10 Amazing Covers Albums In Rock And Roll Music
7. Have a Ball - Me First and the Gimmie Gimmies
Making two completely different genres clash together for a covers album is nothing new. As far back as the '00s we had the mashup style of production, and every now and again you have the likes of Richard Cheese giving us a lounge jazz tribute to Pearl Jam or something. Before Punk Goes Pop was even a thing though, Fat Mike had something better in mind with Me First and the Gimmie Gimmies.
While any of the band's material could fit on here, Have a Ball was the proof of concept that this wacky take on classic pop songs could work. For the most part, these are just the kind of pop songs that you know and love to sing at karaoke, only with a punk flavor to the instrumentation this time around. This could easily have been a gimmick, and it pretty much is if not for the musicians at work here.
As much as Spike Slawson's delivery can be hit or miss with most people, you can tell that the guys are having fun putting their own spin on things, especially when the piano lines from a song like Uptown Girl are replaced with a wall of guitars. For these guys, this isn't just a cheap joke made to make a quick buck. This is just a subtle reminder of just how kickass some of these pop songs still are.