The Joy of the Cover Song

or: Five takes on Take Five

When I was a kid I was obsessed with Dave Brubeck. Not that I don’t live Brubeck now, but for some reason, I was hellbent on telling everybody—in early-1990s America—that my favorite musicians were the Beastie Boys, Billy Joel, Diana Ross and the Supremes and Dave Brubeck. I remember finding the Beasties through MTV and Diana Ross and the Supremes was r…