Various Artists / Rave On Buddy Holly
By the Ambassador

An all-star cast of youngsters and rock n’ roll gladiators take on classic and lesser-known Buddy Holly tunes to celebrate what would have been Holly’s 75th birthday. There’s no need to talk about the quality of these songs, so let’s focus on the interpretations, original approach to these older tunes. Overall, the covers are lovingly and sensitively recreated, nearly all of them taking the songs in slightly new territories. FCC Clean. Recommended tracks: #4, #9, #10, #13, #14, #18 & #19

1) nice sparse instrumentation and touching vocals, guitar drums, lead vocals and disembodied background vocal chorus; 2)* at first kinda sounds like She & Him’ style, but anyway it’s a great version of this classic; 3) Paul McCartney rocks out on this Holly classic, and while it’s touching how he gets into the tune, he doesn’t add much to it; 4)** Florence & the Machine opens up with an iko-iko kinda nola groove with off-kilter tuba and compelling vocal approach – moody and interesting ; 5)* Cee-Lo green does his larger-than-life vocals in a tight, grooving tune that strangely fits the song; 6) Karen Elson does peppy take on this 2nd tier tune with strings, multi-tracked vocals and chugging guitar/drums; 7)* Julian Casablancas of The Strokes fame takes on this classic with snarling guitars and pulsing keyboards and reverbed vocals – cool take that resembles the original but takes it into an angular, edgy place; 8) Jenny O. does a cutesy take with vintage sounding production; 9)** Justin Townes Earle does a faithful version of Maybe Baby and his charisma oozes over the track that makes it seem like the song was written for him to sing; 10)** She & Him get a little rocky with this cover of Oh Boy – not so twee as usual – a faithful and fun cover; 11)* Nick Lowe sounds right at home with the reverbed vocals and jangly guitars and pleasantly simple tune; 12)* Patti Smith delivers an eerie take on Words of Love with soaring arrangement that brings out the beauty of the song; 13)** My Morning Jacket takes on True Love Ways in their sensitive, melodic way with strummed guitar, strings and voices – very nice; 14)** Modest Mouse gives That’ll Be the Day their own special stamp with lisp-inflected vocals, snarling guitars and lo-fi magic; 15) Kid Rock delivers a glossy version of Well All Right that leaves a little authenticity to be desired; 16) The Detroit Cobras do Heartbeat in a garagey style with vocals sounding like Gwen Stefani; 17) Lou Reed takes on Peggy Sue with his non-musical vocals and drony feedback backdrop – great if you’re a fan of Lou Reed, not so great if you like Buddy Holly’s version; 18)** John Doe delivers a heartfelt take on Peggy Sue Got Married, an emotionally nuanced track, with off-kilter vocals and snarling guitars; 19)** Graham Nash gives us a tender version of Raining in My Heart with gentle vocals, harmonica and lush accompaniment