Smooth

Like many words in the English language, the more one stares at the word "smooth", the less it seems like an actual word. Try saying it over and over as if it rhymed with "tooth". It'll lose all meaning and you'll chuckle at its absurdity. Or maybe it's just time to stop blogging and go to bed. Anyway, here's a cool find from Myspace. While browsing for some virtually non-existent Jamiroquai covers, I stumbled on Mr. & Mrs. Smooth, a bossa nova jazz duo clearly taking a cue from their French compatriots Nouvelle Vague.

Mr. & Mrs. Smooth - Just Can't Get Enough [originally by Depeche Mode]
Nouvelle Vague - Just Can't Get Enough [originally by Depeche Mode]
These are very nearly the same cover song, though I do have to side with the Smooth version. I suppose there is the distinct possibility that "Mrs. Smooth" and the mono-named Eloisa who sings on Nouvelle Vague's rendition are one and the same, but I can't glean much info from Mr. & Mrs. Smooth's myspace and Nouvelle Vague's is similarly vague, heh heh. Nouvelle Vague has a new album coming out in June with a few ironic twists: the bossa nova aesthetic has been torpedoed in favour of a country/bluegrass vibe (what??) and the album includes some interpretations featuring the original artists including Depeche Mode's Martin Gore. Wacky!

Mr. & Mrs. Smooth - Love Foolosophy [originally by Jamiroquai]
Though Jamiroquai covers are few and far between, I was excited to find Mr. & Mrs. Smooth covering one of my faves, Love Foolosophy.

Head on over to Mr. and Mrs. Smooth's myspace site to hear their renditions of Deee-Lite's Groove is in the Heart and Bobby Hebb's oft-covered Sunny.

Speaking of foreign myspace covers, a reader recently alerted me to Mexican cover act Tropikal Forever who do a "unique" version of Smells Like Teen Spirit and more.