Taylor Swift dropped by the BBC Radio One studio recently to promote her new album Lover, and while I loved her set, I don’t think it tops her cover of Vance Joy’s Riptide from a few years ago.
Firstly, Swift’s country roots definitely allowed her to keep the performance emotional and personal, instead of turning it into an oversized pop cover. And there’s a certain slyness to her singing this song. When you listen closely to the lyrics, you could almost imagine it being written about her.
I was scared of dentists and the dark
I was scared of pretty girls and starting conversations
Oh, all my friends are turning green
You’re the magician’s assistant in their dreams
I was scared of pretty girls and starting conversations
Oh, all my friends are turning green
You’re the magician’s assistant in their dreams
Oh
Oh and they come unstuck
Oh and they come unstuck
Lady, running down to the riptide
Taken away to the dark side
I wanna be your left hand man
I love you when you’re singing that song and
I got a lump in my throat ’cause
You’re gonna sing the words wrong
Taken away to the dark side
I wanna be your left hand man
I love you when you’re singing that song and
I got a lump in my throat ’cause
You’re gonna sing the words wrong
Is this movie that I think you’ll like
This guy decides to quit his job and heads to New York City
This cowboy’s running from himself
And she’s been living on the highest shelf
This guy decides to quit his job and heads to New York City
This cowboy’s running from himself
And she’s been living on the highest shelf
Oh
Oh and they come unstuck
Oh and they come unstuck
Lady, running down to the riptide
Taken away to the dark side
I wanna be your left hand man
I love you when you’re singing that song and
I got a lump in my throat ’cause
You’re gonna sing the words wrong
Taken away to the dark side
I wanna be your left hand man
I love you when you’re singing that song and
I got a lump in my throat ’cause
You’re gonna sing the words wrong
I just wanna, I just wanna know
If you’re gonna, if you’re gonna stay
I just gotta, I just gotta know
I can’t have it, I can’t have it any other way
I swear she’s destined for the screen
Closest thing to Michelle Pfeiffer that you’ve ever seen, oh
If you’re gonna, if you’re gonna stay
I just gotta, I just gotta know
I can’t have it, I can’t have it any other way
I swear she’s destined for the screen
Closest thing to Michelle Pfeiffer that you’ve ever seen, oh
Lady, running down to the riptide
Taken away to the dark side
I wanna be your left hand man
I love you when you’re singing that song and
I got a lump in my throat ’cause
You’re gonna sing the words wrong
Taken away to the dark side
I wanna be your left hand man
I love you when you’re singing that song and
I got a lump in my throat ’cause
You’re gonna sing the words wrong
Oh lady, running down to the riptide
Taken away to the dark side
I wanna be your left hand man
I love you when you’re singing that song and
I got a lump in my throat ’cause
You’re gonna sing the words wrong
Taken away to the dark side
I wanna be your left hand man
I love you when you’re singing that song and
I got a lump in my throat ’cause
You’re gonna sing the words wrong
Oh lady, running down to the riptide
Taken away to the dark side
I wanna be your left hand man
I love you when you’re singing that song and
I got a lump in my throat ’cause
You’re gonna sing the words wrong
I got a lump in my throat because you’re gonna sing the words wrong
Taken away to the dark side
I wanna be your left hand man
I love you when you’re singing that song and
I got a lump in my throat ’cause
You’re gonna sing the words wrong
I got a lump in my throat because you’re gonna sing the words wrong
I am really new to TS. I only ever was aware of a couple of her songs. But recently a friend of mine with family in Wales gave me a lift in her car. It turned out she is a huge TS fan and she played her music all the way there and on the way back…which I found hard I will admit.
However, since I have been more aware of her, I do really like anything she performs acoustically. She does seem a big talent, with a real nice voice….shame about all the over-produced pop. Still she is clearly very popular.
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Yes, I do prefer her more stopped down performances.
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I hadn’t seen this before. Thanks for sharing.
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