Red Line Challenge: Cover your Friends Video

Earlier this week I put out a request for videos of you wonderful songwriters from around Boston to cover your favorite local songwriters as well...I realize it was a quick turnaround but a few brave and diligent souls have jumped at the challenge and provided me with the really amazing covers of their friends outlined below. I know you will enjoy these as much as I did.

Bob Bradshaw covers Annie Lynch "Again and Again"




I reviewed Bob's record back in June (HERE) and man, I just love this guy's voice and his finger picking style. Annie actually sung a few tracks on that record so it seems pretty fitting that Bob would take on her song "Again and Again". I have always been a big fan of the "haunting" vibe of Annie's earlier work and Bob's spin on it is really great. It gives it a little more of a different feel which I think is always cool to see come to fruition. He certainly remains loyal to the original arrangement but adds touches of himself to the track, which I really respect.
http://www.bobbradshaw.net/ 

David Gallagher covers Mark Whitaker "The River"




Dave and Mark play together quite frequently. Around tables, swapping songs, or just soundboarding new songs off of each other. Its always nice to see musically talented friends that respect each other's writing enough that they want to cover each other. "The River" is one of Mark's tunes that I always find myself going back to. A really beautiful track when he is picking it out on solo banjo, with his full string arrangement, or in this case when a good friend is playing it. Dave manages to retain the soulfulness of Mark's performance with his own passionate voice and great guitar playing. A great take on a great song.
http://www.davidgallaghermusic.com/ 

Evan Gavry covers Dan Johnson "Sleep on the way back"



And Evan Gavry goes and makes the rest of us look bad and plays as an entire band...this is a great cover of his pal Dan Johnson from Burlington, Vermont. I knew there was a reason Evan was in the BIG RED "multi-player" category. He goes and plays a ton of different instruments on this track and kills it on every one. A real solid arrangement and I think our pal Evan has set the bar for the next couple months of these "cover your friends" challenges.
http://evangavrymusic.com/

Ryan Fitzsimmons covers Greg Klyma's "Helen Rose"

Ryan Fitzsimmons is a f***ing MONSTER! Yup, there I said it. And his cover of troubadour extraordinaire Greg Klyma's tune "Helen Rose" shows that just fine. Ryan really has got the whole package man. A killer voice that is unique enough to stand out, but still extremely approachable that a wide variety of folks will love it. Plus, he is an absolute beast of a guitar player. The combo in an acoustic setting just grabs you by the...uhhh...sides of the face and makes you pay attention.
http://ryanfitzsimmons.com/

Chad Gosselin Covers Girls Guns and Glory (Ward Hayden) "Baby's Got a Dream"



One rock n' roller covers another rock n' roller. I dig that! Chad fronts the local indie rock band "The Big Lonesome" and in this cover pays homage to Ward's tune from their last critically acclaimed release. I dig the acoustic treatment of the tune and the liberties that Gosselin takes on the track (its tough to hit those low notes that Hayden does with that low voice he is known for).
http://www.thebiglonesome.net/

Brian Carroll covers Ian Fitzgerald "Galveston"




Ian Fitzgerald is a good friend and also one of the folks I respect most as a songwriter period, nevermind just locally. This song 'Galveston' is a fairly regularly told tale of love gained that slowly dissipates...but the way he uses words to create vivid images is simply unparalleled. "She rolled over gently/the whole room felt empty/she could have been in Galveston". Damn, I wish I wrote this song...
www.briancarrollmusic.com