When is a cover not a cover?

[JMFingerstyle]

I picked up my first acoustic guitar back in the 4th grade, circa 1970. Through the years, I've been a competent strummer, an awful flat picker, and a decent fingerstyle player, and I've always tried to recognize my limitations. I've always been poor at performing a solid alternating base line, my fingers never could do bar chords well despite years of trying, and I've never played a single piece exactly like it was originally written. I've adapted my own way of playing music that satisfies me and works within the skills that I have.

Not too long ago, I got together with a friend and we were trading solo finger-style tunes back and forth on our acoustic guitars. Now, I've got a fairly loose style of playing...I've never been one to sit down and try and learn a piece note-for-note from tabs or the original recording. In fact I often work up arrangements for finger-style pieces as I remember hearing them, rather than as they really are, which results in some of my songs falling pretty far from the source tree...in painting terms, I suppose my repertoire is impressionistic rather than photo-realistic.

My friend was aghast whenever I played a fingering that wasn't in the original, or added a measure, or changed a key or a tempo. "Wait!" he'd interrupt, "That's not how (insert original artist name here) plays it! You're screwing it up!". He's the type of person that will listen to a recording over and over while learning a piece, until he can play it with the exact same fingering and intonation as the original, searches out the most accurate tabs, and would never dream of deviating from the way the piece was written. When he plays a James Taylor lick, it SOUNDS like a James Taylor lick. When I play a James Taylor lick, it may or may not vaguely remind you of someone resembling JT.

I think back on the first time I posted a YouTube video of myself playing Ashokan Farewell. At the time I recorded it, I hadn't actually listened to the original for many years, so I just put it together based on how I remembered the tune. I was a little taken aback at the number of personal messages I received berating me for not playing it exactly like the original (although I did receive some kind comments complementing me for my version).

I find myself wondering what the general feeling is out there among the members of the forum. I feel like it's okay to be improvisational and loose...most of my covers would be more accurately described as "inspired by" than "cover of", but how do YOU feel about drifting from the source material as opposed to playing a cover as close to the original as your skill allows?

[mr. beaumont]

Well, a cover's a cover. Some folks play it closer to the original (BOOORRRRING) and some do an interpretation.

If you're playing with others though, you can't go adding bars in places where they're not expected, that's really frustrating for whoever's trying to follow you.

[Jim_G]

When you're playing with other people you have to stick a little closer to the company line. Or at least agree ahead of time on deviations. Not so much on the melody, but dropping or adding measures, and changing the tempo is just asking for trouble. And if you're doing alot of chord substitution then somebody ought to know the melody cold.

But the note-for-note, nah, I wouldn't worry about that. I like to say that I'm better and more artistic than that, even if it's more accurately described that I'm not quite good enough to do it note-for-note.

[rokdog49]

I like to reproduce some semblance of the original stuff, but I like all such topics each of us is different. Our duet does a lot of covers and quite honestly I don't think there is one we do exactly as it was originally performed either instrumentally or vocally. My friend are I are not that anal about it. Our attitude is "what's the point?, we aren't the Eagles"
If he or I played and sang something note for note, that would be icing on the cake. I can absolutely guarantee you the audiences we perform in front of don't notice and don't care. If there is someone in that audience( usually a less-accomplished wannabe) that comments on an "inexact lick", this is what they get from us .

[JMFingerstyle]

Originally Posted by mr. beaumont

If you're playing with others though, you can't go adding bars in places where they're not expected, that's really frustrating for whoever's trying to follow you.

I should have mentioned that in the original post...my question is strictly about solo playing. I'll also throw it out there that I'm not talking about people who are doing "tribute" performances, which you certainly would expect to match the original in both substance and tone.

[drplayer]

If you're playing someone else's stuff, it's a cover...regardless of what interpretive liberties you take.

[mr. beaumont]

Solo? Do you.

I've heard some great covers that sort of use the original as "source material" and take them someplace else entirely.

[rokdog49]

As far as your OP and the intent, the answer is yes I do try to do James Taylor or whatever as closely as possible. That being said, not to the extent that I'm going to spend countless hours until I can...got better things to do.

[BFD]

Your friend actually said "You're screwing it up"?! Kind of surprising!

I think you're looking for grey area where there isn't any. If you didn't write it, then you're covering it. No matter how little effort you put into actually learning it. Unless you're attempting the 'make it your own' literally instead of musically. Then you're plagiarizing it.

[Yamaha Man]

Isn't there an exception for when a piece is used for educational purposes ??

[L20A]

Yes, a cover is a cover.
Some people expect to hear a cover done exactly as the original and don't like to hear people make any changes.
I have a friend that is that way.

My band is a cover band but we add our own style to the songs that we do.
They are still covers though.

[cmd612]

I've worked on learning note-for-note copies as a learning exercise, and I can understand a need to please an audience that expects that, but none of the covers I actually like to play sound anything like the original recorded version. One reason for this is that not one of them was originally released in an arrangement for solo acoustic guitar and voice.

There's one I've been working out recently that was originally recorded by a band using voice, electric guitar, bass, and drums. I've seen videos of several different live versions played by that band at various times, adding or removing verses, changing words, using different tempos. Sometimes they added a keyboardist. The original singer-songwriter also has performed it solo many times with just his voice and acoustic guitar, and his solo performances I've seen all are very different from the original recording, and from each other.

My version borrows bits and pieces from several different versions by the original artist, and it doesn't sound like any of them. I also play it in a key that better suits my vocal range than the original. I guess your friend would be horrified, but if I want to hear the original version, I'll put in the CD. If I want to sing and play the song, I'll try to make it sound good with the instrumentation I'm using.

I tend to think it's a mark of a great song if it can be arranged and interpreted in different ways by different performers with different instruments.

[ZorroElite]

I don't think I play a single song 'note for note, fret for fret' as they say. The reality is that I have different fingers, different techniques, and different tastes. I'll do a better job of a song that I customize to me than trying to mimic someone else.

As others have said... its still a cover, just a different arrangement.

[SFCRetired]

I used to be one of those people who demanded a piece by played exactly as the original. But now I have changed that opinion. Like you I am not an accomplished player so I take liberties with songs and play them the way I know how.

Like Souvenirs by John Prine. I do some individual note lines, strum when singing and then do some more note lines that matches the melody between verses etc. I like the way it comes out and I'm not too worried if some self proclaimed guitar playing expert doesn't like it.

[Kalani]

I can't stand hearing a cover done exactly like the original---singing or otherwise; I think to myself, "Man, where's your creativity? Your artistic presence?" At least sing it in your own voice; I often hear someone sing a song and try to sound exactly like the songwriter too! I can't help but put my own mark on it.