So, this is how I feel about each track on the compilation.
1. Billy Bragg - On a Good Day. First of all - what an honor to be included on a compilation with this man! His contribution is simple, as it should be.
2. Josh Mann - Bridges & Balloons. I do not like this one bit and no one that I know likes it either. It's a shame, since hearing the cello at the beginning was exciting. But, ultimately, his voice and phrasing ruins the piece. Sounds like someone on American Idol took the song and did it up. His vocals are too Creed-ish. Much disappointment. Oh well.
3. M Ward - Sadie. Many of the people who I've played this to find it very boring, as if M Ward arranged a holiday version for a department store. I'm a bit bothered by his arrangement of the song and how he really jazz-chords it out. I'm no fan of it, I guess, but I'm trying to be as sympathetic as I can to all these covers.
4. Ian Cooke - Monkey & Bear. I really think the cello arrangement of this is brilliant BUT he pays no attention whatsoever to any subtlety in the song. Because of this, I think the track flops, which is a shame due to the great attention to string arrangement. I think the drum-kit sound added is not very good - makes it sound too mainstream rock. I like this in parts, and then I don't in others.
5. The Moscow Coup Attempt - Sprout & the Bean. I really enjoy the musical arrangement of this. The programming and tones are superb! Very lush and moody. Well done! The vocal phrasing, however, I don't exactly like much.
6. Owen Pallett - Peach Plum Pear. I love Owen Pallett very much and I have always like his version of the song. I'm glad it turned up on the compilation!
7. Joel Cathey - Book of Right On. NO. NO. NO. I don't like anything about this. So painfully twee-pop and it sounds like it could be played in a Starbucks. Unfortunate for the amount of arrangement done for the track. I really don't like this. I can't really get through it without cringing.
8. Melissa Stylianou - Swansea. I like this. She's a jazz lounge singer in a good way. Very original take on a complex song. I have a very small critique of it, which is that I feel like my grandmother would play this as christmas music.
9. Ben Sollee - Sawdust & Diamonds. A very original and lovely re-interpretation of the original masterpiece! At times, the vocals can seem slightly passion-less, but overall I very much enjoy this version. The cello is wonderful, and it will take a while to get used to his phrasing of the lines. Good job.
10. Chris Leeds - Clam Crab Cockle Cowrie. This is so moving. Very beautiful and I'm glad it was included. Such an honest and disarming version of an honest and disarming song. I would like to voice a plea right here: It would be a dream come true to hear Conor Oberst cover this song -- He was made to sing it, and I would never cease to listen to it.
11. This is Deer Country - Easy. I like it! Not an easy song to cover, whatsoever. I really like how the guitar and banjo work together and how they state the chords that were originally on piano. Well done!
12. Francesco Santocono - '81. I've always had my complaints of his version -- It's just not something I'd listen to. But if other people enjoy it, so be it. There is another version of '81 I really wish would've been on the compilation: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rsXfsEFX3w
13. Guy Buttery - Book of Right On. I heard this back in the day when I listened to many solo-acoustic acts, via Kaki King. I enjoy this very much -- I love the man -- his guitar, his attitude, his barefootedness. A dream man of mine.
14. Ian Cooke - Colleen. My original complaint of his other contribution persists. No attention to the subtle movements of the song. The drum programming doesn't really cut it. I don't like how he sings the words, or makes harmonies with himself. I don't feel comfortable, in a bad way, with him singing the words. I just don't like it. Out of the many people I've spoken to about this compilation, they too are a bit let down by it.
15. Jennifer Schmitt - This Side of the Blue. I don't really like ukulele covers of songs usually. This is fine, though, but I have not much to say for it.
16. Rosa Hinksman - In California. I've seen many of Rosa's covers on youtube and I've had mixed reactions to many of them. Her overall effort is admirable, though. She has quite a skill for learning and executing the performance of the songs. This is very to point and I like it.
17. (A Voice Heard on) Baer Mountain - Autumn. I was extremely nervous about how my band and I executed this song after we had sent the final mix in. I'm starting to actually like it though, and I've been told by many that it sticks out and is a more original take on the song then other covers on the compilation. I really don't like talking about myself, so I'll cease in a moment. We wanted to do a minimal version, and I think we accomplished that much.
18. White Elephant Gift Exchange - Inflammatory Writ. I really enjoy the oboe arrangement on this piece! Makes it very elephant-like. Well done!
19. David Miele - Soft as Chalk. By the time I was half-way through this, I was pretty sure I had heard the most expertly executed track on the compilation. Extremely well done! The attention to the subtle movements of the original is exquisite, as well as the background textures. I like how he picks out certain phrases and makes them explicit - such as 'morning doves'. This could've benefited from the addition of a tambourine during a certain part, but all in all this is exemplary of a good cover. In my own wishes, I would love to hear Dave Longstreth of Dirty Projectors do a version of this song. I very well thought it was him singing in the first 4 seconds of the song (but not any moment after). Ha!
20. Sandhorse - Flying a Kite. If I was extremely please by the previous song, this absolutely topped it! Fantastic performance and sung extremely well. I love the way he sings 'my kite pale cotton, willow cross'. This actually makes me like the song -- I didn't like the version on Walnut Whales. Our very own Dubblewuzzy showing us how great this song is!
21. Sarah Katheryn - Baby Birch. I do not like this one bit. I am not a fan of how she sings it -- sounds like a caricature of Amanda Palmer. Apologies, but I can't even get through this at all. Totally not the right song to do these kinds of vocals. This song is extremely delicate and relies on subtle approaches to be done well.
22. Kristina Forrer - On a Good Day. I really haven't listened to this much -- I get stopped by how overwrought the sweetness of it is. I don't like how she interpreted the song as 'lullaby'-like in her description of it. On a Good Day surely is no such thing. Too clean cut. Too sugary for its own good.
Overall, I think the cover compilation amassed an interesting roster. Glad it's out there and getting the attention it deserves. Joanna has accomplished something here, what with getting a tribute comp three records into her career!