Self Esteem has dropped the sonic new cover of Jimmy Cliff’s ‘You Can Get It If You Really Want’, shared as part of the This Town soundtrack. Check it out below.
READ MORE: Self Esteem: “I want to use the palatable nature of pop to Trojan horse in my agenda”
The song was shared by the Sheffield singer as part of the new BBC series which aired over the Easter weekend, and takes place in the ’80s UK, amid the two-tone ska revival.
Originally released back in 1995, the song was first shared by Jimmy Cliff as part of his album ‘Many Rivers To Cross’.
“Persecution you must fear/ Win or lose you got to get your share/ You’ve got your mind set on a dream/ You can get it though hard it may seem now,” Self Esteem, real name Rebecca Lucy Taylor sings in the verse, putting a modern, dance spin on the original track.
Check out both the original and the new Self Esteem cover below.
The first two episodes of This Town aired over Easter weekend, with Self Esteem’s reimagining of ‘You Can Get It If You Really Want’ being played from the soundtrack, as well as Ray Laurél’s new version of ‘Somewhere Over The Rainbow’.
The series “celebrates a thrilling evolution of sound, spirit and UK culture” and is set against the melting-pot scene of the Midlands in the 1980s. The soundtrack is set to arrive on April 26 via Polydor, and features an eclectic mix of artists putting their own spin on songs from the era in a bid to pay tribute to the hugely formative period.
As well as Self Esteem and Ray Laurél, upcoming episodes will include original covers from Mercury-nominated breakthrough Olivia Dean, Grammy-winner Gregory Porter, BRITs Rising Star nominee Sekou and Academy Award nominee Celeste. Check out the full tracklist below.
This Town (Music From The Original BBC Series) soundtrack is:
1. ‘You Can Get It If You Really Want’ – Self Esteem
2. ‘Somewhere Over The Rainbow’ – Ray Laurél
3. ‘Estella’ – Fuck The Factory
4. ‘The Harder They Come’ – Olivia Dean
5. ‘Birdsong’ – Fuck The Factory
6. ‘Pelicans’ – Fuck The Factory
7. ‘Blue Moon’ – Celeste
8. ‘Farewell To Matty And Her Flowers’ – Fuck The Factory
9. ‘The World’s Going Up In Flames’ – Gregory Porter
10. ‘This Town’ – Fuck The Factory
11. ‘Wonderful World, Beautiful People’ – Sekou
In other Self Esteem news, the singer has recently starred on the West End in Cabaret alongside Scissor Sisters’ Jake Shears, and has been announced as performing a DJ set at the next Club NME event, which will be headlined by Mae Muller. Find more details about the upcoming event here.
The post Check out Self Esteem’s dance-inspired cover of Jimmy Cliff’s ‘You Can Get It If You Really Want’ from ‘This Town’ soundtrack appeared first on NME.
