A surprise cover of Oh Sweet Nuthin’ featuring Elvis Costello and Neil Young has been praised as a “special” version of the song.
Costello and Young would cover The Velvet Underground track during an appearance at a Bridge School Benefit. The pair’s tribute to Lou Reed came just a short while after the Metal Machine Music songwriter’s death. Both Costello and Young received praise for their performance, with those at the show hearing the news of Reed’s death just hours before, according to one person who says they attended the event. Comments left by fans in a YouTube video of the performance had many share their love of Costello and “musical Terminator” Young, whose ability to adapt from genre to genre was praised by some. One person wrote: “I was at this show. It was the day Lou Reed died and we all fell the fuck apart.”
Another added: “Neil Young is like some kind of a musical terminator, he just keeps plodding mercilessly along.” A third wrote: “It always amazes me how whenever I feel that I haven’t had a particularly good day or I’m just feeling rather uninspired, that it can all turn completely around in a wholly different, positive sort of way.
“By just truly listening to wonderful music performed by musicians who care tremendously for their craft. And to enjoy this moment in time in the company of a delightful new friend is why I will forget the dull feelings of when the day started and instead focus on the peace and contentment of how I am feeling right now.”
Others believed the song to be a wholly “angelic” experience, which is quite unlike anything they had ever heard. One fan wrote: “Just cements my belief that some people can tune into a cosmic radio station and bring it into our realm. This is not Earthly. It is angelic.” Another asked: “Other than Stevie Ray Vaughn’s unplugged set, have a couple acoustic guitars rocked this hard?”
A third wrote: “Great to see Neil Young covering a great Velvet Underground song (as sung by Doug Yule). I’d be curious to know how many people on this thread think Lou Reed sang this song. He wrote it, yes, but he didn’t sing it cause Yule’s voice was ultimately stronger and Reed was worn out from playing the shows at Max’s at the same time they recorded Loaded.”
One listener suggested the cover was similar to when The Black Crowes covered the track, merely because “they loved it.” The fan wrote: “It’s cool they are all performing this song together as a tribute to the late Lou Reed and his band the Velvet Underground.
“It sounds pretty good, however way back in 2010 the Black Crowes covered this song, just because they loved it. The Crowes rendition is so heartfelt and passionately delivered with a genuine conviction, that comparing the two versions wouldn’t be necessary and would actually be unfair. I love Neil Young and Costello yet I question what they’re doing sitting in with My Morning Jacket.”
You can listen to Young and Costello perform Oh Sweet Nuthin’ below.
