Comments on: They're gonna rip it off

They're gonna rip it off

namewithoutwords — Fri, 01 May 2009 06:11:04 -0800

Jack and Meg did it first. Audioslave did it poorly. The Hives tried to do it by rote. The Flaming Lips did it best while simultaneously Moving To Florida. It's been done in Mario Paint and on a ukulele. But the latest people to attempt it? Country legends The Oak Ridge Boys.

By: Bathtub Bobsled

Bathtub Bobsled — Fri, 01 May 2009 06:14:18 -0800

And, thank you Jack White for the fibre optic jesus.

By: Benjy

Benjy — Fri, 01 May 2009 06:21:40 -0800

I always dug the Nostalgia 77 cover.

By: Dr. Wu

Dr. Wu — Fri, 01 May 2009 06:22:43 -0800

I am entirely unsurprised at the raft of covers of this song. In my opinion, it possesses one of the greatest riffs in rock music - right up there with "Layla," "You Really Got Me," "Fire," and all those hoary old classics.

By: spicynuts

spicynuts — Fri, 01 May 2009 06:22:54 -0800

Damn...whoever is playin dem drums for the Oak Ridge Boys knows how to kick out the jams.

By: uncleozzy

uncleozzy — Fri, 01 May 2009 06:26:21 -0800

one of the greatest riffs in rock music So much so that I had no idea that it was from a White Stripes song. It's as if it always existed. A primeval riff.

By: FelliniBlank

FelliniBlank — Fri, 01 May 2009 06:26:57 -0800

Well, that's . . . something. The bullhorn + siren are what make the Lips' version a thing of fucking beauty.

By: DU

DU — Fri, 01 May 2009 06:31:04 -0800

Surprising how well it translate to both ukulele and piano.

By: saladin

saladin — Fri, 01 May 2009 06:33:33 -0800

I first heard the studio version of the Flaming Lips' cover on their Late Night Tales mixed CD, which is a pretty amazing collection of songs chosen by the bandmembers to represent their various musical interests. Highly recommended.

By: chillmost

chillmost — Fri, 01 May 2009 06:37:36 -0800

Whoa. The Flaming Lips own that song so hard, they probably get royalties.

By: bunnycup

bunnycup — Fri, 01 May 2009 06:38:19 -0800

Wow. I love it. I super love it. I want to marry it and run away into the sunset.

By: filthy light thief

filthy light thief — Fri, 01 May 2009 06:40:25 -0800

2nding the love of Nostalgia 77 and their cover of the song. Here's The Flaming Lips and The White Stripes counting down to the New Year, then playing 7 Nation Army together.

By: googly

googly — Fri, 01 May 2009 06:47:12 -0800

+1 for the surfers reference.

By: PenDevil

PenDevil — Fri, 01 May 2009 06:48:07 -0800

The guitar riff has also become a popular football chant.

By: EmpressCallipygos

EmpressCallipygos — Fri, 01 May 2009 06:50:34 -0800

....The Oak Ridge Boys still exist?

By: Potomac Avenue

Potomac Avenue — Fri, 01 May 2009 06:52:40 -0800

PenDevil: Thanks for that now I can't get this outta my head: Jock Jams remix.

By: robocop is bleeding

robocop is bleeding — Fri, 01 May 2009 06:53:27 -0800

Problem with this song is every time it's on the radio while I'm driving, I almost get into an accident as my foot starts to pound up and down on the pedals. Here's hoping it makes it onto Rock Band at some point (they can let the Bass play the part everyone thinks is bass anyways) so I could at least be justified in my "Hey, Meg, why don't you turn up the difficulty to Medium?" joke I always make when the song is over.* * Usually to distract my wife who is having conniptions from my poor driving skills from the first part. It rarely works.

By: Mister_A

Mister_A — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:02:40 -0800

Hey FWIW AudioSlave did everything poorly.

