Exclusive Premiere: Rob Drabkin ‘The Boy In The Bubble’

Colorado rocker Rob Drabkin follows the critically-acclaimed 2013 album Little Steps with today’s release of a 15-track live album titled Live Vol. II. The LP was recorded at The Bluebird Theater in Denver on January 17, 2014. “Our first live album in 2012, a tribute to Paul Simon’s Graceland, was a game changer for us,” said Rob. “It shifted the perception of my music from a mellow solo/singer-songwriter to a full band, jam rocking machine.”

One of the tracks on the new LP is a glorious cover of Paul Simon’s “The Boy In The Bubble” off his iconic Graceland album. Drabkin’s version of the tune laid down in Denver includes a vicious bass duel between Garrett Sayers of The Motet and ‘Bijoux’ Barbosa. We’re excited to premiere video of “The Boy In The Bubble” so you can see the insane bass duel first-hand:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cuu0fwjVqks

“In 2012 we covered Paul Simon’s Graceland album for a few live shows in Colorado. Afterwards ‘The Boy In The Bubble’ was a track we couldn’t shake from the setlist. Though it’s not the most famous on the Graceland album, ‘The Boy In The Bubble’ seemed to resonate stronger than some of others. It’s powerful. The song pulls out these scenes of modern life and strips them down into roots of hope and loss. Then the great chorus, ‘These are the days of miracle and wonder,’ hits and it just leaves me thinking, ‘Yup, that’s what life is about.’ I love that moment,” Drabkin tells JamBase about the Simon cover.

“Musically, I think this was the trickiest one to learn from the Graceland album. A fun playful African feel drives the song, but a lot of rhythmic intricacies go into it. Once we nailed those, it easily became one of the most fun to play. And a huge bonus we could fit in a break down and bass solo. As soon as I knew Garrett was sitting in, I knew this would be perfect to spotlight Garrett and Bijoux,” Drabkin adds.

Take a listen to Live Vol. II which came out today: