Who Did It Better? You're My Favorite Waste Of Time

Who Did It Better?

You're My Favorite Waste Of Time

For this week's Who Did It Better? selection, we have a song which started out as a home demo B-side but has gone on to become one of a certain singer/songwriter's most widely recorded songs - and not always to his liking! Though it only became a huge hit in the UK, it did help win its writer quite a bit of credibility and helped change the musical direction of a certain American diva. 

So, hardly a waste of time.

You're My Favorite Waste Of Time was written by Marshall Crenshaw. The song was written in 1979, while he was appearing Off Broadway as John Lennon in the Beatles tribute Beatlemania. Inspired by the Hollies, it features tongue-in-cheek lyrics concerning his wife. 

It was one of Crenshaw's first attempts at songwriting and he recorded it first in his NYC apartment studio, playing all the instruments himself. When it first appeared as the B-side to his signature 1982 hit, Someday, Someway, it was credited as being played by The Handsome, Ruthless and Stupid Band, but, nope... that's all him. Given that, the sound on the original version is very much that of a home demo, featuring what one critic dubbed: "a curious tempo and an eerie vocal harmony... a little out of kilter, with distinctive keyboard notes, and a lovely stumbling finish." It's rough, but not without its charms, which is probably why Crenshaw never went into a studio and produced a more polished version. 

As is, it can be found on two of his compilation albums: 1998's The 9 Volt Years and 2000's This Is Easy: The Best of Marshall Crenshaw.

1983 found Bette Midler returning to the studio to record her sixth album - her first studio album in four years. She'd been busy launching a film career, appearing in The Rose, the concert film, Divine Madness!, and Jinxed!. Given the commercial disappoint of her prior studio album, 1979's disco-infused Thighs And Whispers, the folks at Atlantic Records were pushing for a change in musical direction. The results? Her arty, stylistically adventuresome No Frills album - an inspired piece of work which, while it did little to alter her commercial fortunes, did alter her musical landscape forever and has since become a fan favorite. With plenty of rock and new wave influences, it was produced by Chuck Plotkin, best known for his work with Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen.

Midler’s gave You're My Favorite Waste Of Time it’s major exposure to American audiences. Released as the second single from the album, her version reached #78 on the Billboard Hot 100. You'd think those additional song royalties would have pleased Crenshaw, but upon hearing it, he was rather dismissive, saying: "I guess there must have been something in it that struck her as funny - that appealed to her sense of humor perhaps, whatever that is."

The Bellamy Brothers, who had enjoyed a #1 hit with their very first charting single, 1976's Let Your Love Flow, recorded a version for their 1985 album, Howard and David. It was their tenth studio album. By that point in their career, the duo had been thoroughly embraced by the country music crowd. Released via MCA and Curb Records, the album spun off a trio of #2 Country hits: Old Hippie, Feelin' The Feelin' and Lie To You For Your Love - with the album itself going Top Ten.

Scottish singer Owen Paul’s approach was a much more dance-pop affair. It made the UK top ten in 1986. Released on May 19, 1986 it climbed to the #3 spot in Britain. In addition, it managed to hit #4 in Ireland, #8 in Belgium and the Netherlands, #20 in Austria, #21 in Germany, and #23 in Australia. It helped earn Paul the status of a  one-hit wonder, as it would be his only charting hit.

 

Referring to the Paul's version, Crenshaw said that "a guy in Britain picked up on [Midler's] version of it and had his own smash hit, which still gets played on the radio all the time in Europe." Which is great - because that means larger royalty checks for Crenshaw. But, like Elvis Costello before him, some songwriters aren't always flattered. In an interview at the time, Crenshaw was critical of Paul's version, saying: "I can't listen to even twenty seconds of that record at all."

More to Crenshaw's liking? Ronnie Spector's take on it. In 2003, the former Ronette's lead singer recorded an EP's worth of  Crenshaw's songs titled Something’s Gonna Happen. How do we know he approved? Crenshaw himself plays on her version of You're My Favorite Waste Of Time.

Note: in addition, the song has been covered in a variety of styles by numerous other acts including: Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoff, Freedy Johnston, Johnny Logan, The Drowners, et. al. So, like it or not, Crenshaw has a bit of a time-honored classic; something his bank account most certainly approves of!

And that's the whole story.

Now? On to the competition!

The Song: You're My Favorite Waste Of Time

The Competitors: Crenshaw vs. Midler vs. The Bellamy Brothers vs. Paul vs. Spector

You're My Favorite Waste Of Time - Marshall Crenshaw

You're My Favorite Waste Of Time - Bette Midler

You're My Favorite Waste Of Time - The Bellamy Brothers

You're My Favorite Waste Of Time - Owen Paul

You're My Favorite Waste Of Time - Ronnie Spector

Marshall Crenshaw

The weird beginning is so we know it's a home demo. The drum kick-off is a riot. Sounds like he's hitting a big plastic barrel. Very Mersey Beat. Very D.I.Y. Fun. Crenshaw is a great vocalist. Clean, crisp. The vocals are the most polished part of this. His voice has a perfect pop edge to them. 

