Finnish Hillbillies Take A Stab At It
To cover a historic American folk song you have to have a common attachment to the song’s originators. So, what does a hillbilly inspired band from Lakeland Finland share with a banjo soloist from the Southern Appalachian region share? They both have eternalized grit only expressed in a way that folk and blues music combined can deliver. Steve’n’Seagulls channels Clarence Ashley’s House of The Rising Sun (1933) in their cover with the same haunting vocals that follow great folk musicians. House of The Rising Sun is an emotional song. It’s a dramatized tale of a seemingly heartbroken drunken vagabond. It is simple but self-assured in its lyrics. With strong emotion comes confidence and Steve’n’Seagull’s embellishment of the cover certainly introduces itself with conviction.
Good Cover, But Greater Mystery
True, the real songwriters of House of The Rising Sun are not officially known nor are there “official lyrics”. Clarence Ashley and Gwen Foster brought the song to fame in 1933. The same lyrics sang then have cemented themselves as the foundation for numerous covers for over 70 years. When you start singing along with the Steve’n’Seagulls (their instrumental talent certainly makes it easy to do so) you realize the lyrics are not the classic American staple we all know. It seems to be agreed on by the general YouTube audience- changing “down in New Orleans” to “ up in the North Woods” can be misconstrued as arrogance. If you can get past this personalization, you realize that the Steve’n’ Seagulls can in fact stand on their own and the cover is indeed a great one- additional lyrics, percussion, and double bass included.