MoTD’s favorite a cappella group Voctave’s latest release is a cover of “On A Clear Day (You Can See Forever) from the 1965 musical of the same name. The song, written by Burton Lane and Alan Jay Lerner, was made famous by Barbra Streisand in her recording for the film adaptation five years later.
Voctave’s arrangement, by Jamey Ray, features actor/singer Tituss Burgess as the soloist. Beginning in Db, the tune modulates strikingly to F at 2:23.
“Couch injects each project with their signature flavor: expressive horns, warm vocals, and bubbling synths—crafting an oasis of joy for musicians and non-musicians alike, ” reads the description of the 7 piece Boston-based band Couch on their website. The group’s music synthesizes funk, r&b, and soul; they released their debut EP in 2021 and follow-up, Sunshower, in 2023. While the band members were all studying at different universities, they wrote and recorded virtually, and in 2023 embarked on a multi-city tour with a sold-out run in the UK.
“Poems” was released as a single in 2022. It begins in G and shifts up to A at 2:28.
Though now almost exclusively associated with the musical Cabaret, Kander and Ebb’s iconic ballad “Maybe This Time” was not originally written for the show. The songwriting duo composed the song for cabaret singer Kaye Ballard in 1964, and later included it in the 1972 film adaptation of Cabaret. The tune was added to the stage musical for the 1998 revival and has been included in subsequent major productions.
A new revival of Cabaret began previews on Broadway last week after transferring from London’s West End. The track is performed here by Jessie Buckley, and modulates from Ab to A at 2:21.
Emily Linge is a prolific YouTube contributor and a British-Norwegian singer songwriter born and raised in Dubai. She sings and self-accompanies on piano and guitar, sometimes with other instrumentalists, including her two brothers. Despite her young age (she was 13 when this video was posted), many of the songs she performs are from decades past, with lots of Beatles covers in particular.
“All By Myself” is a power ballad written by Eric Carmen, with elements taken from Sergei Rachmoninoff’s 2nd Piano Concerto. (A version by male vocal group Il Divo appeared previously on MotD). Emily’s rendition largely follows Carmen’s, including the expressive piano interlude featured on his album edit.
Linge’s cover begins in G major; from 2:41 – 3:12, a brief interlude takes leave of the key, moving in several directions before a return to G. At 4:24, a common-tone modulation to B major takes a page from Céline Dion’s gutsy version, including a soaring high vocal line at 4:21. A few more keys are briefly visited before Linge lands in A major at 4:47.
MotD favorite Jacob Collier released the seventh and final single from his upcoming album, Djesse Vol. 4, last week. His cover of Paul Simon’s classic song features vocalists Tori Kelly and John Legend; the full album will be released on Friday.
The track begins in Ab, modulates to Eb at 1:27, and to B at 3:25. The final chord ultimately resolves back in Ab major.
“The members of the Dallas group Kings Return boast such perfect four-part harmonies they don’t need instruments, gadgets or electronics,” (Dallas Morning News). “They do, however, gravitate to one natural effect: Stairwell reverberation. Formed in 2016 to perform for bass vocalist Gabe Kunda’s graduation recital, Kings Return didn’t get serious until 2019, when videos of the band singing on a staircase at Cornerstone Baptist Church in Arlington (TX) went viral. ‘That stairwell had such excellent reverb … it’s a huge part of our success: We joke that it’s the fifth member of the group,’ says baritone singer Jamall Williams.
Since its first video, King’s Return has racked up millions of views for its a cappella renditions of songs by everyone from Schubert to Shania Twain to Boyz II Men. Last fall, its recording of the Bee Gees’ ‘How Deep is Your Love’ earned Matt Cusson a Grammy nomination for best arrangement.”
Originally released by Dionne Warwick in 1983, “So Amazing” was co-written by Luther Vandross and bassist Marcus Miller. In 1986, Vandross covered his composition for his hit album Give Me the Reason. The a cappella version by Kings Return, released only a few days ago, starts in B major, drops a quick fake-out diversion from the key, and then lands decisively back in B major — within the first 16 seconds! The track transitions to G# major at 1:01, then F# major at 2:07; the closing sequence (starting at 2:37) drops the groove in favor of multiple overlapping harmonic footings which (surprise!) deliver us back to F# at the end.
