A while ago, my friend Katie, and her friend Dainon, decided to have a “song off”. Since then, they have both been challenging people regularly and this week, it’s my turn. I consider it kind of an honor to be selected for the challenge. Honestly, I love music, but I don’t pretend to be anywhere near as knowledgeable as these two and I generally get my “new music” second-hand; I just happen to know good sources.
Anyway, here’s how it works. You listen to my song, then you listen to Katie’s song, and you vote in the comments.
I had a tough time deciding which song to share as there are no boundaries or guidelines and I have years of “favorite songs” to choose from. Did I want to introduce the world (or my five readers) to a new artist, or share an old favorite, etc? In the end, I chose a song that encapsulates much of what I love about music; catchy tunes performed in new ways by amazing artists (it’s a cover). So there you have it. If you’ve never heard Glen Hansard before (or The Swell Season) go check him out…this is not his song, and I daresay it doesn’t totally do his talent justice, however I love that he did this cover, which incidentally happened because a fan at a concert yelled out “Cry Me a River”, and he went for it. Give it a listen and then head over to Katie’s blog for her selection.
P.S. If you want to hear Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova’s Oscar winning song, you can do it here and if you want to see them win the Oscar, you can do it here. Just don’t vote based on this song…vote based on the one above.
existential dilemmas 
While Mary J does make you want to get up and dance, I am gonna have to go with “Cry Me a River.”
Brian, it's okay. You can be a hater. I see your point & I do love the original. I'm just a little more open-minded than you are.
Um, hate to be the hater, but I’m going to have to vote for neither song. I thought this would be a no-brainer when you were up against a Mary J. song, but this is a terrible cover. JT’s original is far superior.If you want some super-awesome covers, I’d go with “Wild Horses” by The Sundays, “Crazy” by Shawn Colvin, “Between The Bars” by Madeleine Peyroux, “Perhaps” by Cake, “Flashdance” by Robinella, or “Bridge Over Troubled Water” by Aretha. Those are covers. Very disappointing, Chloe. Especially when you have Adele, Ray LaMontagne, and Anouk songs in your sidebar.
Audrey and I vote for Cry Me a River. Although it was close because the other song had a “movie” and yours didn’t. We’ve listened to the Once soundtrack in the car a thousand times, so she loves Glen as much as I do. Definitely Glen’s song.
Chloe you win hands down.
wait what? real love is not a cover…
as much as I love K8 and Mary J, I’m feeling this a little more. 🙂
Both covers. Tough. Never felt the Blige. Gonna have to go with the JT cover.
ummm, so the super weird part here is that i ALMOST posted Glen Hansard’s cover of Van Morrison’s “Hungry for Your Love”. spooky scary!This is a worthy opponent! May the best song win : )