Ben Harper, Ted Leo, the Fiery Furnaces, the Donnas, Dar Williams and Sufjan Stevens are among the artists confirmed to appear on a song-by-song tribute to the Beatles’ “Rubber Soul.”
Due Oct. 25 via Razor & Tie, “This Bird Has Flown — A 40th Anniversary Tribute to the Beatles’ Rubber Soul” even reproduces the sequence of the 14-track original LP. Other acts stepping into the Fab Four’s footprints include Ben Kweller, Nellie McKay, the Yonder Mountain String Band, Ben Lee, Low and Rhett Miller.
“As we looked toward artists we would approach, we felt they should be kindred spirits, whose gifts for singing and arranging lend themselves to these melodies and themes,” says producer Jim Sampas, who previously assembled the Sub Pop set “Badlands: A Tribute to Bruce Springsteen’s Nebraska.” “Each artist on this album brought their own fascinating interpretations and have extracted new meanings from ‘Rubber Soul.'”
Released in December 1965, “Rubber Soul” marked the Beatles’ turning point from pop-driven teen idols to musicians willing to experiment with folk and psychedelica. The set spent six weeks at No. 1 on The Billboard 200.
Here is the track list for “This Bird Has Flown”:
“Drive My Car,” the Donnas
“Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown),” the Fiery Furnaces
“You Won’t See Me,” Dar Williams
“Nowhere Man,” Low
“Think For Yourself,” Yonder Mountain String Band
“The Word,” Mindy Smith
“Michelle,” Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals
“What Goes On,” Sufjan Stevens
“Girl,” Rhett Miller
“I’m Looking Through You,” Ted Leo
“In My Life,” Ben Lee
“Wait,” Ben Kweller
“If I Needed Someone,” Nellie McKay
“Run For Your Life,” Cowboy Junkies
Source billboard.com.
