So. The world is going gaga (lower case) today about Taylor Swift’s rendition of “Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?” at the ceremony inducting Carole King into the Rock-and-Roll Hall of Fame.
As with most things Taylor Swift, it’s heavy on the pop, the backup singers, and the synthesizers and I don’t know how much of the final product can actually be traced to the chanteuse herself The lace jumpsuit was nice though, and I presume that most of what was filling it–unlike the vocalizing-was actually hers.
I never think of Carole King without remembering my undergraduate days at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh. Her album, Tapestry, was popular beyond belief, and pretty much formed the soundtrack of my undergraduate years.
So, after watching, and being largely unimpressed, this morning, by Taylor’s effort, I thought I’d take a walk down memory lane, and see how it sounded in 1971, when sung live by one woman with a piano:
Vastly better. And–for some reason–as I was watching Carole sing her heart out, I wondered: Did Amy Winehouse ever cover this? So I inquired, and indeed she did. Here’s one woman with a simple accompaniment:
Raw, honest, and genuinely emotive.
I’ll take Carole and Amy over Taylor, any day of the week. You?
On that note, I’m reasonably sure the Lady herself (who has a decent set of standalone pipes) would have nailed it.
Carole King is especially good because she actually preferred to write for others, not herself, so when she sings pretty well anything there’s an honesty present borne of what was basically a shyness about performance or putting herself too far forward – quite unlike the divas whose public personas are always on display.