Sunday 3 January 2016

Electrolite



Electrolite was a song I had thought I was getting tired of or had heard too much. I think because the band had played it relentlessly live since its release I had grown tired of hearing it. But through covering the song I have learnt to appreciate it again, it is one of the standout tracks on New Adventures In Hi Fi and lets not forget the final song on a Berry/Buck/Mills/Stipe album.

When it was suggested I cover Electrolite I was a little sceptical with it being a piano driven song and my forte has always been guitar. Plus I've always loved the banjo in this song and felt its absence might be a problem. But it had never occurred to me to play the banjo part on mandolin instead. The arrangement is pretty much faithful to the original, even including the lovely violin part in the middle 8 although I feel the outcome is that my version sounds more bright and cheery than the original. No bad thing of course, plus I'm fairly happy with this, especially as I've been out of the game for a few months!