I forget how the conversation started, but a friend remarked that he found an interesting Pretenders cover of the Sia song “I Go To Sleep.†Unfortunately, he got things a bit inside-out.
While the Sia version is incredible, it’s not original to her. And, no, it wasn’t a Pretenders original either, although they are known for the song and Chrissy Hynds’ vocals on that version are stunning.
The song began with The Kinks. In 1965. Over 15 years prior to the Pretenders and more than 40 years before Sia recorded her version.
It’s really a pretty simple song, driven entirely by vocals over sparse, almost background, instrumentation. The Kinks original, clocking in around 2:45, was just piano and vocals, nothing more. Hearing Ray and Dave doing vocals sounds a bit unusual when you’re used to Chrissy Hynds singing it.
Cher did a version in 1965. It has bit more going on, musically, with guitar, bass, drums and even a tambourine. This all causes Cher to turn it up slightly lending more power to her vocals. Yet through all that, it sticks fairly close to the Kinks original.
There’s also a 1965 rendition by Peggy Lee. It sounds a lot like Cher’s version, but without some of the vocal power. Say what you will about Cher, but the lady’s got a set of pipes and Lee’s don’t quite match up.
With several fairly unremarkable remakes happening in 1966, the next notable one is the Pretenders 1981 cover, which many consider the definitive, if not original version of the song. Gentle horns replace the piano backer from the original, and it sounds as though they belonged there the whole time. They’re perfect. Couple that with Chrissy Hynds’ voice and what you have is simply beautiful.
To show how big an impression the Pretenders version made, in 2000 a band called Bed Sores contributed a version of the song on an album called “A Salute to the Pretenders.†It gets a little heavy-handed, but isn’t bad, worth at least a sample listen in the iTunes store.
In 1998 brought an alternative take by Soulwax. I can only describe it as awful; only appropriate for background music during some movie scene where someone gets rufied. You know the scene. It’s the one where we’re supposedly looking through the victim’s eyes as they float, slow-motion, almost dreamlike, through a crowded room where nobody notices or tries to help them. They wake up the next day wondering where they are and what happened. I’m imagining that’s how Tracy Bonham, whom I usually like, came to be associated with it. She should insist that her name be expunged from all records and references to the song as it simply does not do her justice. She should also call the police.
A couple that are worth checking out via iTunes are the 2006 rendition by Judith Owen and a 2009 version by Works Progress Administration (WPA.) The Owen remake is almost sleepy-slow, and her voice isn’t as strong as Hynds’ or Sia’s, but it’s certainly worth a listen. WPA offers up a languid rendition with some country twinges. It’s not bad, worth the 90 seconds to sample.
I’m taking this one out of order, because I want to save the best for last. As if one awful, train-wreck of a version wasn’t enough, another alternative artist, Anika, put out a version in 2010 that can only be a cover of the Soulwax disaster. A cover of a cover. A cover of a bad cover. I’ve seen a remake of a remake work before, but you have to be careful. Start with a decent version if you’re going to create a once-removed knock-off.
Finally. Finally! We come to the 2007/2008 version(s) by Zero 7 and Sia. I group them together because Sia did the vocals on the 2007 rendition by Zero 7, then released it on her own 2008 solo album “Some People Have Real Problems.†Sia’s vocals are so heartfelt you almost want to cry by the end of the song. I have no idea the original intent of the lyrics, but these leave me thinking about lost love. Someone that’s gone and never coming back, whether from a tragic accident or a horrible breakup. This really is a stunning song performed by an incredible singer. Go see her in concert and be even more amazed, this petite woman with a planetary sized voice belts it out for every song.
For me, the must-haves are both Sia’s version and the Pretenders release.