Wednesday, December 17, 2025

Well, This is Interesting! Even Without the Vegetables!

The irrepressible (wacky?) Tori Amos dropped this track -- which had apparently been languishing in the vaults since 2001 -- on Youtube this week.

That's the Springsteen song (from his first album) obviously, and originally recorded by Amos for her Strange Little Girls project, which is being reissued on vinyl with four bonus tracks end of next February.

Long time readers are aware that I have a kind of sneaking affection for this woman and her work, largely deriving from the EP she did in 1992 featuring an ace piano/vocal rendition of "Smells Like Teen Spirit" and an album cover where she posed wearing a necklace made out of what most people would consider, er, side dishes.

In any event, Strange Little Girls -- which I was previously unfamiliar with -- is a concept album of sorts, in that all the songs were originally written by men, but then recast by Amos from the perspective of a female character she created for each of them. I apparently missed it by design when it was first released, but having now heard the above -- which, admittedly, does get a couple of the chord changes wrong, which irks me -- I think I'm gonna give the album a chance when the vinyl comes out.

8 comments:

steve simels said...

Testing…testing…is this thing on?😎

steve simels said...

Note to self — music by weirdo chicks wearing vegetable necklaces less interesting to readers than hoped.😎

Sal Nunziato said...

Remember the NYCD Newsletter? Here is a Tori Amos review from 9/21/06:

TORI AMOS - A PIANO: THE COLLECTION. The first ever box set from one of the creepiest performers we've ever set eyes on. 86 alternates, remixes, rarities, and some classics as well. If none of you are familiar with Tori Amos' cover version shtick, think putting a cockring on Michelangelo's David.

steve simels said...

Words fail me. 😎

Rob said...

Note to Amanda - now that's how you write a review

Allan Rosenberg said...

Sal: That may be the best blog comment I have read in 2025.

Steve: I will have to listen a few more times to the track before forming an opinion. A very strange performance but it might have earworm possibilities.

Captain Al

Alzo said...

I was ready to like it because I've always liked her stuff. And then I remembered that I was thinking of Cat Power.

MJConroy said...

I liked Tori's early stuff - including that EP. Lost interest after a while. But, she has an interesting take on things.