I’ve been so busy working on my next two posts that I never came up with a theme for this week. So here’s some random stuff for your dining and dancing pleasure.

REM “First We Take Manhattan” (Leonard Cohen)
Way creepier than when Jennifer Warnes did it. From the I’m Your Fan tribute compilation.

Red Star Belgrade “Highway To Hell” (AC/DC)
I went to see Red Star Belgrade based entirely on how much I liked this song. I was disappointed, but the cover charge was cheap.

Enormous Richard “Music Box Dancer” (Frank Mills)
Update: Alert Reader Shawn points out that this song was originally an instrumental recorded by Frank Mills. I don’t know why I thought ABBA did this one. Maybe I need more sleep.

I gotta admit, it’s a well-crafted little tune. And lots of fun to listen to.

Matthew Sweet “Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?”
I don’t know who recorded the original cartoon theme song. If somebody does know, please enlighten me.

I think that Mr. Sweet’s Girlfriend album is one of the most perfect pop albums of all time. Every song is catchy and timeless. And he infuses this cover with the same perfect pop sensibility.

Vince Clarke “What A Wonderful World” (Louis Armstrong)
This song used to be on the Erasure web site but it seems to have vanished now. That’s his Macintosh singing. That alone makes me love it.