Many thanks to Steve Travis for the submission of this beautifully re-imagined a cappella cover — his first contribution to MotD.
“As a new year begins, I am excited to release a song called “New Eyes”, which I joyfully wrote and recorded with my friend, the legendary Melissa Manchester,” said Ann Hampton Callaway. “We created a moment when two people get a new lease on life by letting go of the past and looking at each other with ‘ new eyes.'”
The track is featured on Callaway’s new album Finding Beauty, her first record of all original material. The verses are set in Bb, and the choruses start up a step in C before quickly modulating again to Db.
“The word ‘comeback’ is overused, but in Laura Mvula‘s case, it really does hold true,” (NME). “Though her impressive second album, 2016’s The Dreaming Room, earned her MOBO (the UK’s Musician of Black Origin award) and Mercury Prize nominations plus an Ivor Novello award, she was unceremoniously dropped by RCA Records six months after it came out. The supremely talented Birmingham-born musician later revealed that she received the bad news in a forwarded seven-line email.
Having dusted herself off – writing the music for the Royal Shakespeare Company’s 2017 production of Antony & Cleopatra must have helped – Mvula is back on a new label, Atlantic, with an overhauled sound. Where her 2013 debut Sing to the Moon largely blended soul with orchestral pop and The Dreaming Room introduced a touch of funk and disco to the mix, Mvula has called Pink Noise (2021) an album ‘made with warm sunset tones of the ’80s’. She isn’t overselling it.”
“I’m Still Waiting,” was first a #1 UK hit released by Diana Ross on her 1971 album Everything is Everything. Mvula’s cover starts in C major; the second half of the first verse features an unprepared modulation at 0:18, settling into Eb major at for the duration. With an accompaniment full of sighing pauses and comprised only of keyboards and feathery layers of backing vocals, the focus falls all that more squarely on the storytelling of Mvula’s poised lead vocal.
Ross’ original, in Eb major, features no key changes and a gentle but more consistent groove throughout.
“Child actors turned gifted multi-instrumentalists, Long Island brothers Brian and Michael D’Addario formed The Lemon Twigs in their mid-teens,” (LouderSound). “Flamboyantly dressed purveyors of Baroque pop, power-pop and glam, they swap duties across guitars, drums, lead vocals, and more … Todd Rundgren, Justin Hawkins (The Darkness) and My Chemical Romance’s Gerard Way are among their fans.”
“Musical pastiche can be dangerous,” (The Guardian). “When you go beyond having influences to embodying those influences, artists can easily slip into self-parody. You need spectacularly good songs to pull it off … The songwriting never dips below classic … in an age of copyright lawsuits, there are still so many new and perfect songs waiting to be written. In love with the past but making the present so bright, the Lemon Twigs are, in the end, timeless.”
“They Don’t Know How to Fall In Place,” from the duo’s fifth album A Dream is All We Know (2024), settles into F major for its first verse. At 0:35, we’re led through a rapid cascade which finally gravitates to the terra firma of B major. 1:03 brings an emphatic C7 chord, dropping us back into the next verse in F major. The bridge brings some more harmonic shifts before returning us to the main form.
“’Whenever I Call You Friend’ is a song written by Kenny Loggins and Melissa Manchester, which Loggins recorded as a duet with Stevie Nicks for his 1978 album Nightwatch,” (MelissaManchester.com). “‘Kenny and I kept meeting each other at award shows, and he asked if I wanted to write with him, and we met up and we knocked it out. It was great. As a writer, he knows what he wants. I’d rather be in a room with someone like that than not.’
When first released, (co-lead vocalist and Fleetwood Mac frontwoman) Stevie Nicks was not credited on the original 45 single, so this was officially considered Loggins’ first solo Top 40 hit.” The tune reached #5 on the Billboard Hot 100.
A brief a cappella intro, completely different from that of the original 1978 version, unexpectedly jumps up two whole steps at 0:16 before the start of the first verse. The tune’s winding path through many modulations is still in place; the key eventually shifts a full perfect fourth overall from the 0:16 mark to the end. A new key change up a half step also makes a prominent appearance at the 3:20 mark. Manchester seems to have the time of her life performing with her co-writer!
Many thanks to Todd B. for bringing this gorgeous cover to our attention — his first contribution to MotD!
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