Various – Sgt. Pepper Knew My Father

Very odd mix of artists, I own this strictly for the songs by Sonic Youth and The Fall

An NME project to raise funds for Childline, a UK national hotline for children in trouble or danger. All covers of songs, in original running order, from the then-20 year-old – at least when the tracks were likely recorded – Sgt. Pepper's album. I bought it mainly because it has a cover of "A day in the life" by The Fall. Even though I had to order it from Europe, I figured that alone would be worth the price.

Opens with a riotously 80s cover of the title track by The Three Wize Men. Techno? Rap? Hip Hop? Yes. Bad, but hilariously so. They cut an LP in 1988. If I found a cheap copy, I'd get it; unfortunately, the ones I found ship from the UK or Europe, so not cheap. Next: Wet Wet Wet in a milquetoast cover of "With a little help from my friends." The Christians cover "Lucy in in the sky with diamonds." Starts faithfully, if 80s; first verse slow. Too slow. Chorus is decent; OK cover but too long. The Wedding Present, with Amelia Fletcher of Heavenly, cover "Getting Better." This one is genuinely good. Alas, too brief at under 2 minutes. Hue & Crye -- never heard of the band -- covers "Fixing a Hole" in a jazzy pop style. Interesting approach. Billy Brag and Cara Tivey cover "She's leaving home" as a piano ballad. Tivey voices the parents (i.e., the John Lennon part). Quite good. Frank Sidebottom does "Being for the benefit of Mr. Kite." He then moves into "Twist & Shout." It's a nasally version that sounds like it was done with a Casio keyboard and drum set bought at a department store. Apparently, Sidebottom was the comedic alter ego of Christopher Sievey, comedian and musician. As Sidebottom, he performed in a gigantic papier mache mask. He even does the outro groove -- "that's on the other side, stupid!"

"Within you without you" by Sonic Youth: good call on this one. The recreate the sitar drone with layered guitar. I might like this better than the original. Courtney Pine Quartet does "When I’m 64" in a Dave Brubeck-like manner, over a steady bass line; nice clarinet solo. "Lovely Rita" comes courtesy of Michelle Shocked as Country Blues, joined by distorted guitar in the background. It works really well. The Triffids give "Good Morning Good Morning" in the manner of BIG PRODUCTION late 80s New Wave-turning-into-Alternative. Not bad, really. The chorus is good; drumming derivative (starts out like "Blue Monday"). The Three Wize Men reappear on the "Sgt. Pepper" reprise. Reminds me of Max Headroom. Then The Fall's "A day in the life." It's quite good -- which is impressive, given the song. Dissonant elements in the background, relatively earnest, reverb-laden vocals. Nice drumming -- reminds me a little of "Instant Karma" at times. They manage to sonically capture the orchestra tuning effect; the transition (Paul) section is also pretty good. Outro groove imitation is nicely done. Interesting compilation and well worth the price.