"TRAIN IN VAIN" ANNIE LENNOX (1995)

Inspired by Albumism, I’m doing my own version of Flying Solo with individual tracks. Band breakups and hiatuses are never fun, but these solo jams were defining moments in my life’s soundtrack.

Medusa was quite a departure for Annie Lennox on two levels. First, it was her first full length recording dedicated only to cover songs. Second, her sound had significantly shifted at this point to a softer side devoid of any Eurythmics-era strands. The highlight for me was her cover of The Clash’s “Train in Vain”.

What makes this cover especially unique is that it’s a completely different interpretation of The Clash London Calling classic. Had she done it with the Eurythmics, I think the results would’ve been far less impressive. We would’ve had a remake that might not be too far off from the original. But by the time Medusa reared its head on the music world, Lennox had expanded her genre explorations, turning in a soulful, gospel-fueled “Train in Vain”.

“I see all my dreams come tumbling down.”