To celebrate The Current's 10th edition of Live Current, Minnesota Public Radio is releasing two albums, packaged together, Live Current Volume 10 and Live Current: Cover to Cover.

Live Current Volume 10 and Live Current Cover to Cover are available when you become a member of Minnesota Public Radio. Donate now and select Live Current Volume 10 as your thank you gift!

Live Current: Cover to Cover Tracklist

1. The Frames - "Astral Weeks" (2007)
   Van Morrison

The Frames perform live in The Current studios

1. Hot Chip - "Nothing Compares 2 U" / "In the Privacy of Our Love" (2008)
   Prince

Hot Chip perform live in The Current studios

I remember when Hot Chip came up. They were basically a dance band, you know, lots of synths and dance beats and everything's kind of a big electric sound. But when they come up to do this in-studio session it was an acoustic deal and I remember Alexis, the singer, played piano. And they did the cover of Prince, "Nothing Compares 2 U," and then they took off into their own "In the Privacy of Our Love." It was really kind of a cool juxtaposition of Prince's song into their own tune. — Bill DeVille, host, United State of Americana and Time Machine Tuesday

I think of the couple of times that Hot Chip has visited the Current studios and the last two times they were here, they used up every input on the entire board that we have in the Maud Moon Weyerhaeuser studio. They have used up every single one. So when Hot Chip did this cover of Prince, "Nothing Compares 2 U" along with their song, "In the Privacy of Our Love," it's definitely the more stripped down version of the band. So if you listen to everything that Hot Chip has done in The Current studios over the years, it's either really, really stripped down or it's totally maximalist, using up every instrument imaginable, and I like the contrast of what they've done in the Current studios. — Mac Wilson, host

The Hot Chip sessions at 89.3 The Current are legendary. They're famous as being the band that brings the most equipment into Studio M. And it takes them a long time to set up. And while they're doing that, they often tinker around and play snippets of songs. And we'd often heard them do covers of Prince tunes. And I asked them if they would like to meet Prince if they got chance. And they both laughed, as if, "Why would he want to meet us?" They kind of had that attitude. Well I'm not sure if he saw them live, but I hope he likes the cover of his song. — Mark Wheat, host

1. M. Ward - "Rave On" (2009)
   Buddy Holly

M. Ward performs live in The Current studios

1. Deer Tick - "Kiss Me on the Bus" (2012)
   The Replacements

Deer Tick perform live in The Current studios
I remember when Deer Tick came in the studio to do their session, and it was not early morning exactly, but it was "morningish," and they—we'll put it this way—were indulging in some cocktails. And they had just kind of rolled out of the bus, and they're a great rock band, you know, they're a solid, tight rock band. They didn't tell us beforehand that they were going to do a cover, a Replacements cover, and they started the song by playing, I think it was the introduction music to either the Wedding March, or was it the Olympics Theme, or something like the introduction to some really famous piece of music and then all of a sudden they launched into this sort of lurching, slightly drunken version of the Replacements' "Kiss Me on the Bus," and it was great. I've gone back and played it many times in the past because it was such a great version. Maybe it was their homage to the Replacements being, as they were known to be, maybe a band that indulged in a drink or two, but it's a great cover. — Mary Lucia, host

1. Divine Fits - "Shivers" (2013)
   Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds

Divine Fits perform live in The Current studios

1. Actual Wolf - "Mr. Tambourine Man" (2012)
   Bob Dylan

Actual Wolf performs live in The Current studios

I think I'd met the Wolf a few times before the session where he recorded this Bob Dylan cover. I'd seen him performing with Low and Retribution Gospel Choir, and most infamously at a late-night campfire sing-along on Spirit Mountain in '05 or '06. He stumbled up and forcefully hijacked a jam that a few Trampled by Turtles members were anchoring, crushing covers of songs by Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, and of course, Bob Dylan. Six years later, he rolls into The Current studios talking about getting busted and that experience giving birth to the two EPs he'd just released. On a whim, I asked if he had a Minnesota cover he'd like to perform for the web-only portion of the interview. He then proceeded to lay down a buttery version of Dylan's "Mr. Tambourine Man," that left all jaws in the immediate area on the floor. — David Campbell, host, The Local Show and Radio Free Current

1. Jake Bugg - "Cathy's Clown" (2014)
   The Everly Brothers

Jake Bugg performs live in the Forum

So I could hear the music at my cube, because the Forum is located right above my cube. So I knew that Jake Bugg was doing his sound check, and so I kind of quietly went into the Forum. And it wasn't part of his original set list, but he started just playing "Cathy's Clown" by the Everly Brothers. Which is perfect for his voice, because even without the harmony of the Everly Brothers, it's like he was able to pull it off so perfectly, and I don't know if that was just his warmup song or what. But we loved it so much and in the middle of the interview, you know, you can make artists do things, you can manipulate them a little more when you're in front of a live studio audience, and I think Mark Wheat took advantage of that. So he asked Jake Bugg if he would do that cover, "Cathy's Clown," he said yes and performed it. And I think the crowd loved it. Out of any of his original music, I think just that performance was the one that won everybody over. — Jill Riley, host, The Morning Show

The Jake Bugg session was recorded live in our UBS Forum, which is right above my desk at MPR headquarters. I could hear the songs that he was playing. And he went into a cover of one of my old favorites, "Cathy's Clown" from the Everly Brothers. When I got upstairs to do the session my producer told me that, unlike normal sessions, Jake refused to give us a list of the songs that he was going to play. It was early in the morning for him, as he said in the interview, and he just wanted to go with whatever felt right at the time. So, I took the opportunity at the end of the session to say, "Hey, I heard you sound checking 'Cathy's Clown', would you play that one for us? That's one of my all-time favorites." And he did. — Mark Wheat, host

1. The Decemberists - "Crazy on You" (2009)
   Heart

The Decemberists perform live at Rock the Garden

In 2009, The Decemberists headlined Rock the Garden. It was one of my favorite Rock the Gardens ever, and this is part of why: they were performing their album The Hazards of Love in its entirety. That was the show. And if you're familiar with The Hazards of Love, it's this sort of proggy, geeky rock opera. And it features two guest vocalists, a couple of diamonds: Becky Stark, who performs as Lavender Diamond, and Shara Worden, who performs on her own as My Brightest Diamond. They were doing the female parts. And then they ended the album, and I can't recall if they just continued, or if it was an encore, but there was this sort of still moment of everyone wondering, "What are they gonna do now? What are we gonna hear? Is it gonna be some Decemberists hits, or are they gonna throw us a curveball?" They threw a curveball. They launched into Heart's "Crazy On You," and it was one of the best covers I've ever heard of that song, and such an energetic moment for the show. And it was a wonderful excuse for Shara Worden to rock out, because that lady can seriously, seriously rock out. It was such a great way to end a fantastic show. The crowd went crazy, it was such a recognizable song. You wouldn't expect The Decemberists to do a Heart cover. — Jacquie Fuller, host, Teenage Kicks

1. The Big Pink - "Sweet Dreams" (2009)
   Beyonce

The Big Pink perform live in The Current studio

1. Tom Odell - "I Think It's Going to Rain Today" (2013)
   Randy Newman

Tom Odell performs live in The Current studio

When Tom Odell came to the Current studios in 2013, it was a very, very misty, rainy day. I found out that he was doing his Randy Newmann cover, "I Think It's Going to Rain Today" And I thought it was really perfect. Because when we're DJs on The Current, sometimes we play music that goes along with the weather. We'll play sunshiny songs for sunshiny days; we'll play rain songs for rain days, and at the same time, that's kind of a cliche, but this was so perfect that it was like the rainiest, most melancholy day, and then he plays this rainy, melancholy Randy Newmann song. So when you listen to this Tom Odell rendition of "I Think It's Going to Rain Today," you can close your eyes, and you can almost hear the rain on the windows, because that's the type of day that it really was in St. Paul when this was recorded. — Mac Wilson, host

Related

• First Listen: Live Current Volume 10