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Any artist making music has a wide array of influences from both in and outside of whatever genre they usually play. This is a given, but it can still be a surprise when those artists choose to cover a song that seems so far out of their comfort zone, even if that song had a big impact on the music they create. I try and keep in mind the many influences that tend to go into a song, even if they aren’t at the forefront, so I’m not usually all that surprised when a band or artist decides to cover something a little different.

However, this is something else. A bunch of the biggest artists in the world have covered the classic song “Daisy Bell (Bicycle Built for Two),” first written in 1892. In this case, the song presumably didn’t influence any of their music in a major way. Instead, these covers are all for a compilation CD called The Gay Nineties Old Tyme Music: Daisy Bell. Only 999 copies of the album will be made, each costing $99, but the proceeds will go to the charity Little Kids Rock, so it’s all for a good cause.

When I first heard about this album I scoffed at the idea, but I have to admit I’m intrigued. Some big artists are taking part in this, and from many different styles of music. Kirk Hammett, famous for playing the wah pedal (which is attached to a guitar I guess) for Metallica and rapper Tyler the Creator are perhaps the most out-there performers, while Nick Cave and Weird Al, despite being polar opposites, both seem somehow like obvious inclusions.

The album has been put together by Mark Ryden who’s designed some iconic album artwork in his career, and manages to give each of these short music videos a sufficiently creepy vibe. Many of the artists involved seem to be putting a creepier spin on the song, particularly Kirk Hammett, whose version recalls the moment in 2001: A Space Odyssey where HAL 9000 sings the song, and Tyler the Creator who outright references the iconic scene.

While most of the artists are putting a creepy spin on the song, what surprised me is that they all seem to treat it with some respect. I expected Tyler to awkwardly convert the song into a rap, but instead he gives a demented version he gives that still remains true to the original. It would have been all too easy for Hammett to do a dumb, speed metal version as I expected him to do, and I’m sure most metal guitarists would. Instead he takes inspiration not only from 2001, but from horror movie soundtracks (Hammett is a huge horror buff and has written a book all about his massive collection of horror memorabilia). It manages to be different from anything he’s ever done. Considering I usually find him boring and samey as a guitarist, it was a real pleasant surprise.

Meanwhile Nick Cave’s version sounds exactly like what you would expect Nick Cave covering Daisy Bell to sound like. You can see this as a good or a bad thing, personally I felt it was a little underwhelming. It’s a fine cover, but next to Hammett’s it just sounds very plain. Still, it’s pleasant to listen to, and considering what low expectations I had when I first heard of this project, I’d call it pretty successful.

Head over to Billboard to hear some more of the covers featured on the album, including versions by Katy Perry, Weird Al, Mark Mothersbaugh of Devo and Danny Elfman.