ohashiTrio (大橋トリオ) - Dreams [jazz, folk]

Covers aren't just about replicating a song that one likes, it's about infusing something you like with your own interpretation. I remember hearing Fergie covering "Sweet Child o' Mine" on Slash's solo album a few years ago. I don't really remember if Fergie sang it well but I do remember that she just completely replicated what Axel did on the original, down to the "Ohh"s and the "Yeahheh"s. And that's not a good cover. You can do that in karaoke. Heck, and this is not to disparage Fergie in particular, but you could definitely hear better renditions if you went to karaoke. Although, come to think of it, this probably wouldn't be the best comparison since ultimately it was the same original guitarist playing (i.e. Slash).

So anyway today I heard a cover of "Dreams" originally by The Cranberries, way back in the 90's. It was a mellow re-imagining of the song that still preserved the harmonic bits that made the original so memorable (to me anyway). Well anyway, after a search on YouTube that brought up a lot more covers than I thought existed, I think I found the right one.

The cover is by ohashiTrio (大橋トリオ) who is, I guess ironically, a solo Japanese artist whose musical influences span from jazz to soul to folk to rock. The "Dreams" cover can be found on his 2010 release Fake Book, a cover album. He has since, along with his non-cover work, released two other cover albums, conveniently named Fake Book II and Fake Book III.