Very messy transition into verse one. Given that he was playing John Lennon Off-Broadway, no big surprise that this sounds very much like the very early Beatles. 

The arrangement is very chunky, a bit too thick, and very messy. That the vocals manage to float above the din? An amazing feat. 

What a great chorus. This song? Extremely slight. It's a breeze to play on the piano, as there is so little to it. But simplicity doesn't mean necessarily translate as  'less than'. It's a charming trifle with just enough edge to it to give it cred. 

Some kind of keyboard in there, I can't tell exactly what it is, but it offers up a nice bit of counter-melody during the verses. 

It's the static that's so off-putting. The aural debris floating around the recording. It's unfortunate, but it also lends a great deal of authenticity and liveliness to the proceedings. 

That guitar line is awesome. And sounds hot. Nice and thick. Typically, home recordings, on the whole, come off quite thin - but this is so not your typical home recording. 

Wraps up before the 3:00 mark. Still, given that? I would have shaved an additional 16 seconds off that ending. 

Incredibly fun. 

Bette Midler

I can't tell you how much I adore Mr. Crenshaw. He's a total talent. Can play like a dream, has great vocal chops, and wears his influences on his sleeve perfectly - paying homage without plagiarizing. 

So, it should also not surprise you how very disappointed I was to learn about his comments regarding other artists recording this particular song. It's that Elvis Costello thing. Elvis got over it, so I wonder if Crenshaw did as well. Biting the hand that feeds you? Truly stupid. 

In addition... I can't tell you how much I adore the album Bette Midler's version of this song came from. No Frills was a career changer and so refreshing. Post-disco, musically, Midler was at a bit of a loss. She'd tried on so many musical hats since the birth of her singing career, she'd failed to hone any type of identity. So for her to take on this batch of edgier tunes was super refreshing and though it failed to stem her commercial decline, it raised her image and got her a bit of that MTV heat everyone else was benefitting from.

This is one of the best tracks on the album.

Stellar lead-off acapella vocals. Lots of reverb. Pitch perfect with a great 'smile' built in. Happy Bette is the best Bette. 

The band is kept way in tow. I would have let that electric guitar bite just a bit more. She sounds great. Love the energy. 

Love the big strum of the guitar. And Midler is singing as if she's learning a new language, which, I think she is... this type of pop material was very new to her. For contrast, go listen to her previous studio album, 1979's Thighs And Whispers. This? This is a very different singer.  It could have something to do with her tenure as The Rose and the effect playing a Janis Joplin-esque singer had on her subsequent music tour. That transition is all captured in the concert film, Divine Madness. Needless to say, it helped sharpen her pop razor.

This sounds like an updated girl group number. 

It definitely pulses, without being propelled. It's the combination of the arrangement and the tempo. It creates a strange sense of drag, as in lag-time. Yet, Midler sounds effervescent enough to carry on, regardless. Yet, this ends up not quite the whip-smart pop it could have been. 

I don't care for the sound of the guitar solo. It's muddled. Not as fresh and crisp as Crenshaw's. Too bad. I blame the production work. This is a bit too slick, a bit too smoothed-over. I want snap and crackle. I want liveliness. 

Love the 'ooh's' that bring us back to the chorus. And she wisely brings it in at 2:39. 

Great job.

The Bellamy Brothers

Great vocals. Very country, mature, gruff. 

The drum kit sounds cheap. 

Love the acoustic piano on the counter-melody. But again, production sounds cheap and thin. 

I like what the electric guitar is doing on the verses. Working almost like castanets. 

This is a little too straightforward for my taste. Very similar to the cheap-ass version I play in one of my sets. Trouble is, the energy is too low to catch fire. That might be the fault of the tempo, or simply a choice the performers are making. Laidback country? Meh. I like it to kick ass.

That instrumental break is cheesy. 

"And a bell's gonna ring..." Really? I don't think so, dears. You barely have a pulse there.

I like the play-off. Very odd. I never heard that in there.

Great song. So-so version. Suffers from inertia. 

Owen Paul

What a lot of noise. I dislike that tropical/reggae-lite vibe. UB40 did similar stuff. It always smacked of inauthenticity and pandering. Cultural appropriation? Actually, I might not have minded but it always sounded so soul-less.

