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Fleet Foxes, Smiths, Clash, Wu-Tang Clan... 5 songs more apt for X-Factor winner's Little Mix than Cannonball
Something tells us that the X-Factor final didn't go according to the producers' plan. With the winners' first single - a cover of Damien Rice's 2003 single Cannonball - already decided before the actual result, Little Mix's victory doesn't appear to have been in the script.
Cannonball is exactly is the kind of emotive ballad that will shift millions at Christmas in the hands of a sensitive troubadour or an epically-lunged diva (third place finalist Amelia Lily for example) but it's a little incongruous debut for a four-piece girl group who reached the top of the reality TV Christmas tree with street smart reworkings of pop and R'n'B hits by the likes of Nicki Minaj and Rihanna.
We'll seeing as they're going off piste, it's a shame they didn't really go off piste. Here's five alternatives the band should have unleashed on their unsuspecting public which are actually strangely more apt than Cannonball:
The Clash - What's My Name
Viewers were flummoxed when the artists formerly known as Rhythmix for the first few weeks of the show suddenly appeared as Little Mix, after children's charity Rhythmix had called in the lawyers. This ethanol-fuelled blast from The Clash's self-titled album recognises that identity crisis, while also tapping into the teenage angst of much of the show's audience" "What the hell is wrong with me? I'm not who I want to be /I tried spot cream and I tried it all/ I'm crawling up the wall/ What's my name?"
The Smiths - Paint A Vulgar Picture
The very reason we have Little Mix now and not Rhythmix is there's a children's charity that had the latter name first. Fair enough you might say, but X-Factor organisers didn't think so and initially tried to copyright the name themselves, something the Brighton-based organisation describing as trying to "bully the charity into submission", before they backed down due to public pressure. To mark this nod back to classic major label behaviour (not to mention the bad taste it left in the mouth), what better than a cover of Morrissey and co's depiction of music industry greed?
Rage Against The Machine - Killing In The Name Of
Everyone's tired of X-Factor dominating the Christmas Number 1 slot, so what better to get people on side at the beginning of their career, then having Little Mix cover this former seasonal chart topper? They could even start their own Facebook campaign...
Fleet Foxes - Mykonos
Before the X-Factor, where would you have been most likely to find a Essex barmaid, a High Wycombe waitress and two South Shields students all in one place? That's right: a Greek party island like Mykonos. Plus the quartet would absolutely nail those four-part harmonies too.
Wu-Tang Clan - Protect Ya Neck
One point of contention between the judges was whether Little Mix's Perrie should assume lead vocals - as Gary Barlow thought - or whether they should share the singing equally. The Wu's pass-the-mic posse cut should settle the matter once and for all. Each girl gets a verse to shine and the final lines will also shatter any mis-conceptions that they're industry puppets: "First of all, who's your A&R?/ A mountain climber who plays an electric guitar?/ But he don't know the meaning of dope/ When he's looking for a suit and tie rap that's cleaner than a bar of soap/ And I'm the dirtiest thing in sight/ Matter of fact bring out the girls and let's have a mud fight."
Got a song you think Little Mix should be covering instead? Let us know via Twitter and Facebook, plus check out the campaigns - including the likes of The Stone Roses, Nirvana and My Chemical Romance - standing between them and the Christmas top spot.
12:47 PM | 12/12/2011
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