Rhino’s Got You Covered: Scala & Kolacny Brothers, Frente!, Ella Fitzgerald, and Dee Dee Bridgewater

Itâs Wednesday, so it must be time to take another dip into the Rhino catalog and trot out a new quartet of cover songs that you may or may not have heard before. Letâs get started, shall we?
⢠Scala & Kolacny Brothers, âBarbie Girlâ (2016): If youâre a fan of cover songs and youâre not already familiar with this Belgian womens' choir conducted by Stijn Kolacny, then itâs time to get busy in absorbing pretty much their entire back catalog, because youâll listen to this and think, âGeez, if they can make a song by Aqua sound this affecting, then how breathtaking must their covers of legitimately emotional songs be?â Run, donât walk, and explore their stuff. Theyâre amazing.
⢠Frente!, âBizarre Love Triangleâ (1992): Although Frente! released their debut full-length LP, MARVIN THE ALBUM, in Australia in November 1992 in Australia, it didnât make its way to American until April 1994, at which point it included this New Order cover as its concluding track. The song had actually debuted on the bandâs 1993 LABOUR OF LOVE EP, however, and it earned so much buzz that it ended up being tacked onto MARVIN THE ALBUM, too. As a result, the song ended up being the bandâs only US hit.
⢠Ella Fitzgerald, âI Heard It Through the Grapevineâ (1970): If anyone had been wondering whether or not Ms. Fitzgerald was able to adapt to the changing music styles of the â60s, she answered that question handily with her 1969 album ELLA, which found her covering Smokey Robinson, Randy Newman, the Beatles, and Harry Nilsson, among others. This Marvin Gaye cover came from the follow-up album, 1970âs THINGS AINâT WHAT THEY USED TO BE (AND YOU BETTER BELIEVE IT), and while the track listing is decidedly jazzier this time around, she clearly demonstrates on this track she knows how to belt out an R&B classic.
⢠Dee Dee Bridgewater, âHeâs Goneâ (1976): Sheâs a Tony Award winner, a former radio show host, and currently a United Nations Goodwill Ambassador for the FDA, but sheâs always going to be known as a powerhouse vocalist, as she proves on this gender-tweaked take on Hall & Oates from her self-titled album.