From left: Emma Swift, Pony Boy's Marchelle Bradanini
Whether you count him as a Canadian or an American, Neil Young is somebody's national treasure. Even if his efforts sometimes come across as a swing and a miss, Ol' Shakey has steadily been writing incisive songs that grapple with contemporary culture for more than five decades, and continues to put on a world-beating rock show.
Another thing that makes his best songs so great is how they stand up to reinterpretation. Emma Swift and Pony Boy have a forthcoming 7-inch that showcases two excellent new takes on Young cuts, which we're very pleased to premiere today. On the A side, find Australian transplant Swift's warm, wistful and mellifluous rendition of "Mellow My Mind," the original of which you can hear on 1975's Tonight's the Night. On the B side, there's Pony Boy's dark and wounded take on the fan favorite "Like a Hurricane" from 1977's American Stars ’n Bars, a single-take recording featuring a brooding Rhodes accompaniment by Robbie Crowell and appropriately searing guitars.
Stream the tracks below, along with a video Swift has made for "Mellow My Mind" — a black-and-white clip in which she dances around her home with her copy of Tonight's the Night for company. (A kindred spirit of Lilly Hiatt, you might say.) The single is slated for a Feb. 28 release via Cosmic Thug Records, the label and publishing house established by Pony Boy's Marchelle Bradanini with Justin Collins and Adam Landry (the latter two of whom produced and recorded the sessions).
The rich-voiced Swift plays The Basement on Friday night at 7 p.m., and advance tickets are $5 — get one of those right here.
Pony Boy / Emma Swift release split single covers of Neil Young on COSMIC THUG RECORDS
Available for pre-order NOW: https://cosmicthugrecords.bandcamp.co...
Nashville label and small press, Cosmic Thug Records, are thrilled to release two reinterpretations of classic Neil Young songs performed by Pony Boy and Emma Swift later this month.
The cover versions were recorded to tape in Nashville and produced by Adam Landry and Justin Collins. Pony Boy (Marchelle Bradanini) performs “Like A Hurricane” and Emma Swift performs “Mellow My Mind”.
“When Marchelle and I first became friends, we bonded over many shared passions,” says Swift.
“We both like country music hair of the 1970s, dead English poets and playing Neil Young at very loud volumes. Though we’ve both flirted with publishing poetry and had more than our fair share of high hair experiences, neither of us had recorded a Neil Young song. This felt like a fun way to collaborate.”
According to Bradanini, "I’d wanted to record, Like a Hurricane, as long I can remember. It’s always broke my heart . We wanted to capture a different feel with Robbie Crowell playing this incredibly slow-as-molasses, ghostly feel on Rhodes and ended up just doing one take, which is pretty obvious in the vocal. Adam said you’re done and that was that. Emma and I have been musical kindred spirits since we met over a night of several gin & tonics at the 5 Spot years ago."
The split single will be released digitally on February 28 2018 on Cosmic Thug Records.
