In an era where sampling is all the rage, there are few better compliments than a song’s original artist endorsing its remakers.
Such was the fortune of R&B trio Stooshe, who saw the surviving members of TLC -T-Boz and Chilli-feature in their freshly released video for ‘Waterfalls’.
The retooled version of the 1995 classic serves as the latest cut to be lifted from the British belle’s self-titled debut which arrives via Warner/Atlantic on November 12th.
Peep the video for ‘Waterfalls’ below…
Hmm.
As much as we enjoy Stooshe and love us some TLC, we’re not sure this was the best choice to follow-up the group’s recent chart-smash ‘Black Heart’. And for a number of reasons too.
For many an 80’s and 90’s kid (a sizeable chunk of Stooshe’s target audience), ‘Waterfalls’ is still as fresh as the day it was released; which in the grand scheme of things, wasn’t actually that long ago. Hence, in daring to cover such a contemporary yet iconic track, it’d have benefitted all involved if the ladies had delivered something more than a watered-down karaoke version. Indeed, their incarnation could have done with all-new adlibs, tweaked verses, and/or a different rap.
Instead, they’ve delivered a solid, yet Glee-like take on the song. A problem given that the original (and moreover TLC as a trio) worked primarily due to the meshing of unique and individual elements.
Still, in belonging to the 80’s born/90’s raised club, we’d always be a little susceptible to being extra nit-picky with such a cover. Viewed this way, we can’t but give kudos to both Stooshe and TLC for bringing such an important track to the new generation.