This time I thought I'd focus on a single tune that has haunted me through the years, with different versions meaning different things to me at different stages of my life.
The first version is the one used in the 1989 movie Sea of Love, starring Al Pacino, which is the first time I heard the song. It was a big favourite of my then boyfriend, about an emotionally unavailable cop and his hurt, frustrated girlfriend, as far as I remember! Can't imagine why he liked it so much 🙃 But I loved the song, and I liked the movie too, which had a killer soundtrack by Trevor Jones that mixed electronic stuff with some smoky sax lines and had a sort of Bladerunner-on-earth vibe:
The second version is by Cat Power, and is probably my favourite. I love her voice, and the guitar accompaniment is perfect. It's also great to hear it sung by a woman, as it gives a somewhat updated take on the lyrics. This version also once coincided with a romantic beginning, but it has stayed with me long after that relationship also became water under the bridge, which makes my love life sound much more Zen than it really was:
The last version is my own cover version -- something I recently recorded with jazz pianist Marco Marconi. It's more inspired by Cat Power than the original in that it's a bit bluesy. This version has nothing to do with any romance of mine -- instead, it's driven by love for this kind of music and gratitude for my musical collaborators. I hope you like it:
Thanks for listening! (@ablaze)