Rate-O-Rama: Feeling Good

Rate-O-Rama : Songmania is a reader participation game.

About once a week I will publish a Rate-O-Rama article which will feature two or three versions of a popular song.

The object is to listen to each of the music videos provided within the post.

After listening to each video you can rate each song in the comments section below.

(You must be a member to comment. If you are not a member you can join Vocal Media for FREE. You don’t ever have to pay for membership unless you choose to upgrade your membership)

The rating method is easy. Simply give each song a rating of 1 to 100.

(The more you like the song the higher the rating).

If possible, please provide a brief comment explaining the reasoning behind your ratings for each song.

After a week or so I will tally the ratings and in the next Rate-O-Rama post I will announce the winner from the previous post.

The winners will be determined on a scale of averages.

If you wish to receive a notice when the next Songmania post is published please mention that you would like a notification in the comments section.

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Last week we featured the classic song "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling" as recorded by The Righteous Brothers (1964), The Human League (1979), and Daryl Hall and John Oates (1980).

The following are the average rating for each song:

The Righteous Brothers = 93.1

Hall and Oates = 84.9

The Human League = 77.1

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The Second Edition of Rate-O-Rama features three renditions of the classic song: "Feeling Good."

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Nina Simone (1965)

Singer, songwriter, pianist, and civil rights activist Nina Simone recorded the song "Feeling Good" for her classic jazz and blues album I Put a Spell on You. The song was written by Anthony Newly and Leslie Briscusse for the musical The Roar of the Greasepaint - The Smell of the Crowd which debuted in 1964.

Although Simone recorded the song in 1965 it wasn't released as a single until 1994 when it was used in a British TV commercial for jj40 in the UK and #63 in France.

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Michael Buble (2005)

"Feeling Good" is the lead single from Michael Buble's mega-successful 2005 album It's Time. Though Buble's rendition is well known it did not chart in the US or Canada. It was a semi-hit in Europe. It's highest positions were #36 in Germany and #12 in Poland.

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Avicii (featuring Audra Mae)(2015)

The original instrumental track to Nina Simone's "Feeling Good" was used in this rendition by Swedish musician/producer Avicii. Avicii embellished the song with electronic percussive rhythms and enhanced keyboard parts. The song was used by Volvo to promote their image and cars. The video for the Volvo commercial features Tim Berling who is professionally known as Avicii.

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My Thoughts

I am torn here as all three renditions are exceptional. I'm stuck between Nina Simone and Michael Bublé. I am going back to YouTube and listening to both renditions and then figure out my ratings.

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I give Nina Simone a 100. Her deep textured voice and the scat at the end alone deserve the 100. Add the somber brass section and tinkling piano and you have an undeniable classic of all-time.

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Michael Bublé gets a 99. The jazz horns are out of this world and the arrangement is big and dynamic. Michael Bublé was born to sing this song, it fits his voice perfectly.

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I am giving Avicii a score of 91 mostly because the music track is Nina Simone's original track with some musical embellishments and a different lead vocal. However Audra Mae gave us a spectacular reading of the song.

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I will be back next week with the results of this Rate-O-Rama Edition.

Last Week's Rate-O-Rama:

With Love, RHC