Iron And Wine plays New Order

[video link]

Sam Beam, aka Iron and Wine, plays his gorgeous cover of my favorite New Order song, "Love Vigilantes." The studio version is available on his 2009 album, Around the Well.

• [Anonymous]

  Very nice cover of a great song. I’d like to hear him cover This Time Of Night, also from Low Life.

  If you like this song, you might also like Everywhere by Billy Bragg, also sung from the perspective a dead soldier.

• [Anonymous]

  I’m not too familiar with Iron & Wine, but everything I hear from him is really nice, including this cover. Another interesting cover I like that he does is Such Great Heights by The Postal Service.

  And New Order is my all-time favorite band, so thanks for this!

• [Anonymous]

  LOVE Iron and Wine, and this cover is beautiful. Have to echo Pinehead though, “Trapeze Swinger” might be Beam’s magnum opus at this point.

• [benvolio]

  Hands down best cover of “Love Vigilantes” is by Laura Cantrell. Surprised no one’s mentioned that yet. It’s on her 2008 record “Trains, Boats and Planes” and I’d venture a guess her cover is what inspired this feller’s.

• [Muse]

  When I first heard Iron and Wine, I didn’t really get it. It has steadily found a place in my heart and now nothing else quite takes me to that slightly melancholy, wistful place like Sam Beam’s hushed vocals and haunting melodies. I second pineheads recommendation of “The Trapeze Swinger.” That is a great song.

  I still prefer his first two albums “The Creek Drank the Cradle” and Our Endless Numbered Days” to his subsequent work. There are quite a few amazing songs on both albums. My former wife and I agreed “Naked as We Came”. was our absolute favorite. It has been two and a half years since she died and I have only recently been able to listen to that beautiful song again.

• [boo]

  I guess I am getting really old and really tired.

  Nothing new here at all.

  • [David Pescovitz]

    Wow, how unfortunate it must be to be you.

  • [obeyken]

    take a nap and give it another listen maybe?

• [Eric Ragle]

  Fantastic! It seriously doesn’t get much better than Iron and Wine.

• [Warren]

  Dig it!

  Shameless plug for my band’s version of the same:
  http://music.hungrylucy.com/track/love-vigilantes-live

  We’re from Cincinnati too, so that’s gotta win bonus points Mr. Pescovitz ;)

  • [igpajo]

    Warren, that’s fantastic. Beautiful lead vocals on that one.

    • [Warren]

      Thanks. That’s my lovely wife singing.

• [kslays]

  Iron and Wine and the Low Anthem are playing in Boston at the House of Blues tonight! (But I believe the concert is sold out.)

  • [SamSam]

    I’m off to that right now! :)

    • [David Pescovitz]

      Whoa. That’s a fantastic double bill. I’m hoping to see Beam play in SF in June but I don’t think Low Anthem is playing with him.

• [skeletoncityrepeater]

  New Order is such a good band to cover, they have so many great album tracks. This Beam version resembles the Jimmy Cliff song ‘Vietnam’ which I believe influenced to the original!

  I’m just missing the awesome melodica and signature bass parts from the original. But this is a great song for any solo singer to cover.

• [angusm]

  My version of choice is still the Oysterband version. You can see it at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAF3R2s-6WU (but for my money the version on the album “Ride” is still the best).

• [EH]

  The couple in front of the camera don’t yet know that the back of the room is the place for constant hipster commentary. Over by the soundboard.

• [nevertoomuch]

  David, this is great! Took them out of the playlist rotation a while ago, but this was a great reminder to switch it up. Saw them recording once in an old wooden house in Tallahassee. Will never forget how ‘cool’ that made me feel. Thanks for sharing and taking me back.

• [jyindc]

  Here’s a nice Iron and Wine 4-song set from his recent NPR “Tiny Desk Concert” appearance.

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nT911jkWEo

• [commenterx]

  I like the chorus of this song, but of all of New Order’s hits, Love Vigilantes is my least favorite, but that was a nicely sung version.

  Zach Galifianakis looks great. He’s lost a bit of weight. I didn’t know he had a band.

  • [MooseDesign]

    Funnily enough he was clean shaven and crew cut in college… Isn’t it usually t’other way ’round?

• [PeaceLove]

  Warren: You’re a lucky man! That’s beautiful; I dig that your version retains the spooky pained detachment of the original.

  Agree with Pescovitz; Love Vigilante is my favorite New Order track, too. I guess we’re both into narrative, and suckers for British WWII nostalgia!

• [pinehead]

  Beam’s cover of “Love Vigilantes” is great.
  My favorite song off that album remains “The Trapeze Swinger.” Check it out if you want.
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8aPyBr-_S0