Cover Tuesday: Celluloid Loves Got A John Frusciante

Full disclosure, I have a soft spot for the Bee Gees. I obtained some kind of greatest hits compilation as a child on cassette tape and while disco music is generally detestable, I found a lot of their songs to be quite good.

"How Deep Is Your Love" would have to be up there as far as the group's best work is concerned.

It's a song that transcends the perception that many people have of the Bee Gees as the disposable soundtrack of the seventies. They should be known for more than being the soundtrack for John Travolta and that terrible Sgt. Pepper's movie they made.


This is a very touching song and this rendition by the Red Hot Chili Peppers' John Frusciante is stark and lovely. Also, you can't miss Flea performing a bizarre take on "If You're Happy and You Know It" during the first five seconds.

Next is a rather hilarious version of Elton John's classic "Tiny Dancer" as interpreted by rocker and sometimes comedian Dave Grohl.

This performance comes from the now thankfully defunct Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn–current host Craig Ferguson is infinitely funnier. Dave appears to have just wandered in off the street, not even bothering to spit out his chewing gum before leading the crowd in a rousing rendition of this cut.

This isn't a cover, but it is awesome. As if you needed more reasons to love Dave Grohl, here he is teaching Tenacious D's Kyle Gass how to write a hit. 

Paul McCartney & Nirvana

It was big news last week when the 12-12-12 benefit concert for victims of hurricane Sandy went down.

Major acts like Eric Clapton, Bruce Springsteen, The Rolling Stones, Roger Waters, and The Who (what's left of it) all came together in New York City's Madison Square Garden to raise money for victims of the October storm.

The headliner—which in this case is a fancy way of saying, "You go on at 1 AM"—was Paul McCartney, a man who at 70 years old rocks much harder than his contemporaries, and even many of the younger acts around.

Recently, Dave Grohl took time from being in every band ever to reunite what's left of his first successful group, Nirvana.

Along with bassist Krist Novoselic and guitarist Pat Smear, Grohl took to the drums and asked Sir Paul if he'd like to jam with the group.

The result is "Cut Me Some Slack", a new song that will be featured on the soundtrack for Dave Grohl's forthcoming documentary Sound City, about the famous recording studio of the same name.

The trailer for the film is below as is the group's performance on from the 12-12-12 concert.

There's a good video of the guys playing on Saturday Night Live last weekend, but the bass isn't as prominent and the rhythm section is what we all really want to hear. It's very vintage.

Tenacious D and the Rize of the Fenix

Brian and I have a special relationship with Tenacious D.

We've never met Jack Black or Kyle Gass, but it was the intensely rocking and hilariously profane stylings of their 2001 eponymous debut that inspired us to create our own comedic rock duo, and eventually, a real band.

We played that album constantly, shaking Brian's little white Honda and belting out every single lyric while shuttling back and forth between school, golf practice and local pizza joints. 

Calling ourselves "The Deuce"—likely because there were two of us and you can make a bathroom reference from it—we would get together in our free time and Brian would play riffs he came up with or actual songs by artists ranging from Green Day to Van Morrison and I would freestyle silly lyrics over them.

Windows Sound Recorder was the medium of choice at the time. Even then it was an archaic program with few features beyond the record button, but we used it to make several albums of songs such as "I'd Like to Bang the Olsen Twins" and "Putt-Putt Prostitute". 

It's a long way from GarageBand and ProTools.

It was crude and kind of good, and from those humble beginnings rose a real semi-professional band, Cutting Room Floor.

That was all thanks to the D. 

And so we followed their career as Jack Black became a big star and eventually got a movie  and album made called Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny. 

Despite being a critical and financial failure, fans like us found it to be typically gut-busting and the music was outstanding. 

Now we have been given the next chapter in the D saga, Rize of the Fenix.

The album is set for release May 15, but you can stream it all now on their SoundCloud account and watch the video for first single "Rize of the Fenix" below.

Kage (left) and Jables (right) will rock your socks off once again.

Everything about this album screams vintage D, from the extremely phallic "Fenix" on the cover  to the silly little skits between JB and KG sprinkled between songs. 

After giving this album a couple of listens I think it's very solid indeed and fits nicely with the other albums in their catalog. 

"Senorita", "The Roadie" and "The Ballad of Hollywood Jack and The Rage Kage" are outstanding tracks steeped in the flavors of the D's best work.

Jack Black shows off some truly powerful vocals and utilizes a number of styles to change the mood of several songs.

Black's vocal range is truly terrifying. He can softly croon then scream over a guitar and it all sounds beautiful. Plus, JB's classic vocal fills are back in full force.

Kyle Gass provides his delightful harmonies and adds tasty guitar while Dave Grohl's drumming is top-notch throughout. 

All in all, it makes for a well-rounded, wholly inappropriate album that will more than please any fan of the group.

At this point there's simply no denying it, Tenacious D really is the greatest band in the world.  

"I Want to Announce My Presence With Authority."

First of all, I want to start off by thanking the Founding Fathers for bringing me along. I'm looking forward to stirring and simmering our individual interests, talents and points-of-view into a hearty stew of awesomeness.

There's no better way for me to kick-off my stint with the S&S team than with some serious rock. Below is a favorite track from some of rock's most iconic figures of late, Slash and Dave Grohl. Both Slash and Grohl have built massive careers by emerging from the shadows of two insanely popular rock 'n roll figureheads.

Beginning in 1985, Slash's signature wailing, soaring guitar sound played "second-fiddle" to the mega-ego of bandanna aficionado Axl Rose. Rose would eventually destroy G 'n R in the late 2000's, but luckily for Slash it seems unlikely that rock fans of the future will be playing "air frontman" to their laundry list of hits. Slash went on to co-found Velvet Revolver with Duff McKagan (also of Guns 'n Roses, and featured on bass in today's sample track). He has also launched a successful solo career and was named #2 on Time Magazine's list of "10 Best Electric Guitar Players of All-time" in 2009.

Dave Grohl was just the long-haired kid behind the drum kit when he joined Nirvana in 1990. In reality, he was probably just a nameless face when taking the stage behind teen angst savior Kurt Cobain. Quick - somebody name Nirvana's bassist. Unless you're a true rock-head, you probably can't (Krist Novoselic has become more well-known for his political activism than his time on the four-string). When Cobain took his own life in 1994, Dave Grohl carried on the musical legacy, creating Foo Fighters in 1995. Since then, Grohl has been involved with Them Crooked Vultures, Queens of the Stone Age and over 30 other bands in one capacity or another.

On "Watch This" Slash does what he does best, grabbing the reins and steering the song into rock glory over the fueled rhythm of Grohl drumming. If you listen closely you can still hear the kicking and screaming of everything that was once good about American heavy rock: a percusive beat demanding you to bang your head and mesmerizing guitar scooping you up to carry you away. Crank it up and put the pedal down.