Cover Songs

I would like to talk about the song "Just Like a Woman" by Bob Dylan, and a cover of this song. Here is the version by Bob Dylan.

The cover of the song is a version by Amber Rubarth. Although I have her CD, the format is wrong and I wasn't able to upload the studio version, so you'll just have to enjoy this live version. It is still a very good cover.

The musical qualities of both are very different. A prime example of this is the tempo. Dylan's song is much faster, allegro, even. Amber Rubarth's version is much slower, andante, or possibly even adagio. The rhythm in Dylan's version is caused by, I believe, the harmonica sounds. Harmonicas tend to be drawn out, but have very high pitch and change very quickly. In this way, the drums and the guitar have to follow this speed. But with Ambers version, the rhythm comes from her own voice, and the guitar itself.

The timbre of the voices is also very different. When one hears Bob Dylan's voice, it is almost impossible not to recognize it. His raspy, almost wheezing voice has become iconic to many. Amber's voice is much sweeter sounding. The organization and instrumentation is different as well. While Dylan utilizes a variety of instruments, harmonica, drums, and guitar, Amber uses only her voice and a guitar.

There is an intensity in Amber's version of the song that is unlike Dylan's. While they both have intensity in their own ways, Amber uses meaningful emphasis in certain words in the song. This is how she also makes the lyrics different. While the lyrics are technically written the same, and Amber doesn't rewrite any of the words themselves, with Dylan, the song is very fast paced, and the words can seem to be thrown out into the wind. The sounds surrounding the lyrics don't seem to have a connect with the lyrics themselves.
When you look into the lyrics, they can seem very sad.

"Everybody knows the baby's got new clothes, but lately, I've seen her ribbons and her bows have fallen from her curls."

Bows have fallen from a baby's curls? But the baby got new clothes! The way the lyrics talk about the woman who is "just like a woman" seem to say that she wronged someone, the narrator perhaps,  in some way.

Amber's version seems to more aptly express the lyrics themselves, by slowing them down. She enunciates them and puts emphasis on words like TAKES, MAKES LOVE, ACHES, BREAKS. By using different musical qualities, she makes the song so much more emotional. So much sadder, so much more emotionally heavy. It makes the listener feel sad, and we can all relate to the heartbreak the song implies.

I think that is why I like the cover of this song so much more. It seems like Bob Dylan didn't really know what he had his hands on in terms of the lyrics. The version by Amber Rubarth just makes me FEEL so much more. I can connect to it so much better. Amber really helped o express what, deep down, I think Dylan was trying to say with the song.