Various Artists
Triple J's Like A Version Four
ABC/ Universal


Another year comes to a close, another Triple J 'Like A Version' compilation rolls around. The not unfamiliar concept (bands/ artists are invited to cover a song of their choice live in the studio) has been going for a fair few years now and, like every other 'Like A Version' release, this one veers wildly from the ridiculous to the sublime.

In the former category are several performances from artists who are doing the 'let's do this ironically" thing. Paul Kelly's irritating take on Amy Winehouse's already annoying Rehab is a prime example (and he's capable of far better), as is Dappled Cities version of the Bee Gees' More Than A Woman (where they prove that male falsetto only works when you can hit all of the notes).

However, there's some genuine gold here too. The Panics turn in a flooring acoustic version of The Triffids' classic Wide Open Road which perfectly balances reverence and invention, while blues-meister C.W. Stoneking gives a hollering (and unexpected) Mississippi delta rendition of Seven Nation Army. Particularly noteworthy too, is Snowman's atmospheric, almost Badalamenti-esque take on jazz standard Strange Fruit. With scratching violins and a creepy vocal, it perfectly evokes the song's ominous subject matter.

Other choices range from the fairly obvious - Crowded House doing Everybody's Talkin', Nouvelle Vague with Ever Fallen In Love, Saosin with Time After Time - to the bland - Little Barrie with a textbook, yet dull rendition of White Light/ White Heat. However, the collection closes with Emilie Simon performing a jazzy, minor key, solo guitar version of I Wanna Be Your Dog, so it's far from all bad.

Patrick Lang