By: iconomy

iconomy — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:12:15 -0800

I could do without the sung "bom bom bom bom bom bom bom" part, but other than that The ORB versions is pretty great. I see goatse in the White Stripes video.

By: Madamina

Madamina — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:23:44 -0800

Holy cripes, I got goosebumps with the Flaming Lips. I also like the Adam Freeland mix of the original. Extended dance mix, indeed!

By: inthe80s

inthe80s — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:24:43 -0800

Hey FWIW AudioSlave did everything poorly. I have to politely disagree. Best Vanishing Point tribute EVAR. That being said, Chris Cornell is either really good, or just really awful, there's no middle ground in that guy's career. The telling point in all the covers, is at the one minute mark when the guitar kicks in with that monster riff. If the person covering the song doesn't pull it off right, the whole song falls flat.

By: Mach5

Mach5 — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:27:38 -0800

As dull as that Audioslave version is, the Hives version is barely on par if not worse. At least Audioslave has Tom Morello... Flaming Lips version is almost better than the original though.

By: freq

freq — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:28:40 -0800

3rd'nding the Nostalgia77 / Alice Russell version. She is so amazing.

By: caution live frogs

caution live frogs — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:30:29 -0800

I am really amused by the fact that, thanks to the Oak Ridge Boys, my grandpa and I can totally groove out to the same damn song. It puts me in mind of Johnny Cash's covers of Rusty Cage and Hurt, or the collaborations between Loretta Lynn and Jack White on Van Lear Rose. Really. I don't know what the younger "country" people are doing these days with the shitty Jesus+America=Yay bullshit they keep spewing*, but the older ones seem to just remember that good music (and good musicians) know(s) no boundaries. *To be fair I have no idea what the younger slut-pop/boy-band top 40's American Idol bullshit is about either, except that I am certain it sucks just as much as the "New Country".

By: paisley henosis

paisley henosis — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:31:27 -0800

Qualo did it, too.

By: MrMoonPie

MrMoonPie — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:31:35 -0800

Holy crap I never knew there was such a thing as a resonator ukulele and now I need one so badly it hurts.

By: Artw

Artw — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:33:32 -0800

That's nothing, it's awesome as a football chant.

By: FelliniBlank

FelliniBlank — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:34:14 -0800

It's as if it always existed. A primeval riff. Precisely, like "Whole Lotta Love" or "(Don't Fear) The Reaper" or "Mannish Boy" or Dr. Wu's list. Do the evolutionary-musicology-psychology people know why some riffs appeal on practically a chromosomal level?

By: Artw

Artw — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:36:28 -0800

Oops, PenDevil got there first

By: pyramid termite

pyramid termite — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:37:14 -0800

It's as if it always existed. A primeval riff. well, 1960's close - mix in a bit of rock lobster and bob seger's 2+2=?

By: bwg

bwg — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:37:59 -0800

Audioslave's guitarist annoys the shit out of me.

By: punkfloyd

punkfloyd — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:42:25 -0800

Your favorite cover of Seven Nation Army sucks.

By: Artw

Artw — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:44:37 -0800

well, 1960's close - mix in a bit of rock lobster and bob seger's 2+2=? The Ventures -> Pipeline -> Anthrax maybe?

By: Artw

Artw — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:47:31 -0800

EUROTECHNO!

By: raysmj

raysmj — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:51:08 -0800

Thank you for that--for the Oak Ridge Boys cover, that is.

By: diogenes

diogenes — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:53:11 -0800

I wish I was 18 years old and at a Flaming Lips concert right now. Seven Nation Army is one of those songs that I'll always remember the first time I heard it. It was that feeling of "Wow, what is that! I must know what that is! I must possess it immediately and listen to it repeatedly." Of course the all-time leader in that regard will always be Smells Like Teen Spirit.

By: Artw

Artw — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:55:01 -0800

That ones very Johnny Cash - actually that's like the one thing he didn't cover. Damn he's missed.

By: Artw

Artw — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:55:25 -0800

(he Oak Ridge Boys cover that is)

By: KirkJobSluder

KirkJobSluder — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:55:51 -0800

I'm still biased towards the White Stripes original, because I think it's probably the best-executed demonstration of Jack White's minimalist aesthetic of stripping everything down to a three-part arrangement. The Flaming Lips live version certainly rocks, but it's really busy. The vocal bass part of The Oak Ridge Boys just made the whole thing sound cute to my ears, too much like rebranding the song for an aging "adult contemporary" audience.

By: diogenes

diogenes — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:57:36 -0800

Oh, and I'm in the Oak Ridge Boys cover is good camp.

By: any major dude

any major dude — Fri, 01 May 2009 08:05:52 -0800

Damn, why the hell have I not been to a Flaming Lips concert. Funny that two of the most interesting bands around these days got there start with one hit wonder songs and one hit wonder band names. Radiohead and Flaming Lips.

By: Talanvor

Talanvor — Fri, 01 May 2009 08:08:23 -0800

I actually liked the White Stripes version, which is funny since I normally don't like that band. Hope to see it in Rock Band at some point!

By: shinynewnick

shinynewnick — Fri, 01 May 2009 08:13:03 -0800

I'll pass along the kind words to the Oak Ridge Boys. They have a theater here in Branson, MO that they share with a few rotating acts.

By: FelliniBlank

FelliniBlank — Fri, 01 May 2009 08:16:24 -0800

a few rotating acts The Aristocrats!

By: spicynuts

spicynuts — Fri, 01 May 2009 08:16:33 -0800

I'll tell you what I'd buy for a dollar: a double album with one album being White Stripes covers of the Oak Ridge Boys and on album being Oak Ridge Boys covers of White Stripes songs.

By: grubi

grubi — Fri, 01 May 2009 08:20:17 -0800

Not a huge White Stripes fan or anything, but this proves simply that this song is insane. Just a great piece of work that, IMO, stands right the fuck up alongside almost any song in rock history. Wow. Just, wow. (Even the not-so-good versions have a little bit of awesome in 'em.)

By: caddis

caddis — Fri, 01 May 2009 08:21:49 -0800

Any post with Jack White is a super post in my book. I wish there were more musicians around like him.

By: bitterkitten

bitterkitten — Fri, 01 May 2009 08:26:43 -0800

I must be the only dummkopf who doesn't like this song.

By: chococat

chococat — Fri, 01 May 2009 08:27:18 -0800

I'll tell you what I'd buy for a dollar: a double album with one album being White Stripes covers of the Oak Ridge Boys and on album being Oak Ridge Boys covers of White Stripes songs. I don't know. I think I can deal with not hearing a White Stripes cover of Elvira.

By: rocket88

rocket88 — Fri, 01 May 2009 08:28:59 -0800

I like the Flaming Lips but I have to give a big thumbs down to that live version. The vocals just sounded like shit. Seriously, if you're not Tom Waits, then don't sing through a megaphone.

By: filthy light thief

filthy light thief — Fri, 01 May 2009 08:32:40 -0800

Any post with Jack White is a super post in my book. I wish there were more musicians around like him. Pasty and corpse-like? Confusing his fans by stating his bandmate is his sister or wife? Reviving an old Country star? Or reviving the magic of basic rock riffs?

By: grubi

grubi — Fri, 01 May 2009 08:36:34 -0800

Hey, everyone! filthy light thief doesn't like Jack White! Did we get that? Everyone aware yet? Thank god we've settled the debate.

By: nightchrome

nightchrome — Fri, 01 May 2009 08:36:43 -0800

Oh wow, maybe I need to start listening to North American music again...

By: scratch

scratch — Fri, 01 May 2009 08:42:01 -0800

Do the evolutionary-musicology-psychology people know why some riffs appeal on practically a chromosomal level? IAN an evolutionary etc. person, but I seem to vaguely recall hearing something about the Bo Diddley beat mimicking or suggesting or yada yada'ing the human heartbeat. Or was it the "backwards" reggae rhythm that does that? Never mind, I don't know what I'm talking about.

By: iconomy

iconomy — Fri, 01 May 2009 08:46:21 -0800

Pasty and corpse-like? Some people (like me) have pale skin. It's NATURAL. Stop calling us pasty. Not gonna go sunbake or spray tan to make my skin color more acceptable to you. This pisses me right off every time I see it.

By: thecjm

thecjm — Fri, 01 May 2009 08:53:38 -0800

Robert Randolph did it.

By: Monsters

Monsters — Fri, 01 May 2009 08:56:08 -0800

Oh dear. That Hives cover was a big mistake. I love those guys- their particular brand of superserious calculated ridiculousness turns me right on and as a band they are tight as hell. But Seven Nation Army is too slow, too spare, to be a good idea for my beloved Hives.

By: jester69

jester69 — Fri, 01 May 2009 08:56:53 -0800

Funny that two of the most interesting bands around these days got there start with one hit wonder songs and one hit wonder band names. Sorry, but the Flaming Lips had several albums and an established fan base before their "she don't use jelly" hit, and have had several successful albums since, specifically The Soft Bulletin and Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots, both widely critically acclaimed. Flaming Lips are 100% under the radar, but by no means a one hit wonder band, no idea what to say on the band name, most band names are pretty dumb anymore. /fanboy rant

By: KirkJobSluder

KirkJobSluder — Fri, 01 May 2009 09:05:28 -0800

jester69: Flaming Lips are 100% under the radar, but by no means a one hit wonder band, no idea what to say on the band name, most band names are pretty dumb anymore. Actually most one-hit-wonders are musicians or groups with an extended history and discography. They get their one big chart-topper and then go back to producing music they like for a market of fans who like them.

By: boyinmiami

boyinmiami — Fri, 01 May 2009 09:06:33 -0800

Hard Fi Version Flaming Lips and Nostalgia 77 versions rock

By: spicynuts

spicynuts — Fri, 01 May 2009 09:07:11 -0800

I don't know. I think I can deal with not hearing a White Stripes cover of Elvira. Ok fine..how about a White Stripes cover of "All The Gold In California"??

By: hifiparasol

hifiparasol — Fri, 01 May 2009 09:11:54 -0800

Beat me to it, boyinmiami. I always thought that version was good but somehow lacking. It does have the distinction of being the first cover of the song that I ever heard, though.

By: hifiparasol

hifiparasol — Fri, 01 May 2009 09:16:35 -0800

Also, I was never what you'd call a Danzig fan, but this is one song I would've liked to hear his take on. Just like I always thought a mariachi version of "Wicked Game" would be awesome, as would a Pearl Jam cover of REM's "Turn You Inside Out." I have this whole fantasyland of covers I'd like to see performed.

By: barrett caulk

barrett caulk — Fri, 01 May 2009 09:22:03 -0800

Stripes/Boys double album? I dunno . . . but I would spring for a split 7-inch.

By: juv3nal

juv3nal — Fri, 01 May 2009 09:37:19 -0800

Nostalgia 77 does a soul/jazz version which strips out the main guitar riff. Grant Phabao does a reggae-ish remix of it.

By: juv3nal

juv3nal — Fri, 01 May 2009 09:38:58 -0800

Right. On non previewing, nostalgia 77 one already linked, but the remix is good for a laugh.

By: GuyZero

GuyZero — Fri, 01 May 2009 10:00:38 -0800

I had no idea that this had become stadium rock for sporting event. Wow. I guess the White Stripes have finally made it and are the new Queen.

By: small_ruminant

small_ruminant — Fri, 01 May 2009 10:09:03 -0800

Is this a good place to put a video of the White Stripes doing Jolene? Because I find it oddly mesmerizing. The White Stripes seemed too derivative to be interesting when I first heard them, but watching their live performances has converted me.

