We Critique Five Interpretations of Beck's Sheet Music Song 'Old Shanghai'

We Critique Five Interpretations of Beck's Sheet Music Song "Old Shanghai"

By Sean J. O'Connell Tue., Dec. 11 2012 at 3:30 AM

Donovan Max

Donovan Max's "Alternative Son" version melds a traditional Cuban bass-line with an electric guitar. Maybe it's because all of these versions are in the same key, but all of the vocals sound pretty similar. Perhaps if Max had sung in Spanish he could have truly set it apart, but kudos for switching the rhythm on the bridge.

Portland Cello Project, featuring Lizzie Ellison

Of the videos floating around, the Portland Cello Project gets the closest to what's written in the sheet music. The languid trumpet line gets a gentle pull while the drummer digs into a shuffle with his brushes. The choir of cellos covers the rest of the chart while vocalist Lizzie Ellison sings a weary ode to coastal China.

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sophia58

I ordered the new Beck sheet music from Musicforte.com- can't wait to try the new songs! I hope this inspires a revival of living room music making. I think there is something human in sheet music, something that doesn’t depend on technology to facilitate it. It is a way of opening music up to what someone else is able to bring to it. That instability is what ultimately drew all musicians’ attention to this project.

bradblanco

I've been keeping a close eye on this Song Reader project and all of the interpretations I can get my hands on. I love them all. I'm having a blast looking at everything. But I have to say, that I was really struck by how turned off I was by the very idea of critiquing these versions in the way that they were critiqued on this blog. It's sort of silly. I know. I know. I know. Everything on the net is subject to criticism and everyone is free to do so, blah, blah blah... but, I dunno, to even critique them sort of misses the point. Of course, we all pick our favorites because it's what humans do: rank and criticize things. (But it's not really a remarkable skill to do so, all it takes is a minimal amount of intelligence and a heap of narcissism.). I have my own favorites and, sure, some versions are better than others, but critiquing them on the basis of who is the most original or who can play it better live or who nailed it the best versus who deconstructed it the best, or what have you, seems to be a pompous misapplication of the music critique's job. The work needs to be critiqued in the context of the experiment. For example, the "twee" New Yorkers who crammed in a living room to play the music: I found it very moving actually. When was the last time you invited people over to your house to do anything else other than drink or get high? The musicians participating with Song Reader are amateurs or only mildly-known musicians at best. They seized an opportunity to participate in something adventurous; what's the point of critiquing them by such pithy and smug standards?