My take on the haunting Bruce Springsteen song "Youngstown", which he once introduced as a song about "losing everything you have if you've played by all the rules" in a live performance on the Letterman show in 1995 (in what I still consider to be one of the most eloquent and succinct song introductions ever!).

Youngstown (Cover)

My take on "Genghis Khan", by the very talented Miike Snow. One of the most tenacious and enjoyable earworms I've had in a long time.

Sounds Like 2017

Genghis Khan (Miike Snow Cover)

My Sounds Like 2017 song of the month for September is "Life in Technicolor ii" by Coldplay. Love the song, love the music video. Enjoy!

Life in Technicolor ii (Coldplay Cover)

One of my favourite songs from the only semi-fictitious band, The Folksmen, of A Mighty Wind fame. This is my take on "Never Did No Wanderin'".

Never Did No Wanderin' (The Folksmen Cover)

My cover of Phantom Planet's "California", best known as the theme song to "The O.C.". This show was one of my guilty pleasures of high school, making this a very fun and nostalgic one to revisit!

Sounds Like 2018

California (Phantom Planet Cover)

My Sounds Like 2018 cover of "Mountain Sound" by Of Monsters and Men for April.

Mountain Sound (Of Monsters and Men Cover)

My Sounds Like 2018 cover for May of Twin Forks's very fun and very catchy "Cross My Mind".

Cross My Mind (Twin Forks Cover)

My Sounds Like 2018 cover for July is a bit of a nostalgia trip back to the 90s track "Closing Time" by Semisonic.

Closing Time (Semisonic Cover)

My Sounds Like 2018 cover for August is Mary Chapin Carpenter's "He Thinks He'll Keep Her", named from a horrible 1970s television commercial in which a husband observes how much his wife gets done around the house and decides "I think I'll keep her"...

He Thinks He'll Keep Her (Mary Chapin Carpenter Cover)

My Sounds Like 2018 cover for September, Blue Rodeo's wonderfully atmospheric and evocative "5 Days in May".

5 Days in May (Blue Rodeo Cover)

My Sounds Like 2018 cover for October is Andrew Duhon's beautiful tune, "The Moorings". Verses inspired by the traditional Scottish folk song, "Loch Lomond".

The Moorings (Andrew Duhon Cover)

This month's cover is my take on The Tallest Man on Earth's "The Gardener". Enjoy!

The Gardener (The Tallest Man on Earth Cover)

My final Sounds Like cover for 2018! This is my version of the traditional tune "Eight of January". Also known as "The Battle of New Orleans", the words to this old tune were later added by Jimmy Driftwood in 1958.  Enjoy!

Eighth of January (Traditional Cover)

"Songs from 111" will be a new playlist series born of an overabundance of time having to be spent in the apartment! The first track is going to be my cover of a favourite Gordon Lightfoot tune "Steel Rail Blues". Hope you enjoy!

Songs from 111

01 - Steel Rail Blues (Gordon Lightfoot Cover)

The second Song from 111 is actually one of the very first tunes I ever played with a band many years back, the haunting and evocative "The Wild Hunt" by the Tallest Man on Earth. Enjoy!

02 - The Wild Hunt (The Tallest Man on Earth Cover)

The third Song from 111 is Townes Van Zandt's iconic "Pancho and Lefty", the tragic tale of the death of a bandit and the guilt of the man who sold him out.

03 - Pancho And Lefty (Townes Van Zandt Cover)

The fourth song in this cover series comes from a band I was pointed towards recently, the immensely talented West My Friend. I immediately thought "Build a Bed" was such a beautiful and sweet song, and for very happy reasons it has really resonated with me as of late and taken on a lot of personal meaning. I hope you enjoy the cover and be sure to check out West My Friend if you haven't yet had the pleasure!

04 - Build a Bed (West My Friend Cover)

I am a Toronto-based singer-songwriter and a member of Wilson & The Cast Aways. I draw my influences primarily from traditional and contemporary folk and the Great Outdoors. I will rarely say 'no' to trying a new instrument and I love trying to make stories and song out of the world I see around me. I hope you enjoy!

michael.mctavish.music

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