![]() ![]() They’re also telling us something, I think, about the ingenious ambiguity of the song’s lyrics. At the center of it all is a sound that retains some of the original’s sulfurous Old West atmosphere: that chugging stream train bass line and the eerie, whistle-whine high tenor of Cee-Lo, who gives a terrific, weird performance filled with long pauses and gospel-style stutters and exclamations. There is a sleek dance beat with a prominent disco-ish high-hat a background chorale lifted virtually wholesale from “Nel Cimitero di Tucson” and strings that swoop and shudder over the chorus. “Crazy” is itself a cover, of sorts: The song’s bass line is a sample from “ Nel Cimitero di Tucson,” a soundtrack tune from the 1968 spaghetti Western Preparati la Bara! Gnarls Barkley replaced the original’s lead trumpet solo with a new main melody line and came up with a precisely calibrated arrangement that straddles the border between modern dance-pop and ‘70s disco-soul. It was written, though, and not just by Gnarls Barkley. Like many of the best pop tunes, “Crazy” seems like it has always existed-like it wasn’t written so much as yanked out of the ether. Its transparency and simplicity, and the grandeur of that rising and tumbling chorus, gives the song a timeless feel. “Crazy” is elegant, old-fashioned songwriting-a taut, melancholy melody that unfolds with impeccable logic over some basic chord changes and erupts into a heart-grabbing singalong chorus. ![]() On musical grounds, the song’s popularity makes perfect sense. And in the gruff-and-husky-aging-’80s-hit-makers-do-“Crazy” category, we find versions by Bryan Adams, and, in a particularly grave offense against music, Billy Idol, caterwauling the song a capella. Singer-songwriter Ray La Montagne and certified pop star Nelly Furtado have both performed it acoustically (and plaintively). Indie favorites Of Montreal and Mates of State have sung it, as has the top-selling Scottish band Texas, British neosoul star Terri Walker, and Brit-poppers the Kooks, in a cute skiffle version. singer-songwriter Butch Walker, and the Twilight Singers, the group led by former Afghan Whig frontman Greg Dulli. There have been rocked-up renditions by Jack White’s new band the Raconteurs, emo rockers The Academy Is …, L.A. Almost immediately after the record’s release, the first cover versions appeared, and now the “Crazy” cover phenomenon has become an epidemic. “Crazy” is not just the pop audience’s choice-it’s the choice of pop musicians. On "Necromancing" Cee-Lo declares what is in effect an album mission statement, 'The production is progressive.the chords are cold-blooded murder." If there's any justice in the world, this album should sell by the truck-load.The numbers are impressive, but chart success is just the beginning of the story. As the album progresses, DJ Danger Mouse's eclecticism astounds calculated pinches of Motown, Flamenco, Funk, Dub and D'n'B all get thrown into the mix, without ever sounding overcooked. Elsewhere off at full steam, with Cee-Lo hollering from the depths of his belly, as frenzied samples and beats clatter below. While the latter is no stranger to infamy, being the man responsible for the legendary Grey Album bootleg, this is essentially Cee-Lo's first real taste of the mainstream, and it's about time too. Gnarls Barkley are ex-Goodie Mob soul eccentric, Cee-Lo and underground masher-upper extraordinaire, Danger Mouse. But the success of "Crazy" should guarantee that this genre-bending record escapes the ghetto of 'underground cool'. ![]() Albums this hip don't usually spawn chart-conquering singles. ![]()
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