I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man” didn’t chart. Perhaps the stigma of being an ex-NKOTB prevented the song from doing so (it certainly prevented a lot of people from taking the album seriously, which is a bad move, because the album is a satisfying slice of blue-eyed soul that beats the pants off of both Justin Timberlake albums and stands head to head with all three Robin Thicke albums…probably because Thicke co-wrote and co-produced almost this entire album), but this is one that definitely should have been a bigger hit than it was.

    I’d love to post Prince’s original, but I might get drawn and quartered by the man himself if I do. Besides, if a copy of “Sign O’ the Times” isn’t in your record collection, you should be ashamed of yourself. However, here’s the video of Jordan’s version. Turn your volume up.


    I could never take the place of your man • Jordan Knight – Jordan Knight

  • First Look: Eminem’s “We Need You”

    eminem

    Honestly, Marshall? No, we don’t. Not anymore, anyway.

    Mr. Mathers has been sliding down the slippery slope of suck ever since peaking with “The Marshall Mathers LP”, which celebrates its’ 9th birthday in a month or so. Not to say Eminem has lost his gift of gab-he’s just been at a loss for interesting subject matter. The more of a star he became, the less righteous rage he could muster up. This is why his last studio album, “Encore” (which is nearly five years old now), struggled to stay afloat. For every righteously indignant masterpiece like “Mosh”, there were twice as many pee and poo jokes-things that might have been appropriate for Em’s daughter Hailie, but not for the hip-hop fans who’d anointed Slim Shady one of the best emcees of all time.

    Those of you that thought a few years off might recharge Eminem’s creative batteries? Sorry, y’all. “We Need You” finds Eminem right where we left him. His flow is still ridiculous, but who told him to keep rhyming in that idiotic Triumph the Insult Comic Dog voice? Who told him that people still care about Jessica Simpson? (surely, he must read Billboard). Just like the first singles from each of his past three LPs (I say that since we don’t know where “Crack a Bottle” will end up), Eminem has gone ultra-pop and has resorted to cheap jokes to grab a hit, and the sad thing is, he still has a ton of fans who will eat this shit up. It’s sad.

    You can check out this piece of hot garbage here on MTV.com.

  • New Release of the Week 4/7/09: Rascal Flatts

    flattsBased on this week’s articles so far, you might think we’ve turned into a country website. Never fear, the cowboy hat is only temporarry, but country music informs this week’s new release column as well.

    Fresh off their ACM win for Best Country Group (unseating Brooks & Dunn after something like 14 straight wins), Rascal Flatts release their new album, “Unstoppable”, today. Now, I don’t have a problem with these guys per se. Let’s face it, most modern country acts are pretty vanilla. But, as I’ve said in a column before, Rascal Flatts is basically *Nsync with tight jeans and cowboy boots. I’ve honestly got no desire to seek out music by them, but if something’s playing, I won’t change the station. Nevertheless, these guys sell kajillions of records without my help. Watch for them to challenge U2 for the best-selling first week of the year so far.

    Here are some of today’s other hot releases:

    Billy Ray Cyrus “Back to Tennessee”– Talk about improbable comebacks. Turns out all Billy Ray Cyrus had to do to remain relevant was cut his mullet off and have a kid. Since Miley’s career blossomed two or three years ago, Billy Ray has undergone a career resurgence. “Back to Tennessee” is poised to continue that hot streak. Not so coincidentally, it contains duets with Miley, as well as a song that will be featured in Miley’s upcoming “Hannah Montana” movie.

    Fat Joe “Jealous Ones Still Envy 2”– Fat Joe is one of those guys who has just kinda stuck around for no good reason. A couple of catchy singles here and there shouldn’t take away from the fact that Mr. Cartegena is pretty much a one-note rapper. A head-scratcher in my eyes is how he seemed to improve as a rapper as soon as Big Pun came on the scene. While I believe that the man hires some solid ghostwriters, that has yet to be proven. “J.O.S.E. 2” features guest appearances by (surprise) Akon, (bigger surprise) T-Pain, and (oh my God!) Lil’ Wayne

    Jadakiss “The Last Kiss” -Five years between albums for a moderately successful rapper should be a career-killer, and I don’t think anyone expects the former LOX member to break any sales records with this album-he’s simply been away for too long, and as everyone knows, the tastes of rap fans are very fickle. “The Last Kiss”, his first album for Roc-a-Fella Records (does Jay-Z even have anything to do with this label anymore) thankfully does not feature Akon, T-Pain or Lil’ Wayne, but does feature Ne-Yo, several members of the Wu-Tang Clan, and Faith Evans on “Letter to B.I.G.”, which was released earlier this year on the “Notorious” soundtrack.

    Jason Aldean “Wide Open”– Quiet as kept, Aldean’s career has gotten off to a pretty solid start. His 2005 debut went Platinum, and the follow-up went Gold. Current single “She’s Country” has blasted up the charts, which augurs good things for his third album. Will this album bring Jason up to the ranks of guys like Kenny Chesney, Tim McGraw, Keith Urban and Brad Paisley? Hard to tell, but this is one to definitely keep an eye on. He’s pretty easy on the eyes, too.

    James Taylor “Other Covers”– I love JT. Really I do. But damn man, think of some more original album titles, PLEASE. His first covers set, released last year, was called simply “Covers”. So he’s releasing a follow-up EP and what does he call it? “Other Covers”. Maybe his next album will be called “Album”. Or “Songs”. Anyhow, Taylor’s getting a little soulful here. Among the songs he tackles are Wilson Pickett’s “In the Midnight Hour” and Eddie Floyd’s “Knock on Wood”. I just got a mental picture of JT doing “Knock on Wood” in disco style a la Amii Stewart. Gave me a little chuckle. Ha.

    You can get a full list of today’s releases here.