Macy Gray- Covered (2012) VBR

Macy Gray- Covered

Year 2012

Tracks
1. Here Comes The Rain Again 3:44
2. Creep 4:18
3. You Want Them Nervous 1:12
4. Smoke 2 Joints 2:48
5. La La La (Teaching The Kids) 0:25
6. Teenagers 2:56
7. The Power Of Love 0:41
8. Nothing Else Matters 5:42
9. Sail 4:27
10. I Try Is Cool And All, But 1:29
11. Maps 2:51
12. Love Lockdown / Buck 3:59
13. Mel Rap 0:33
14. Bubbly 3:11
15. Wake Up 3:51
16. Really 2:21

"Covered" isn't just a collection of familiar songs given the Macy Gray treatment -- it's a frequently funny journey through what makes Macy Gray Macy Gray, with celebrity guests visiting to offer advice (like JB Smoove advising she wield a sword on-stage, or Nicole Scherzinger saying she should sing more Alanis Morissette songs).
Fortunately, all of it's enlivened by Gray's ability to (mostly) deliver strong performances that don't sound like they've been labored over. With her keyboard-led live band in tow, Gray mashes Eurythmics' "Here Comes the Rain Again" with Radiohead's "Creep", Kanye West's "Love Lockdown" with Nina Simone's "Buck".
Her choice and range of material to cover are astonishing, always yielding songs that are perfect for her (and her audience), like "Smoke Two Joints", done earlier by Sublime as well as the Toyes. J. Bush