Beck’s Song Reader Came Out, and We Was Robbed

Beck came to Studio 360 in late 2012 to talk about Song Reader. The album — at that point — consisted only of sheet music, and fans were encouraged to record their versions of the songs. To mark the occasion, Studio 360 staff and friends, led by our technical director John DeLore, pulled out all the stops on a recording of the album’s song “Saint Dude.” From the staff of WNYC and WQXR, we roped in a few skilled rockers (John is quite a songwriter in his own right), a choir of producers and hosts (including On the Media’s Brooke Gladstone), and Kurt Andersen rocking the glockenspiel.

We presented it to Beck and he took a playful dig, saying it sounded like “Saint Dude, the Broadway musical.” (Unless it wasn’t a dig, and Beck really likes musicals?)

Well, this summer a Song Reader album came out, featuring other artists interpreting Beck’s sheet music. Imagine our surprise when we heard how much Bob Forrest‘s version of “Saint Dude” sounded like ours, right down to Broadway-ish backing vocals. You can hear the similarities in the drum, guitar, and bass arrangements, but the real kicker is at the end. In the sheet music, the song is over after the second bridge, but we took some creative liberty and repeated the first verse, then adding a quiet little coda (at 3:17 in our version below). Bob Forrest’s version follows suit:

“Saint Dude” performed by Bob Forrest, from Song Reader (2014):

“Saint Dude” performed by Studio 360 and friends (2012):

There’s that old saying about great minds thinking alike. Or perhaps we should consider ourselves most sincerely flattered. We have just one thing to say to Bob Forrest: where’s your glockenspiel?