Re-doing Beatle songs -- two new albums that don't sound like Barry Manilow

April 6, 7:34 AMBeatles ExaminerSteve Marinucci

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  The cover for the "Easy Star's Lonely Hearts Dub Band" CD.

Covering a Beatle song is an interesting game. The Fab Four's songs are so familiar and have been played so many times that it can be hard for them to get noticed. So many albums of Beatle covers are out there that to be noticed they have to be very good and/or very unusual and not sound like someone like Barry Manilow putting his stamp on "Yesterday."

Two albums, one recent and the other due out later this month, fall into the latter category.

"The Easy Star's Lonely Hearts Dub Band" on Easy Star Records, available on mp3 download or on CD April 14, is a reggae re-working of the Beatles' "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" album. It features appearances by a host of name reggae artists, including Steel Pulse, Ranking Roger, Max Romeo, Sugar Minott and The Mighty Diamonds.

This isn't the first time Beatle tracks have been interpreted with reggae. Trojan Records put out a series of CDs several years ago. The results were less than fired up. 

Thankfully, the Easy Stars' version is quite listenable and very enjoyable. Junior Jazz kicks off the show with "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band." The reggae beat seems a natural fit for the music, a characteristic that's true for the whole album. The arrangements fit well and the music has a good beat. 

On "With A Little Help From My Friends," Luciano slows the beat down, but injects energy into the song with a little help from the musicians and vocal help on the track, plus some well-placed echo. Some nice work here and a very comfortable fit for this song. The beat slows down a little more for Frankie Paul with "Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds," and again, it works. The chorus becomes full reggae and sounds very natural. 

The most challenging track on the album is certainly "Within You Without You," which combines Indian rhythms and reggae. Does it work? The combination of the sitars and the reggae beat just doesn't seem to mix for me, maybe a case of trying too hard.

But other than that,  "The Easy Star's Lonely Hearts Dub Band" is a good and enjoyable interpretation of an album we know inside out and one that even casual listeners of reggae should enjoy.

  The cover for "The Beatles Uke" by Greg Hawkes.

In every way that the Easy Stars' album is dramatic, Greg Hawkes' "The Beatles Uke" on Solid Air Records is delicate and gentle. Acoustic interpretations of the Beatles are always special and this album, done entirely on ukeleles either alone or multitracked by Hawkes, a former member of the Cars, is charming. It's particularly interesting to hear Hawkes interpret the end of "Strawberry Fields Forever." He intricately plays the ending paralleling the volume changes of the original song.

A song like "Eleanor Rigby" that is made to order for an acoustic interpretation comes off beautifully. The intricate string work on this track is nothing short of wonderful. The same holds true for Hawkes' versions of "She's Leaving Home" and "Yesterday." 

The track list tries to give equal time to the four Beatles and features songs sung by each one, though the choice of "Piggies" and "Blue Jay Way" to represent George Harrison are unusual when you have "Something" to choose from, although everyone has covered that one.  "Blue Jay Way" is done imaginitively with some psychedelic effects in the background.

The album ends off somewhat appropriately with "Goodnight," pretty much overlooked in the Beatles' canon. Hawkes' meticulous picking of the melody gives the song some well-deserved attention.

By the way, Solid Air Records, named after the song done by the late John Martyn, is also the home for former Wings member Laurence Juber's recordings.