By: Mick

Mick — Fri, 01 May 2009 10:11:38 -0800

Just as long as they aren't the new Gary Glitter

By: ROU_Xenophobe

ROU_Xenophobe — Fri, 01 May 2009 10:18:34 -0800

Little booy-oys, little boys! Little booy-oys, little boys! Doctor Who, the TARDIS!

By: Xoebe

Xoebe — Fri, 01 May 2009 10:26:26 -0800

Can't say enough good things about the White Stripes and Flaming Lips.

By: jester69

jester69 — Fri, 01 May 2009 10:27:41 -0800

Actually most one-hit-wonders are musicians or groups with an extended history and discography. I've always taken "one hit wonder" to be somewhere near "no talent hack that got lucky once." Since they have had critical acclaim, and had another hit with "do you realize." That song was in a heavy-rotation Intel commercial for goodness sake. I don't think they fit with either definition. The lips do NBC Commercials now. They would probably be sellouts if they weren't laughing at themselves so hard. Is NBC "a market of fans who like them?" Anyway, one hit wonder is a term I view as pejorative, so take my objection with a grain of salt if that isn't part of your definition.

By: goodnewsfortheinsane

goodnewsfortheinsane — Fri, 01 May 2009 10:57:18 -0800

This is the best rendition still. :) Primeval, indeed. jester69, I think you're reading any major dude wrong. They never said FL are a one-hit wonder, just that they got their start with a one-hit-wonderish song and band name. Well I agree that whatever they did before "She Don't Use Jelly" has no bearing on their breakthrough, or their later success for that matter. I sure didn't know them before that single came out, and it definitely came across as a novelty song. So, an unknown band with a silly name and a silly song: definitely seemed like one-hit material at the time. (Here's where I would have linked to the infamous Lips appearance on 90210, but for some unknown, bizarre reason Warner had it yanked from the tubes. So have a 1994 Jon Stewart instead.) BTW I know that "Jelly" is a bit of a red-haired stepchild among some Lips aficionados, but let me just for the record state that I love the Lips to pieces, that I count Yoshimi among my favourite records, but also that I have a very soft spot indeed for "Jelly". So AFAIC pointing out how the Lips seemed a one-hit wonder when they were first noticed by a wide audience seems completely warranted to me, and I don't understand why you're tilting at windmills like this.

By: Sailormom

Sailormom — Fri, 01 May 2009 10:58:59 -0800

Seriously, if you're not Tom Waits, then don't sing through a megaphone. Its an honest mistake but I think you meant "if you're not Gibby Haynes then don't sing through a megaphone"

By: kirkaracha

kirkaracha — Fri, 01 May 2009 11:01:05 -0800

~~The Ventures~~ -> Pipeline The Chantays

By: flatluigi

flatluigi — Fri, 01 May 2009 11:01:06 -0800

I'm going to leave this here: "Sweet Dreams are Made of Seven Nation Army" It's pretty good once you get past that both tracks are pitched up/down from their originals.

By: Artw

Artw — Fri, 01 May 2009 11:12:50 -0800

Oh, are we dissing Queen now?

By: middleclasstool

middleclasstool — Fri, 01 May 2009 11:24:23 -0800

This tune's ripe for Moxy Fruvous cover.

By: blink_left

blink_left — Fri, 01 May 2009 11:27:47 -0800

Great song. "Oh, are we dissing Queen now?" Perhaps, but I am totally dissing the lips as they are sucking at the NBC teat. Off the list forever! (thanks Bill).

By: MrMoonPie

MrMoonPie — Fri, 01 May 2009 11:59:41 -0800

So, just a few hours ago, I'd never heard of resonator ukuleles. Now I own one. Thanks, MetaFilter!

By: KirkJobSluder

KirkJobSluder — Fri, 01 May 2009 12:07:31 -0800

I'm going to leave this here: "Sweet Dreams are Made of Seven Nation Army" Good catch, it tends to fall apart on the chorus though.