The mix is gawd awful. His vocals are all over the place, too. It's like his voice has no bottom. Well, it doesn't help that it's competing with all the disembodied ephemera. 

A bit chunkier on the chorus and it's growing on me. He possesses a bit of David Cassidy's appeal, but Cassidy has a more apparent personality.  

Huh. Goes off-scrip at the 1:20 mark. I suppose, trying to stretch it out. This does go on for almost three and a half minutes. Well, if you're going to add something, then make it meaningful. This sounds lifted from a Tears For Fears song. 

The only thing more horrifying? That guitar and sax break. Ugh.

This is the noisiest bit of claptrap. How did they make this so annoying? I guess I can see why Crenshaw hates this version. I'm beginning to feel the same.

And he adds his own verse? Well. The gall. (Confession: I do a Buddy Holly song with an extra verse - at least I think it's extra... either I wrote it or I am unaware of its existence, but I have never heard it anywhere else that I know of. If anyone ever calls me on it, I will just say "I don't know.")

Well, if The Bellamy Brothers phoned it in, this one squeezes out "and the bell's gonna ring..." as if he's just creamed his jeans. Not attractive.

Is there a bass guitar? Is there?

I like the drop out... I simply wish the whole thing would. Period.

Oh, it's fun to hate the things others hate. 

And starting at the 2:50 mark things go from bad to worse, as the producers simply start throwing things into the studio - things like folding chairs, anvils and ceiling fans. What utter garbage.

Oh, sorry. It's not any of those things. It's Mr. Owens doing an improved backing vocal run. It sounds like someone turned on a blender with nails in it. 

And the whacky sax makes a comeback. Ugh.

No. 

Bad dog.

 

Ronnie Spector 

HUGE drum lead-off. Nice. 

And we are right into it. Very similar to Midler's girl-group take on it, a natural fit for Spector. 

But, where Midler has the vocal dexterity and actor's chops to play coy and sly, Spector has that troubling vibrato, which limit her.  On the plus side, she has those vocal breaks which add a dimension of toughness and rasp to things. 

Is it me? Or does this not sound a great deal like Midler's version? Considering Crenshaw himself is the mastermind behind this recording, hard to believe he was so snarky about Midler's take on the song, given how much he's borrowing here. 

This makes me think that had Crenshaw gone into an actual studio and re-recorded this, it would have sounded like this and been at least a modest chart hit. What a shame. What prevented him? Ego?

I like the rhythm section on this a lot. I also think the guitar work it top notch. The mix is thick and just a bit murky, but it works. 

What a great recording. Until she adds her a bit of her signature oh-oh-oh-oh. Hmm. Unnecessary. 

We know who you are, dear.

The Verdict

What a fun song. It's always stayed with me, from the moment I first heard it.

After listening to Spector's version, I had to go back and listen to Midler again.

I think the original demo is a lot of fun. I adore D.I.Y. But it's not the best version. It's too messy. Too much static. Charming as it is, it doesn't do the song the full pop justice. Crenshaw is in pristine form, but the mix is simply too muddy. Best guitar solo, though.

I am going to pass on both The Bellamy Brothers' and Mr. Owen's versions.

The Bellamy Brothers seem to almost sleepwalk through it, they bring so little to the table. Also, the production (Curb Records!) sounds horribly cheap and thin. It's so straightforward it might as well be any bar band in any town. 

As for Mr. Owens. He's not much of a vocalist, to be honest. No color to his voice. The few times he attempts to change things up he ends up shrill or silly sounding. The arrangement is absolute garbage. And all those added bits/lyrics/verses... for shame! I can see why Crenshaw can't get through listening to it. And it was a hit? Well... he is sort of cute in a generic pop star way, but other than that? Maybe it is simply a product of its time.

Spector's version is great. If Ronnie was vocally in better shape and refrained from reminding us of her past glories via the "oh-oh-oh's" (seriously, every song does not need that, Ronnie), I might have been more torn. She sound good. It's exactly what you would expect if you were expecting to hear Spector sing this song. And Crenshaw's guitar work is stellar. But... it's all incredibly similar to Midler's girl group vibe. 

So? Why not go with the original? And by that, I mean, Midler's version. Yes, I take exception to some of the production work, the mix and that guitar solo, but... Midler is a joy to hear. She's having fun and does the song justice. Equal parts sly and coy, it's like I said earlier in this post... happy Bette is the best Bette.

So, for me, it's Midler time. 

And that? Is never a waste.

--- ---

And that's enough of me.

Okay, your turn. You know what to do: leave your choice and thoughts in the comments section. I always welcome a differing opinion.

That's all for now.

Until next time...

Thanks for reading... and listening!

You're My Favorite Waste Of Time - Bette Midler

You're My Favorite Waste Of Time - Owen Paul