{"id":13812,"date":"2019-10-22T05:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-10-22T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/?p=13812"},"modified":"2024-01-02T09:27:42","modified_gmt":"2024-01-02T17:27:42","slug":"cover-me-tortoise-and-bonnie-prince-billy-thunder-road","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/index.php\/2019\/10\/22\/cover-me-tortoise-and-bonnie-prince-billy-thunder-road\/","title":{"rendered":"Cover Me, Tortoise and Bonnie &#8220;Prince&#8221; Billy: Thunder Road"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>My rule for what makes for a great cover of a Bruce Springsteen song: do it different or do it better.<\/p>\n<p>This one definitely falls in to the former category.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Thunder Road&#8221; has been covered countless times, by artists famous and obscure. But I&#8217;m not sure it&#8217;s ever been covered like this.<\/p>\n<p>In 2006, the experimental rock band Tortoise got together with singer-songwriter Bonnie &#8220;Prince&#8221; Billy in the studio, and together they released\u00a0<em>The Brave and The Bold<\/em>, an album of covers. Actually, that&#8217;s probably not a fair description&#8211;let&#8217;s call it an album of reinterpretations or reinventions.<\/p>\n<p>Because that&#8217;s what their version of &#8220;Thunder Road&#8221; is. Arranged as a minor-key prog rock mind trip, &#8220;Thunder Road&#8221; is a completely different song. Take a listen, ideally in the dark:<\/p>\n<div class=\"jetpack-video-wrapper\"><span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"758\" height=\"427\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/c5Yyo4zGKiA?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox\"><\/iframe><\/span><\/div>\n<p>Amazing, isn&#8217;t it?<\/p>\n<p>Bruce&#8217;s lyrics&#8211;an invitation for freedom and escape&#8211;come across here as dark temptation and seduction. I don&#8217;t know exactly where Bruce&#8217;s &#8220;Thunder Road&#8221; narrator is heading when he pulls out of that town, but Tortoise and Billy&#8217;s narrator doesn&#8217;t seem to be heading anyplace that leads to redemption.<\/p>\n<p>It may not be something I&#8217;d want to listen to repeatedly, but it&#8217;s a seriously well-done cover.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Perhaps the most surprising and effective re-interpretation of &#8220;Thunder Road&#8221; ever, Tortoise and Bonnie &#8220;Prince&#8221; Billy transform Bruce&#8217;s classic song of escape into a dark, sinister temptation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":13815,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[4],"tags":[59,2512],"class_list":["post-13812","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cover-me","tag-thunder-road","tag-tortoise-and-bonnie-prince-billy"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/estreetshuffle.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/bonnie.jpg?fit=500%2C500&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9w3Lk-3AM","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":22193,"url":"https:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/index.php\/2020\/10\/13\/cover-me-ghost-hounds-and-sasha-allen-thunder-road\/","url_meta":{"origin":13812,"position":0},"title":"Cover Me, Ghost Hounds and Sasha Allen: Thunder Road","author":"Ken","date":"October 13, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Pittsburgh rockers The Ghost Hounds team up with Sasha Allen on a terrific cover of one of Bruce's greatest hits.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Cover Me&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Cover Me","link":"https:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/index.php\/category\/cover-me\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/estreetshuffle.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/ghosthounds.jpg?fit=1000%2C1000&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/estreetshuffle.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/ghosthounds.jpg?fit=1000%2C1000&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/estreetshuffle.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/ghosthounds.jpg?fit=1000%2C1000&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/estreetshuffle.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/ghosthounds.jpg?fit=1000%2C1000&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":338,"url":"https:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/index.php\/2018\/01\/21\/roll-of-the-dice-walking-in-the-street\/","url_meta":{"origin":13812,"position":1},"title":"Roll of the Dice: Walking in the Street","author":"Ken","date":"January 21, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"\"Walking in the Street\" -- a never-released, never-performed alternative path for Springsteen's \"Thunder Road.\"","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Roll of the Dice&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Roll of the Dice","link":"https:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/index.php\/category\/roll-of-the-dice\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/estreetshuffle.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/walking.jpg?fit=480%2C360&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":7442,"url":"https:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/index.php\/2019\/02\/08\/cover-me-kevin-rowland-thunder-road\/","url_meta":{"origin":13812,"position":2},"title":"Cover Me, Kevin Rowland: Thunder Road","author":"Ken","date":"February 8, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Quite possibly the worst Springsteen cover ever recorded, Kevin Rowland's version of \"Thunder Road\" was blocked by Bruce shortly before its scheduled release. But you can hear it inside, if you dare.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Cover Me&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Cover Me","link":"https:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/index.php\/category\/cover-me\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/estreetshuffle.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/rowland.jpg?fit=600%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/estreetshuffle.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/rowland.jpg?fit=600%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/estreetshuffle.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/rowland.jpg?fit=600%2C600&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3126,"url":"https:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/index.php\/2018\/07\/14\/cover-me-john-moreland-thunder-road\/","url_meta":{"origin":13812,"position":3},"title":"Cover Me, John Moreland: Thunder Road","author":"Ken","date":"July 14, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"John Moreland covered \"Thunder Road\" in the studio in 2015, and it's a beautiful take by a great artist.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Cover Me&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Cover Me","link":"https:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/index.php\/category\/cover-me\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/estreetshuffle.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/john-moreland-thunder-road-bruce-springsteen.jpg?fit=304%2C286&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":15954,"url":"https:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/index.php\/2020\/02\/09\/roll-of-the-dice-glory-road\/","url_meta":{"origin":13812,"position":4},"title":"Roll of the Dice: Glory Road","author":"Ken","date":"February 9, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Never recorded, released, or performed, Bruce's legendary \"Glory Road\" provides fascinating insight into the evolution of two of his signature songs. Check out early lyrics and artifacts inside.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Roll of the Dice&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Roll of the Dice","link":"https:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/index.php\/category\/roll-of-the-dice\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/estreetshuffle.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Glory-road-movie-logo.png?fit=1000%2C388&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/estreetshuffle.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Glory-road-movie-logo.png?fit=1000%2C388&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/estreetshuffle.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Glory-road-movie-logo.png?fit=1000%2C388&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/estreetshuffle.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Glory-road-movie-logo.png?fit=1000%2C388&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":29617,"url":"https:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/index.php\/2021\/09\/16\/cover-me-aaron-tveit-thunder-road\/","url_meta":{"origin":13812,"position":5},"title":"Cover Me, Aaron Tveit: Thunder Road","author":"Ken","date":"September 16, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Watch Tony nominee (and soon-to-be winner) Aaron Tveit bring Bruce's cinematic classic to life on his concert stage.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Cover Me&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Cover Me","link":"https:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/index.php\/category\/cover-me\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/estreetshuffle.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/aaron.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/estreetshuffle.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/aaron.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/estreetshuffle.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/aaron.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/estreetshuffle.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/aaron.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/estreetshuffle.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/aaron.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13812","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13812"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13812\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":47529,"href":"https:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13812\/revisions\/47529"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13815"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13812"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13812"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/estreetshuffle.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13812"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}