Friday 2 August 2013

Miguels' Adorn - Youtube Faceoff


Live Lounge is great and all but what I love most is searching through Youtube to find the best cover versions of my favourite songs by unsigned or small-time artists. If you put the time in, you'll find so many different and innovative interpretations of the biggest hits right now... but who has the time for that I hear you say? Have no fear for that's what our Youtube Faceoff is all about. Previous posts have looked at artists as diverse as One Direction, Bastille and Psy. Today it's Miguels' turn!

Miguel released his incredible 'Kaleidoscope Dream' album almost a year ago but lead single 'Adorn' is still riding high on the charts, particularly within the UK where a remix featuring Jessie Ware has become a hit on radio. It also doesn't hurt that Miguel's recently had a worldwide smash with Mariah Carey on her latest track '#Beautiful', which you can listen to right here. I genuinely think 'Adorn' is one of the best RnB songs I've heard in the last few years and once you check out Miguels' official promo, then you'll see that all of the Prince and Marvin Gaye comparisons are completely justified. Here's 'Adorn'.


What's made Miguel so popular is how genuinely soulful his voice is, so it's quite a challenge for anyone to try and tackle his signature song. As always though, many Youtubers have given it a go and while there were plenty of average versions out there, today I've found four fantastic covers for you to enjoy today. Once you've listened to each version, remember to vote for your favourite on the top left side of this page.  

First up is James Anderson, who shows off his incredible range in his version of 'Adorn'. What's really impressive though is that Anderson is only fourteen years old! As the song is a bit risque in places, Anderson smartly chose to change some lyrics to make them more suitable and the song loses none of its impact because of it.


I'm a sucker for a good mash-up and Travis Garland had the genius idea of combining 'Adorn' with Rihannas' 'Diamonds'. Sometimes these combinations can feel forced but Garlands' acoustic guitar version makes it sound like these two songs have only ever been recorded together. 


Next up is a female version of 'Adorn' by Kris Holly, whose rich textured voice is a perfect fit for this modern soul classic. Listen to the whole cover to hear Hollys' stunning range towards the end of her version.


Finally, I've chosen to share a cover by a young male band called Sonus. Yes there's a hint of the Jonas Brothers about this three but their vocals all sound fantastic both independently and as a threesome, with barely a cheesy moment in sight.


So what do you think of these four different covers of 'Adorn'? My favourite version is Travis Garland's mash up, just for its sheer originality, but I want to know what you think. Do you know of any other brilliant versions of 'Adorn' that should have made the list? Is there a particular song we should cover in our next edition of Youtube Faceoff? Let us know by commenting, liking and sharing below and remember to vote for your favourite in our poll so we can hear your views. 

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