This week’s cover version is a hip hop classic turned on it’s head by Australian rockers ‘The Vines’. ‘Ms Jackson’ is a song with a story – Andre3000 wrote the piece as apology to his ex-girlfriend’s mother after they broke up. The fact that the ex in question in Erykah Badhu just makes the story that much more interesting, hence it is my pick for this week’s edition of #coverversion Friday
The Vines deliver a heartfelt, very different version of the track. Even though the vehicle used for delivery is so vastly different to the original, The Vines still manage to get the message contained in the lyrics across in a way that seems genuine and not forced. This is no mean feat considering that this cover version has many fewer words than the original, since Big Boi’s rap is not there to sketch in the details.
The Vines Ms Jackson cover version
In some ways, this version of the song is truer to the original than the album version presented on Stankonia. In an interview with Vibe magazine, Andre3000 tells that the track was originally an acoustic.
“‘Ms. Jackson’ was an acoustic guitar song that I was doing at home. Then I just converted it over into something people could understand a little bit more.”
Outkast Ms Jackson
As Outkast’s first major radio hit in South Africa, ‘Ms Jackson’ was my introduction to Outkast , and also the genesis of a catch phrase that I still throw around.
Forever ever?
Forever ever?