It seems that every few years synthesizers come into or out of fashion. Either it’s some hot new disco-tronic band making them cool or it’s an earnest guy with a guitar leading a backlash against them. Let’s just celebrate them for the flexibility they offer creative musicians.

Lulu Hughes “Time” (Pink Floyd)
This is one of the best Pink Floyd covers ever. A mopey self-pitying song (I know, that could describe almost any Pink Floyd song) gets a serious kick in the ass here. It sounds like Pink Floyd’s background singers locked the band in a closet and commandeered the recording studio.

Gary Schneider “Sweet Georgia Brown” (Ben Bernie)
I’ve posted songs from Mr. Schneider in the past which has led to some wonderful email exchanges with him. He told me that he was a “tacky lounge entertainer” in the 70s. I just love that kind of honesty. He was a one-man band with his keyboard and an array of electronic gadgets he built himself. He was recording music in his living room and self-releasing his music long before it was cool. He’s a charming man who deserves a wider audience for his work.

Battery “Gangsta’s Paradise” (Coolio)
It’s really tough to maintain any sort of street cred when you’re singing over a mid-tempo synth riff. The song sounds much less angry than the original, almost philosophical as the gangsta looks back on his life.

Christopher Scott “Do You Know The Way To San Jose” (Dionne Warwick)
This comes from the immortal Switched-On Bacharach album. That’s really a pretty interesting album because of all the different sounds and arrangements on it. This song is arranged for an imaginary Caribbean steel band.

Soft Cell “Where Did Our Love Go” (The Supremes)
Soft Cell’s first big hit in the 80s was “Tainted Love.” It became so popular that many people think it was an original song and there are many lame covers that mindlessly ape the Soft Cell version. For the record the song was originally recorded by Gloria Jones. At any rate the 12″ single of “Tainted Love” included a version that segued into “Where Did Our Love Go” by the Supremes. Because that song is nine minutes long it never got much radio airplay. Since everybody has heard the first part of that medley ten thousand times I’ve edited the extended version so you can now listen to just “Where Did Our Love Go.”