Ernie Jackson - Sugar (Maroon 5 cover)

Read more of my thoughts on Ernie's music here

Ever since I heard their should-have-been-a-single track The Sweetest Goodbye during a scene of my favourite ever movie (Love, Actually actually) I've been completely smitten with Maroon 5. Their early sound felt organic and passionate and while their music has certainly become more processed & polished over the years (not a criticism), they've always manage to skilfully blend the lines between rock and pop. Their current smash Sugar is a brilliant example of this - and it's wonderfully transformed in the hands of talented singer songwriter Ernie Jackson. By performing an acoustic version that's just him and his guitar, he takes not only the song back to it's most pure form but manages to recreate the charm and energy of the band's early days. Visually Ernie allows the lyrics of the song to infuse his being, as if he's channeling their sentiments through his own memory and experiences. This ownership of the narrative serves to make it feel as if the song is personal to the young singer and his voice is pop manna from heaven - weaving around the melody with gracious ease while inserting his own mark on the song with his seductive vocal style. There's a giddy thrill to be had as he effortlessly soars into falsetto and back for the song's titular refrain; similarly when he pauses the guitar to go acapella it's nothing less of riveting - like a theatrical performance of the song rather than just singing. He's the type of singer that makes you want to stand up and applaud with unfettered wild enthusiasm. Surely it's only a matter of time before people are covering his songs with such genuine intensity and love of the source material.

(PS do check back soon for thoughts on his brand new song coming this week!)

Top 25 songs of the week:

25 ~ MAX, Darling
24 ~ Olly Murs, Wrapped Up
23 ~ Taylor Swift, Out Of The Woods
22 ~ Walk The Moon, Shut Up and Dance
21 ~ Eric Saade, Sting (NE)
20 ~ Danny Saucedo, All You Need Is A Spark (NE)
19 ~ Auryn, Last Song
18 ~ McBusted, Get Over It
17 ~ One Direction, Night Changes
16 ~ Gravitonas, Castles In The Air
15 ~ Walk The Moon, Avalanche
14 ~ Take That, Let In The Sun
13 ~ Ola, This Could Be Paradise
12 ~ Giorgio Moroder ft Kylie Minogue, Right Here Right Now
11 ~ Erasure, Sacred
10 ~ GRL, Lighthouse
09 ~ Mark Ronson ft Bruno Mars, Uptown Funk
08 ~ Kelly Clarkson, Heartbeat Song
07 ~ Taylor Swift, Blank Space
06 ~ Madonna, Living For Love
05 ~ Maroon 5, Sugar
04 ~ Bleachers, Like A River Runs
03 ~ Olly Murs ft Demi Lovato, Up
02 ~ The Overtones, Something Good
01 ~ Satin Circus, Crossroads (1 week)