TRY ME

I'm pretty impressed by this cover, probably out of a latent affinity for Doug Martsch's voice after a youth of Built to Spill devotion. He manages to avoid the stock blunders of the reggae cover-- the treachery of the contrived patois or the hashed skank rhythm. Instead he reworks the song into straight grunge, while maintaining something of the Wailers' original warm and plaintive vocals. And of the many things Bob Marley would come to represent (ambassador of Jamaican music, spiritual leader, fashion icon, killer dorm room poster) one of the few certainties is that the man could most definitely sing. It's a tall order and, while the cover isn't any revelation, it's encouraging to hear a potentially awkward marriage working this well.

Bob Marley & the Wailers - Try Me