In Kenarden Lodge, , Come On! Feel the Covers!, at the first installment of Covers, students from all class years performed songs about their favorite state or city.† The event is named after Come On! Feel the Illinoise! by Sufjan Stevens, who famously vowed to write an album dedicated to each state.† While that project ended after a whopping two albums, musicians at the covers event played well into the night, featuring music by Sufjan as well as Ray Charles, the Magnetic Fields, Feist and Flo Rida, among others. Performers played on guitar, keyboard, tambourine, harmonica, drum machine and even some brass instruments.
In the audience, studentsí legs swung from the balcony over the crowd gathered around the stage area below, as those who came early squeezed together on the couches and in the window ledges. Calls of encouragement to performers, enthusiastic applause, swaying, dancing and singing along grew as more people arrived throughout the night. Jane Siegel í13, who gave a beautiful rendition of Rogue Waveís ìCalifornia” on guitar, found the crowd ìwonderfully engaged, and the atmosphere was warm and inviting. It was nice to see people dancing and enjoying music.”
The night featured a lot of talent and variety. Performers signed up simply by posting their intended cover on a Facebook event page created by David Yontz í10 .† Nick Terelleís í10 cover of Flo Ridaís ìLow” was an early crowd-pleaser, which began acoustically, then got the crowd hippiní and hoppiní by breaking it down with a drum machine for later verses. A clever banter by Ginny Kincaid í10 during Dar Williamsí ìIowa” caused what was probably the largest gathering of people singing about Iowa ever, outside the state itself. The lyrics ìIím not that kind of girl” from ìSunset City” by The Magnetic Fields never sounded so masculine and sensual than from Rob Wadleigh í09, one of the reasons Covers is† so popular. Roommates Ryan LeBlanc í10 and Michael Rankin í10 performed John Denver songs about their respective states of Colorado and West Virginia.† Their performances were upbeat and crowd favorites. For Sufjan Stevens fans, the highlight was Kevn Reswig í10 and Yontzís ìCasimir Pulaski Day,” which caused conflicting ripples of fans shushing and the uninitiated asking what the song was. Reiswig and Yontz played it beautifully.
The surprise finale, Bruce Springsteenís ìBorn in the USA,” got the whole crowd on its feet singing and left people reluctant to leave and excited for the next Covers event.† The crowd at Come On! Feel the Covers! is a far-shot from the eventís humble beginnings in the year 2008.
Peterson Kuyk-White í08 organized the very first Covers event as a tribute to ì69 Love Songs” by Magnetic Fields.† Rob Wadleigh í09 described it as essentially a low-key get together of amateur musicians with similar taste who just wanted to play some songs. The event grew from there and Wadleigh organized the second covers event, Covers of Covers.
Since the spring of 2008, there has been at least one Covers event each semester, with themes like Sexx and Cake, ë90s Covers and Dance, Remixes and Mash-ups.† If the crowd at Come On! Feel the Covers! is any indication, there will be many more to come.
Additional writing by Marten Dollinger.