♪♬ I don't know why ... ♬♫

Song of the Day 002

While my Guitar Gently Sweeps

Regina Spektor

[Kubo and the Two Strings Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, 2016]

Artist Attractive Traits =
melodic, almost husky and tender voice with her musical tendencies wander from casual pop to serene ballad.

Looking through the playlist of my favourite songs, I have a lot more ballads than I want to admit but everyone have their own personal taste, right? Don't judge me! I kid, it's never wrong to have different taste in music. If you guys have any particular song that strike your fancy that you might want to recommend, please do let me know. I'm open to new songs that I haven't heard yet. Anyway, getting back to the songs, it was a fitting cover of George Harrison's classic running through the end credits of Kubo and the Two Strings, perfectly aligned with the overall journey of the main protagonist of the film and the Oriental or specifically Japanese culture used in the appearance as well as the storyline and how it is told. Maybe the original composer have different intentions when he wrote the song but Regina Spektor certainly helps in retelling his writings for a separate yet appropriate narrative with the God of Shamisen himself, Kevin Kmetz, providing the single important sound that set the tone and feel of the whole song. All the Asian instruments, the orchestra and the boy's choir accompanying his performance completing the piece for a beautiful tribute to the original as well as Kubo's journey.  

Chance of Mainstream Success =
around 70%  with her voice and alternative music approach as her mainstream appeal although fighting an uphill battle against more performance-based artists.

"While my Guitar Gently Sweeps"

I look at you all, see the love there that's sleeping

While my guitar gently weeps

I look at the floor and I see it needs sweeping

Still my guitar gently weeps

I don't know why nobody told you

How to unfold your love

I don't know how someone controlled you

They bought and sold you

I look at the world and I notice it's turning

While my guitar gently weeps

With every mistake we must surely be learning

Still my guitar gently weeps

I don't know how you were diverted

You were perverted too

I don't know how you were inverted

No one alerted you

I look at you all, see the love there that's sleeping

While my guitar gently weeps

Look at you all

Still my guitar gently weeps

Weeps 

While my guitar gently weeps 

Still my guitar gently weeps 

While my guitar gently weeps 

Still my guitar gently weeps.

Songwriter: George Harrison (the Beatles)

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a case for the excellent and fitting cover and tribute:

+ Highlights +

Perfect choice of song to be reinterpreted and all the decisions made to fit it to the movie was worth it in the end. I could hear the strumming of the shamisen's strings all day ...

? Main contention ?

The premise of Kubo and the Two Strings is really unique that it warrants an original song specially made for it and the setup for this cover could have resulted in a new original song in and of itself.

- Lowlights -

I can't understand why the vocal few purists could ever be against anyone reinterpreting one of their favourite songs by different artists or in different genres because whether or not it's a viable cover in the end, it would bring more audiences to the originals hence exposing them to more ears.

{ Underlying themes and/or on the surface }

If you've seen the movie, you'll view this song in a new light as it is intended to be a song from Kubo's mother gifted to him and as the guitar or in this instance the shamisen playing a vital part besides him as well as her trying her best for the sake of her own son. It's all worth it in the end.

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P.S. If you still haven't watch it, please do so! It is the best representative of the stop motion medium by Laika!

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