Early in the morning I would wake up and the first thing I do is to turn on the radio. Depending how early I woke up, I could be lying there listening to the music for up to an hour before getting ready to go to work. So, one morning not too long ago I heard this cover of Take on me, the 80’s song by A-ha. And I like it.
So I was thinking would I have liked it as much as I did if it did not know the original. I like the original song, but I don’t mind the covers. And boy oh boy are there covers of Take on me.
I took to the internet to try and find out who is singing this cover. No success. There are just too many. Some are better than others, but I like most of them. Why?
Does it not spoil the original to have all these covers of the amazing song? No, I don’t think so. See, that’s how culture works. It is all about being human and remembering things and making connections. The connections evoke some sense of beauty in us. It is a way our instinctive nature rewards us for recognizing something, because by being able to recognize things we enhance are ability to survive. OK maybe it is a bit more sophisticated than that. It is probably not very romantic to think of it in terms of the cogs and ratchets anyway.
Doesn’t matter. It’s all about the emotions. Songs are good at communicating emotions. When these songs are so strong that they lead to covers, then their ability to convey emotions are that much stronger.
While I’m lying in my bed early in the morning and I’m hearing that song, I feel a connection with all those emotions. It make feel happy and ready to face the world.
Flippiefanus 