On St. Elsewhere, Cee-Lo and Danger Mouse covered the Violent Femmes’ “Gone Daddy Gone.” Gordon Gano & Co. have now returned the favor, offering their take on “Crazy.” (Which, yes, true, has already been covered by almost everyone, from Twilight Singers to Nelly Furtado and back.) So far less than a minute’s streaming, but even from this sound clip we can see that the Femmes are staying pretty true to the original’s script: Gano even does the “ha ha ha” where Cee-Lo lays his laugh. Because it’s the Violent Femmes, though, it’s a lot creepier (in a good way). And it sounds like the Violent Femmes.
Take a listen. This is what it should sound like:
Like a Morricone-style dirge recorded by The Mamas and The Papas, Violent Femmes’ cover of Gnarls Barkley’s infamous “Crazy” is like nothing you’ve heard from the legendary alt-rock trio before. Their oft-imitated folk-punk sound is flavored with surf-rock guitar and Theremin, creating a tranquility that is somber and otherworldly.
You’ll also find info on pre-ordering it as an MP3 and limited-edition vinyl. The 12″ comes with two b-sides: An instrumental “Crazy” and a vocals only version. Additionally, there’s going to be a video contest. The Violent Femmes are really going crazy about this.
“Crazy” is out 6/24 via Violent And Crazy.
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Oh, that’s bad. The Violent Femmes version is completely lacking energy without which the song is pretty boring. I actually like both versions of “Gone Daddy Gone” but since I have a soft spot for C-Lo’s voice, I think I prefer the Gnarls Barkley verson a little bit more. Its fuller and more dramatic.
really, it doesn’t matter who covers this song anymore, it’s just annoying
Weren’t the Violent Femmes at Lollapalooza the same year as gnarls barkley, when EVERYBODY COVERED CRAZY.
And that was like two years ago.
Didn’t Brian Ritchie just SUE Gordan Gano for OK’ing “Blister in the Sun” to be used in a Wendy’s ad?
i heard about that. that would be funny if this was their last recording
i’m just happy that they’re showing signs of activity (if you can call a crazy cover that)
i take it they’re over the whole wendy’s feud?
Enough with covering this damn song. PLEASE STOP IT.
I wonder when their cover of “Young Folks” will be released….
oh this is just wrong….. someone apologize now…… I mean this!
i’m with boo, looking forward to original material… but c’mon, offering a 54sec snippet of a cover is just lame. Just post the whole thing now – sheesh.
well gee of all the people that have covered it, you would consider the femmes the only band that should be allowed to? its a fair trade you know, song for song, if anyone has a right they do?