Image Credit: Shirlaine Forrest/WireImage.comStanding in front of the leader of the free world and perhaps the greatest living pop icon in the world, performing one of said icon’s own songs? NBD, dudes.
It’s been a long road for Mr. Jack White from Hotel Yorba to the White House, but the White Stripes frontman/Raconteur/Dead Weather-er/hair artiste keeps his wits about him—while seeming appropriately subdued—in a performance of the 1968 Lennon/MccCartney ballad “Mother Nature’s Son,” from the upcoming Paul McCartney Gershwin Prize special, set to air on PBS July 28.
The show will feature Paul himself, as well as Stevie Wonder, Elvis Costello, Dave Grohl, Emmylou Harris, Herbie Hancock and … the Jonas Brothers. (Malia and Sasha, your vote has been counted).
See White’s solo acoustic performance—to a head-nodding, toe-tapping ‘Bama and Macca—below:
What do you think, readers—the right choice for the players, and the circumstances? Any other Beatles (or perhaps Wings!) song you would have liked to see White take on?
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This guy could sneeze on a CD and I’d buy it…
amen
Rock on Jack..My favorites, two of my favorites, the Beatles and the White Stripes. Jack is an amazing and refreshing musician.
I loved the White Stripes for a long time, but why is it only now I’ve realized how much Jack White looks like Wormtongue from Lord of the Rings?
I’m glad to see Paul getting all these honors while he’s still alive to appreciate them.
He’s a true legend.
Wow, what a beautiful cover. Listening to that lovely take, I’ll say the song choice was perfect. Can’t even think of another “White Album” tune I’d have rather heard.
Beautiful song. Beautiful cover.
If Bush was having rock stars over to party while the economy was in the crapper, two wars were being fought, a massive oil spill was killing small business and threatening coastlines, the federal government was involved in a baseless lawsuit against a state trying to defend itself, and decries of racism were being nonchalantly thrown about for political gain, I think the comments above would be more scathing than “beautiful song.”
Oh yes, please turn this into a political conversation. That’s what we really want when we come to EW.com.
f you, meh. it is going going to take our nation years upon years to even BEGIN to repair the damage that man inflicted. thank god we HAVE music in times like these and people who realize that it’s not just money that makes the world go round. it’s love and art and music and humanity. peace x
you are aware that the musicians were not paid for this, right? and that george bush did plenty of entertaining, mostly from his ranch in texas? (or is a two-day bike trip with lance armstrong morally different than a night honoring arts?)
nicely done. Sometimes Jack works a little bit too much against the melody for me, but this song is well suited to his strengths and musical focus.
Luckily, most of us can appreciate music for what it is and leave politics out of it. Pity those who can’t.
Jack White is the best thing going in the modern music scene.
TRUTH
Well done and all but he should have done his Paul-esque – We’re going to be friends. He’s more Paul in that song than singing a Paul tune. Oh well.
Jack did good. Really good.
Jack chose the perfect song and it was a lovely rendition to honor Paul. I thought he did a fantastic job – I wonder what Paul thought of Jack’s performance?
BRAVO
That was so freaking awesome! I love Jack White!
I loved it and it has introduced me to Jack White, whom I did not know before last night. I was truly impressed. Plays like Page, sings like Plant! I would also love to hear Jack do Paul’s ‘Waterfalls’.
“Mother Nature’s Son” was a perfect choice of song here. It was also a nice touch turning it into a medley with “That Would Be Something.” I love how serious he seems here, and how deep his emotions seem to run. It speaks volumes about his sense of the historic that Jack White chose not to play rock god superstar here, but rather chose this lovely, simple, soulful song, a more modest and even humble choice. Dave Grohl was entertaining and talented and fun, as were the other performers. But Jack White seems to me to take it to a deeper and more touching level. As if there’s some added gravity there, some heavier sod for the soul to dig into. People often say that everything Jack White touches turns to gold; not so much in the monetary sense, but more in the sense of quality or authenticity — gold as in the real thing. But it’s not just a surface sheen, it’s more like he’s tapping into the mother lode of something golden, the veins of deep feeling that have sustained the soul with the nurturing power of music through the ages. Drawing from the taproot of music as an essential, emotive force of nature. Like mother nature’s son.