First heard Vic Chesnutt’s “Panic Pure” on the b‑side of R.E.M.‘s mediocre version of “Sponge,” which sounds indistinguishable from any of the hard rockers on New Adventures in Hi-Fi. Hersh’s version of “Panic Pure” absolutely bewitched me. Here Hersh sings with Vic Chesnutt.
Been thinking about Chesnutt quite a bit lately. Part of it is that these songs meant so much to me my freshman year of college and I feel guilty for not having explored his music further. Now that he’s gone I’m looking him up on YouTube and finding all these great clips that exemplify what a great presence he had.
Listen to R.E.M.‘s take on “Sponge” below.