I don’t know about you guys, but the combination of the In-Bev/SAB Miller merger and that Grubstreet article about the End of Craft Beer have kinda bummed me out. I feel like I’ve really just started to be more of an active participant in the craft beer world. I even broke my Festival seal last month (hence the picture above from the MI Brewers Guild Detroit Fall Beer Festival) and now the sky is falling.

I retreated into music to deal with it and landed on one of my favorite songs, Bonnie Raitt’s version of “Angel from Montgomery”. It took 3 or 4 artists to re-record and rehash John Pine’s original song before it finally hit with audiences in a major way. By the time it got to Bonnie Raitt, whose voice has always carried the baggage of roads long traveled and love lost, the lyrics, the musicians, and the voice was perfect. I realized craft beer, whatever we may call it in the future with market changes, will always exist and always push forward.

For the most part, Covers aren’t doing much new as their song is already established, just like the basics of beer recipes. But every musician has a different take on how to hit a note, or what instruments should have been included in the original. Each time a new band covers an old song, especially if it wasn’t popular in the first place, it reaches a new audience who themselves get inspired to start playing music and tinkering with the music of their heroes. It seems to me a pretty good and blatant analogy to the craft beer world and how so many brewers look to their predecessors, recent and ancient, as idols to admire while still trying to inject a new flavor, ingredient, or even just a new appreciation for those brewer’s styles.

I tried to keep this collection of covers mellow and cozy to fit with the weather, but there’s still a few pops and sizzles to keep you awake. Antony & The Johnsons take the high-energy “Crazy in Love” towards Wuthering-Heights depths of Gothic romance. Robyn turns “Jack You Off” into a schoolyard chant teasing you for thinking you even had a chance with her. Most amazingly, Glen Hansard’s version of “Everytime” makes you rethink the emotional depth of Britney Spears ( who was a substantial songwriter for the piece). You can still see a spark of the musicians reaching out to the people who gave these songs in gratitude.Hopefully the Craft beer world can take a cue from these artists and stay true to the underlining goal of bringing their voice (through taste) to the world.

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