By: spicynuts

spicynuts — Fri, 01 May 2009 12:13:29 -0800

Mr. MoonPie that is freakin sweet. Can you play slide on a uke?

By: GuyZero

GuyZero — Fri, 01 May 2009 12:15:35 -0800

It's pretty good once you get past that both tracks are pitched up/down from their originals. There wouldn't be a lot of mashups if you always had to have perfectly bpm-matched tracks.

By: MrMoonPie

MrMoonPie — Fri, 01 May 2009 13:37:04 -0800

spicynuts, it has nylon strings, so I don't know how well that'd work. But the next time I re-string my steel-string acoustic guitar, you better believe I'll put those strings on the uke, just to see how they sound.

By: subbes

subbes — Fri, 01 May 2009 13:37:10 -0800

Oh man Ray now PLEASE you ain't got to imitate Jack White

By: FelliniBlank

FelliniBlank — Fri, 01 May 2009 13:56:22 -0800

I guess the White Stripes have finally made it and are the new Queen. Speaking of which, I wish Freddie [sniffle] had lived long enough for Queen to have a crack at "Seven Nation Army" because they would have rocked the shit out of it.

By: sciurus

sciurus — Fri, 01 May 2009 15:16:13 -0800

Now, what we need is a page with mp3s to all of these SNA covers.

By: Rashomon

Rashomon — Fri, 01 May 2009 15:53:29 -0800

Let me add, as mentioned often, Nostalgia 77 does one of the best covers of this song.

By: robcorr

robcorr — Fri, 01 May 2009 16:44:24 -0800

I've always liked Vyvienne Long's cello version.

By: loquacious

loquacious — Fri, 01 May 2009 18:00:16 -0800

Orb cover? Links or keywords, please! The Orb vs. Killing Joke singles and one-offs were some of the most under-rated tracks of the 90s. I need to see if I still have those discs somewhere so I can rip them.

By: grubi

grubi — Fri, 01 May 2009 18:40:13 -0800

Not to brag too much, but this thread inspired me to give it a try myself.

By: Dr. Zira

Dr. Zira — Fri, 01 May 2009 18:48:40 -0800

Flaming Lips are 100% under the radar... Not to our state legislature. Thanks to Governor Brad Henry, though, "Do You Realize?" is now our official state rock song. I'm so proud.

By: Flunkie

Flunkie — Fri, 01 May 2009 19:14:52 -0800

(1) The Oak Ridge Boys' version wasn't bad, and would have been better if they got rid of the vocal riff replacing the guitar. (2) If Wikipedia is to be believed, when "the core group that would eventually lead to the Oak Ridge Boys" formed, the oldest current Boy was about four. At least one of the others was not yet born, and the remaining two were born in the same year as the group's formation. I wonder if, seventy years from now, there's going to be, say, "the Rolling Stones". (3) I totally agree with the "primeval" comments in this thread. I distinctly remember the first time I heard this song, and immediately thinking "Oh, I love this song. I haven't heard it in a long time. Who is this by again?" It took me a long time, and many listens, to come to truly believe that it wasn't a cover of... something. Some great, great song from long ago.

By: bradth27

bradth27 — Fri, 01 May 2009 20:57:17 -0800

Is this a good place to put a video of the White Stripes doing Jolene? Because I find it oddly mesmerizing. Holy Mother of All Things Evil - that is just awful. I liked the White Stripes right up until 45 seconds ago, when I saw Jack rip that haunting guitar work and those beautiful lyrics to pieces. Good God Holy Crap, that was terrible.

By: Topkid

Topkid — Fri, 01 May 2009 20:59:32 -0800

There's a classical version, too, of course.

