I fell in love with Aloe Blacc’s “I Need a Dollar” ever since I heard it in the background of a random episode of This American Life a while back, so when this live version of it poked its head out on Reddit today, it was both a great reminder of the original, and also a fresh new take.
This live version, performed at MADE last year with violinist and composer Mihalj “Miki” Kekenj, is definitely a great take on the tune, even if it is pretty different from the original. Apart from the (awesome) instrumentation, it sounds similar, but something about seeing a super-suave Blacc sitting on a stool in a tuxedo kind of takes the edge off the whole “I need a dollar” thing. But what it takes away in edge, it gives back in pure, unadulterated style. As good as this version is, I highly recommend checking out the orignal if you’ve never heard, or even if you have. And please, just give the man a dollar already. [Original version: Amazon, iTunes, Spotify, Video: YouTube via Reddit]
