I'm not usually a big fan of covers - don't get me wrong, I love it when people sing at karaoke bars, and I can get down to a good cover of "With Or Without You" at a Jack's Mannequin show. What I'm talking about is a studio-recorded version of a classic that's put out into the universe with hopes of making it a hit on radio. If it's good enough to cover, it's probably already pretty decent the way it is. Why set yourself up for that kind of failure, if there's only a slight chance it might come close to the original?
Now, of course, there are some exceptions to my way of thinking. The Dixie Chick's version of "Landslide?" Liked it better than the original. And Disturbed did a cover of "The Sound of Silence" a few years back that absolutely blew my socks off. So it CAN be done...I'm just saying, I don't usually enjoy covers that much.
Enter Weezer in 2018. They made a cover of Toto's classic (and one of my personal favorites) "Africa," to get a relentless fan to quit hounding them. And guess what...it WORKED. It pays homage enough to the original, but still has that Weezer flair, and it's amazing. Not the original, of course, nothing ever could be...but still pretty solid. So, this kid decided to give it a go and make his OWN version of "Africa"...only this time, a capella. Now, he's got a long way to go to be as good as the Angel City Chorale (if you've never heard/seen their rendition CHECK IT OUT NOW)...but I give the kid credit. Check it out below: