Wendy James, ex-vocalist for Transvision Vamp, has recorded a double single with the Stooges' James Williamson and the Bad Seeds' Jim Sclavunos. The A-side is a cover of "You're So Great" (originally by Sonic's Rendezvous Band) and is backed with a cover of Bob Dylan's "It's Alright Ma." The songs are a taste of what's to come from James' new solo album, which is currently in the works.
James decided to cover Sonic's Rendezvous Band because she's been a big fan of the Stooges and Fred 'Sonic' Smith for years:
"I got my chops singing hard and fast pop songs with Transvision Vamp, and when I heard "You're So Great," it viscerally hit me that Fred 'Sonic' Smith had written the complete essence of what I was good at. I stored the song in the back of my mind, and waited for the right moment to record it. When I met James Williamson the dots connected and we decided instantly to go and do this together... he represents Detroit and Ann Arbor, no-one captures the guitar sound of Michigan like James Williamson does. It's obvious. It was just a question of who was going to shout '1,2,3,4.....'"
A release date for the double single will be announced shortly. In the meantime, both songs are available to stream - "You're So Great" is posted here and "It's Alright Ma" is streaming here.
The original version of "You're So Great" by Sonic's Rendezvous Band is posted below: