A couple of months ago, I was in an AT&T store on one of those errands that takes way, way longer than it should. While I was waiting for who knows what, a naggingly familiar song came over the store speakers, and it took me somewhere between 30 and 60 seconds to realize that I was hearing Sugar Ray's 1999 hit "Every Morning." That's not a song that I encounter very often these days — not like "Fly," anyway. I will eventually have to write about "Every Morning" for my Alternative Number Ones column, but I hadn't even thought about that song in forever, even though it was once absolutely omnipresent. Then I walked around with "Every Morning" stuck in my head for like six hours. It was rough. I wonder if Julia Jacklin had a similar experience, since I don't know how else to explain her decision to cover "Every Morning."
Sorry. That's not fair. It's not even true. Jacklin can explain her decision to cover "Every Morning" just fine for herself. She'll straight up just say, "I chose this song because I really like it." In fact, she did say that. Jacklin, the great Australian indie singer-songwriter, is allowed to like "Every Morning" if she wants. Australia's a free country right?
Jacklin will release her new album The Gem next month, and we've posted the singles "Get Away From Me (I Think I’ll Love You Soon)" and "I Wish." Both of those songs are a lot better than "Every Morning." Recently, Jacklin took part in her homeland radio network Triple J's Like A Version series, doing a dazed and slacker-y cover of "Every Morning" that sounds a lot more appealing than the original to me. In an accompanying video, Jacklin says, "I've liked it since I was a little kid, so it's been with me my whole life, in many ways. I love any opportunity to connect with my younger self as much as I can. So I feel like we were singing it together — me, now, and her, back then."
That's really sweet! It checks out, too. "Every Morning" was a #17 pop hit in Australia, and Jacklin would've been eight years old when it came out. Jacklin goes on, "I have always enjoyed how spirited this song sounds, and I just kinda like how it feels like it starts at 100% and it stays there. I dunno, this song just makes me feel grateful to be alive. It makes me feel connected to the source of life." Can't relate to that, but good for her! She also talked about her long history with Like A Version, appearing in a previous edition and then seeing other people cover her songs.
Below, watch Jacklin cover and talk about "Every Morning" — and, if you really want to do that to yourself, revisit the original Sugar Ray video.
The Gem is out 9/25 on 4AD.
