Divas vs. Queers

What happens when openly gay singers dare to cover songs made famous by divas?

The Song: "Wrecking Ball"

It was the second single released from Miley Cyrus' fourth studio album, Bangerz (2013). It peaked at number one in nearly a dozen countries. Okay, go ahead and argue that Ms. Cyrus, all of 21 when she recorded it, does not qualify as a diva. All I can tell you is that she appears to be following the modern diva template provided by Madonna (and feebly adopted by the likes of Britney Spears). Cyrus has made a controversial music video (see below), done some crazy look-at-me-look-at-me shit on awards shows and routinely changes her look. She seems determined to make you forget she was ever Hannah Montana, the titular character of her successful Disney Channel series. Sounds like a diva to me.

It took five (five!) people to write "Wrecking Ball" -- Ms. Cyrus was not one of them -- and it received mixed reviews, even backhanded praise. PopMatters called it "the kind of broad mainstream song that shows you how to properly build up to a chorus before hitting us over the head with it." The Los Angeles Times suggested that the track proved she "isn't just a twerk-bot programmed to titillate," but added, "Cyrus' singing throbs with what feels like an embarrassment of emotion." I'm pretty sure that's not a compliment.

And then there's the video. Miley emotes a lot, swings a sledgehammer and rides a wrecking ball. She's wearing a tight little sleeveless shirt, some underwear and a pair of Doc Martens. At first. Eventually it's just the Doc Martens. I sincerely wish I'd been a fly on the wall when she and the director discussed how much better the video would be if she licked that sledgehammer. Decisions like that are what takes a project like this from bad to so bad it's awesome!

At the time of its release I remember telling a friend that "Wrecking Ball" isn't a bad pop ballad. I mused aloud that maybe someone who doesn't need to bludgeon their child star past to death should take a crack at it. Behold, Eli Lieb. The openly gay singer takes a stripped down approach to the song that feels a lot more organic, honest and heartfelt. It's a very satisfying marriage of man and electric dulcimer... an instrument he plays, not licks. (Though to be fair, I realize lots of people would enjoy seeing him play his dulcimer while just wearing a pair of Doc Martens.)

Eli Lieb (photo courtesy of his Facebook page)

Eli Lieb's music is available on iTunes and his website. You can check out more of his videos on YouTube.

To see the first entry in the Divas vs. Queers series (featuring Whitney Houston's "I Wanna Dance With Somebody" reimagined by Matt Alber), click here.

Divas vs. Queers

What happens when openly gay singers dare to cover songs made famous by divas?

The Song: "I Wanna Dance With Somebody"

It was the first single from Whitney Houston's second studio album, Whitney, released in 1987. Topping the charts in over a dozen countries, the recording also won Houston a Grammy and an American Music Award. Despite widespread commercial success, critical response was mixed. While the Los Angeles Times called it "a deliciously raucous tune," The New York Times declared that listening to it was like "watching television while someone fiddles with the color controls." But a quarter of a century later, lots of people consider it to be a definitive example of '80s dance-pop. Frankly, I hate her version (and the video doesn't help). Loud and feverish, it sounds like the aural equivalent of a convulsion rather than a sincerely expressed desire to dance with someone. But I realize I'm in the minority there.

At the time of it's release I remember telling a friend that it might be tolerable if someone besides Houston turned it into a ballad. I got my wish in 2012 when openly gay singer Matt Alber took the song in a whole new direction. Haunting and elegant, Alber grounds it in recognizable, relatable emotion.

His cover of "I Wanna Dance With Somebody" is available on iTunes or cdbaby.

I saw Matt Alber live in 2013. If you ever get the chance to see him perform, go -- he's sexy, affable and truly gifted.

Matt Alber (photo courtesy of his official Facebook page)