By: Bageena

Bageena — Fri, 01 May 2009 20:59:59 -0800

The Flaming Lips Soft Bulletin is one of the greatest albums ever. E.V.E.R. It's also not the album with 'She Don't Use Jelly On It'. So yeah - they are fantastic. I prefer the Nostalgia 77 version ever since I heard it in da club (i.e. a local dive bar with a decent DJ one night) a year or so ago. It's just so.... awesome.

By: MrMoonPie

MrMoonPie — Fri, 01 May 2009 22:37:37 -0800

Flaming Lips are 100% under the radar...

I'm pretty sure that playing the Earth Day concert on the National Mall puts them squarely on the radar. I mean, I'm not saying they suck or anything, but, yeah, a few folks have heard of them by now.

By: juv3nal

juv3nal — Fri, 01 May 2009 23:45:54 -0800

8 bit version

By: Joey Michaels

Joey Michaels — Sat, 02 May 2009 03:33:35 -0800

If the Oak Ridge boys had kicked into a mean fiddle riff instead of singing the guitar line, they would have knocked that fucker out of the park.

By: jester69

jester69 — Sat, 02 May 2009 14:26:39 -0800

FWIW, re megaphone, the oldest Flaming Lips song I can think of with megaphone lyrics on an album is "lightning strikes the postman" off of Clouds taste metallic, published in 1995. They pretty much do 1 or 2 songs with megaphone at every concert, or at least every concert i've been to, and i've been several times, starting in 2001. So, other people do the megaphone shtick, its not like any one person has a trademark on it, but at least I can say with certainty their seven nation army cover was not the first time the lips used this method.

By: jester69

jester69 — Sat, 02 May 2009 14:28:22 -0800

Mr. Moon pie: I meant they are not in the major label hit churn machine. I pretty much consider anything not shoved down the public's throat by clear channel et. al to be flying a bit low. point taken though.

By: mostlymartha

mostlymartha — Sat, 02 May 2009 14:30:42 -0800

I always say I don't like The White Stripes, but then I'll hear song penned by Jack White (either as Stripes, solo, or side project) that just knocks me to the floor. I think it's because there's that big part of him is a blues musician and a big part is a sort of stripped down garage rocker. The songs that call up his inner Robert Johnson really speak to me and the ones that focus on the raw, Stooges-style aesthetic don't do as much. But when a song hits, I agree that it brings with it that sense that you're listening to something that rose fully formed from the primeval tar pits of rock and you can't imagine a musical landscape where it never existed.

By: FelliniBlank

FelliniBlank — Sat, 02 May 2009 18:37:23 -0800

Obligatory link to Jack showing Meg his Tesla coil.

By: msalt

msalt — Sat, 02 May 2009 21:04:17 -0800

Jack and Meg did it first Yeah, though Cream came pretty close in 1967 -- esp. the tone of White's guitar on his solo. I'm a huge White Stripes fan, but frankly I'd rather hear Death Letter, Black Math, Ball and a Biscuit, or Fell in Love With a Girl any day. But then again, I'm a romantic.

By: mary8nne

mary8nne — Sun, 03 May 2009 03:22:18 -0800

how about this Electro Version? by Dsico (direct mp3 link from Dsico website)

By: umbú

umbú — Mon, 04 May 2009 13:23:09 -0800

It's funny, in the face of uncleozzy's comment that the riff in Seven Nation Army feels like it has been always around, that Jack White was inspired by Bruckner's fifth. Check out 3:35.

By: umbú

umbú — Mon, 04 May 2009 13:23:56 -0800

Oops. Here's the link.

By: umbú

umbú — Tue, 19 May 2009 18:17:27 -0800

This post has inspired us over in metafilter music. Grubi and I have already recorded our own covers, and there may be more on the way.

By: Defenestrator

Defenestrator — Sat, 30 May 2009 02:26:46 -0800

I guess I'll be the first to say that this song has been so amazingly played out on local radio and everywhere else since it first emerged that I think it needs to be locked up for half a decade before it has the same effect on me that it did back in the day.