The Gloria Jones Challenge is our ongoing examination of the many, many, many covers of Jones’ classic Northern Soul jam “Tainted Love” – to see how they stack up compared to the original.
Today’s challenger is agent provocateur Marilyn Manson with his trademark gothy industrial take on the song.
But first, as always, the original:
And now, Mr. Manson’s version:
Postcard Editor: The soundtrack to “Not Another Teen Movie” featured rock and metal acts from the 90’s and 00’s covering songs from the 80’s, and this was the lead single. If this were an original song, I’d probably be into it more. It’s been so long since I’ve heard the staples of 90’s industrial metal (blown out drums, heavy synth bass, uber-processed guitars, etc…) that it almost sounds fresh to me – or at least nostalgically pleasant. But that nostalgia doesn’t carry the day, and in the end it feels at best another unnecessary take on the song and at worst a sacrilegious one, which as a form of sacrilege Manson would probably be happy about.
Postcard ChaCha: Okay, I know this is supposed to be about the song and not the video, but I gotta give MM the proper “ridin’ dirty” props here. His “something smells durrrty up in here” face is kind of perfect. But back to the song. My favorite part is the drop, when the fuzzy, blown out drums make me think something kind of funky is about to happen. When it quickly becomes clear that nothing of the sort will occur, that instead, it’s a very typical Marilyn Manson song which ends in him screaming at me, I remember that everything he creates will always sound exactly the same. Pale, angry and shirtless. Noooooo thank you.
CHALLENGER STANDINGS ACCORDING TO EDITOR:
1. Dave Phillips
2. My Brightest Diamond
3. Marilyn Manson
4. Pussycat Dolls
5. Straight No Chaser
6. Max Raabe
CHALLENGER STANDINGS ACCORDING TO CHACHA:
1. Dave Phillips
2. Max Raabe
3. My Brightest Diamond
4. Marilyn Manson
5. Pussycat Dolls
6. Straight No Chaser
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