Vanessa Carlton

Vanessa Carlton Releases Cover Five of Six: Elliot Smith’s “Needle In The Hay”

“Vanessa Carlton is a formidable artist.” – Variety

“Carlton’s version is as gentle as the original, with ephemeral harmonies that layer a gauzy romanticism over Carlton’s starry-eyed vocals.” – Consequence of Sound

“Vanessa Carlton keeps slaying the cover game with a gorgeous take on Fleetwood Mac” – Fuse

“The artist behind the track that has inspired an endless list of pop culture references has covered a song as coverable as her own: Robyn’s ‘Call Your Girlfriend.’” – Stereogum

“Vanessa Carlton has refined her voice as a songwriter.” – Rolling Stone

“Carlton’s voice is the key attraction on songs that register between low-key pop, rock, and folk.” – Pitchfork

“…she’s back, she’s dreamy, there’s some sort of arty thing going on here, she’s moved to Nashville, had a baby girl with Deer Tick’s John McCauley, and simply sounds better than ever.” – Yahoo

Nashville, TN – July 20, 2018 – Vanessa Carlton unveils the fifth of six cover songs that she plans to release over the coming months with a cover of Elliott Smith’s “Needle in the Hay,” which she premiered on Variety yesterday. The video directed by Patrick McPheron, showcases what Variety calls a “haunting cover,” and compliments the song’s ethereal qualities with an eclectic montage of archival footage including couples dancing, a cross, a city skyline, waves crashing to shore, and flashing lights. PRESS HERE to watch and to purchase.

This is one of my favorite songs period. Elliott was a great poet and the metaphors in this lyric split me open.  This song is a juxtaposition because the song is about excruciating pain and the brutal moments of an addiction spiral and yet it’s formed in this drone-y meditative manner. Such restraint makes the listener have to move in closer.  And then it breaks you.  I hope I did him justice.  He deserves the best. – Vanessa Carlton

Carlton began her cover song series with her cover of Robyn’s “Call Your Girlfriend” (PRESS HERE) followed by Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams” (PRESS HERE), Neil Young’s “Only Love Will Break Your Heart” (PRESS HERE) and most recently Karen Dalton’s “Little Bit of Rain” (PRESS HERE).

Fans first were first given a taste of Carlton’s musical evolution when she released the critically-acclaimed studio album Liberman in 2015 via Dine Alone. The ten songs on the album reflected on Vanessa’s current state of mind since moving from NYC to Nashville, marrying husband John McCauley (Deer Tick) and having a baby girl.  The simple instrumentation mixed with her wistful vocals and poignant lyrics brought you into her world and showcased a new side to this accomplished songwriter.

Stay tuned for more music from Vanessa Carlton. In the meantime, please visit vanessacarlton.com for more information.