Everyone and his dog are sick of the tepid trash that is Simon Cowell’s Haiti-relief single. Though the sentiment is good, the song… less so.
So you’ll no doubt be happy to here that Shane MacGowan has pulled together a few more-than-impressive friends to record an alternative charity record; a cover of Screamin’ Hay Hawkins’ 1956 classic I Put A Spell on You.
Recorded in Battersea, London on January 29th, the track features the talents of: The Clash guitarist Mick Jones, Sex Pistols bassist Glen Matlock, Bobby Gillespie of Primal Scream and The Pretenders’ Chrissie Hynde. Johnny Depp contributed on guitar, with Paloma Faith providing vocals.
Asked if there were too many charity records out there these days, Jones’ replied “I don’t think there can ever be enough in the same way that you can’t have too many guitarists!”
I Put A Spell on You is already available and – if you’re not sure you’re able to handle something that’s not exactly mainstream – check out a video on Concern Worldwide’s website.
On a related note, Welsh punks John Q Public are donating proceeds of their new EP, Voices of Refusal, to the Haiti aid efforts.