Friday, 21 April 2023

I Bet That You Look Good On The Dancefloor

Cover version of the month #85
Baby Charles covers Artic Monkeys

As debut singles go, Artic Monkeys I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor was an absolute banger. Kids, adults, radio, MTV, indie dance clubs and the music press went absolutely nuts for this seemingly perfectly formed band that exploded out of Sheffield.

And they really did explode. Sharing their Beneath The Boardwalk demos online built a sizeable local following which filled the band with the confidence to release an EP Five Minutes With Artic Monkeys on their own Bang Bang label. The EP featured Fake Tales From San Francisco that also had a video of rehearsals and local gigs, capturing the band at a time before things went properly crazy.

'We're Artic Monkeys, this is I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor. Don't believe the hype.'

Alex Turner's introduction on the video for his bands debut single was apt. The band were being hyped beyond belief. The music weeklies sometimes get it right and they certainly did with Artic Monkeys.

Artic Monkeys immediately came across as a real gang , who were still in their teens. They had a cool frontman who happened to be a witty lyricist with a knack for hooks and youthful social observations and commentary. 

I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor is 100 mph punk pop to dance and pogo to, to play along on air guitar, to crank up the volume and to play again. Turner's lyrics have humour, teenage honesty and are delivered in a frenetic manner that makes me smile every time I hear the song.

Oh there ain't no love, no Montagues or Capulets

Just banging tunes and DJ sets

And dirty dance floors and dreams of naughtiness

Artic Monkeys are not a favourite band of mine, but I couldn't help but fall for this single. I still get a kick from the energy that leaps from it every time I hear it.

Baby Charles was a 10-piece Brighton based funk/soul outfit who released their self titled album back in 2008. It contains an outrageous cover of I Bet That You Look Good On The Dancefloor. The bass is funky, horns and percussion are introduced, while singer Dionne Charles plays on Turner's melody, urgency and slight sauciness. This is a super sexy cover version. 

An additional 100-seconds are added on to the Artic Monkeys version. Their explosive intro is replaced by a long funk jazz workout and the band strip the song back to beats and percussion mid-song before building it back up again for a ferocious final 30-seconds and one final chorus. 

All previous cover version of the month blogs are listed below. To listen on Spotify, search for Everything Flows Cool Cover Versions playlist, featuring all of the songs below, or CLICK HERE

Artic Monkeys official video

Baby Charles version

Previous covers of the month

13. Hurt
39. ABBA-esque
40. Jumpin' Jack Flash
64. Lola
82. Drop

Alex Turner introduction to his band in the video to their debut single 

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top making the eyes at meI'll stop making the eyes at youWhat it is that surprises meIs that I don't really want you to
And your shoulders are frozen (cold as the night)Oh, but you're an explosion (you're dynamite)Your name isn't Rio, but I don't care for sandAnd lighting the fuse might result in a bang, b-b-bang-oh
I bet that you look good on the dance floorI don't know if you're looking for romance orI don't know what you're looking forI said, I bet that you look good on the dance floorDancing to electro-pop like a robot from 1984Well, from 1984
I wish you'd stop ignoring meBecause you're sending me to despairWithout a sound, yeah, you're calling meAnd I don't think it's very fair
That your shoulders are frozen (cold as the night)Oh, but you're an explosion (you're dynamite)Your name isn't Rio, but I don't care for sandAnd lighting the fuse might result in a bang, b-b-bang-oh
I bet that you look good on the dance floorI don't know if you're looking for romance orI don't know what you're looking forI said, I bet that you look good on the dance floorDancing to electro-pop like a robot from 1984Well, from 1984
Oh, there ain't no love, no Montagues or CapuletsJust banging tunes and DJ sets andDirty dance floors and dreams of naughtiness
Well, I bet that you look good on the dance floorI don't know if you're looking for romance orI don't know what you're looking forI said, I bet that you look good on the dance floorDancing to electro-pop like a robot from 1984Said, from 1984
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