Richard Cheese – The Sunny Side Of The Moon: The Best of Richard Cheese (Surfdog/MRA)

“Okay here’ one for the ladies,’ offers the perennially smooth Richard Cheese before launching into an upbeat big band cabaret version of Nirvana’ Rape Me. The tempo’ all screwed, Kurt Cobain would be turning in his grave as Dick tears apart Cobain’ self involved grunge whining with cocktail bar shtick. He just doesn’ get it. All the anger has been replaced by insincere suave, the flannelette and op shop cardigan is now a leopard skin safari suit. The second track of the appropriately named Cheese’ Best Of is Slipknot’s People = S**t, which has him offhandly uttering the phrase c’mon motherfucker everybody has to die, and in doing so highlighting the extreme stupidity of the song. Removing songs like Radiohead’ Creep, Nine Inch Nails Closer, Offspring’ Come Out and Play, Motley Crue’ Girls Girls Girls, Pink Floyd’ Another Brick in the Wall or U2′ Sunday Bloody Sunday from their context is admittedly pretty damn funny. It’s great shtick, people have been covering each other’ songs forever, but Cheese is doing it with a big band wrecking ball, innocently desecrating these emotion-ridden tunes that mean so much to people. And although it’s all pretty much one joke. Its just lucky that it’s a funny one.