The Bird and the Bee

Notice that the first word in this album’s title is “Interpreting,” not “Covering.” That’s the right word to use for these songs: “Covering” implies imitation, while “interpreting” carries the connotation of adding original twists. And the Bird and the Bee — singer Inara George and producer/multi-instrumentalist Greg Kurstin — certainly do that.

George, daughter of the late Little Feat frontman Lowell George, tends to sing with airy detachment, and Kurstin favors tastefully sparse pop-electronica arrangements. Hall and Oates is something else entirely — an old-fashioned soul duo with modern pop overtones. George can’t match the fire in the vocals of the original recordings. Instead, she and Kurstin emphasize the songs’ sturdy hooks, and the plain-spoken poetry in the lyrics.

You may know these songs inside out, but when you listen to this album, you will feel as if you are hearing them for the first time.

The ballads “Sara Smile” and “She’s Gone” are sadder than the originals; there’s no cathartic release. Meanwhile, George and Kurstin bring songs like “Maneater” (featuring Shirley Manson of Garbage on backing vocals), “I Can’t Go for That” and “Kiss on My List” down to earth, stripping them of their pop slickness.

I could have done without another version of the smug “Rich Girl,” and also wonder why the CD is so short (30 minutes). George and Kurstin include just eight Hall and Oates songs. Surely they could have found more worth re-recording, maybe even some obscurities (the songs on this album were all Top 10 hits).

I have no problem, though, with them kicking off the CD with the album’s lone original, “Heard It on the Radio,” a sweetly nostalgic pop confection that sets the stage perfectly for what is to come.

George and Kurstin have not revealed what songs they might interpret on the future albums that the “Vol. 1” in this one’s title hints at. But starting with Hall and Oates was a smart, counterintuitive choice.

Interpreting the Masters, Vol. 1: A Tribute to Daryl Hall and John Oates

The Bird and the Bee
– Taken from: http://www.nj.com
– Source: JP