BoTB 2021 Round 8 Temptation Eyes Showdown

In February, my good pal Tom shared an oldie I had forgotten, Temptation Eyes by The Grass Roots.  My first instinct was to check with secondhandsongs for cover bands.  Although the site listed four bands I wasn’t happy with any of them, so I took my chances going straight to YouTube searching for covers and found three suitable contenders for today’s showdown.  The first two bands appear to be using a backtrack.  None of the musicians are playing horns but the third band is using live horns in their cover.  It’s not entirely fair to use them against two bands with a backtrack but we’ll see how things go down .

First up is The Willoughby Brothers – Russ, Jeffrey, & Geoff R.  I’m assuming they are brothers.  Russ uploaded the video and didn’t address this in his description.  They are good musicians and their vocals aren’t bad. Good luck boys!

The Bucket Band established 2012 in Kansas City play top 40 hits from the 60s and 70s.  They picked two fabulous decades for great music to cover.  They have a couple of up coming gigs this summer in Missouri.  Best of luck to ya in this round! 

My third pick is The Rebels, a 70s and 80s tribute band from Baltimore, Maryland.  Their YT channel hasn’t uploaded anything since 2014, just the below vid and a demo.   They are a talented bunch.   Too bad they don’t have much to share but I hope they are actively playing gigs.  Good luck!

Who gets your vote, The Willoughby Brothers, The Bucket Band, or The Rebels?

I invite you to visit BoTBers with showdowns going on today.

Polls close noon (EST) on April 21st!

Next week, same time slot I’ll be back to announce the winner in this round, so be sure to mark your calendar to see if your favorite artist wins in this showdown.   Don’t forget to tell me in comments which cover artist you prefer in this showdown.  Which ever cover moves you then say so!  It’s that simple.  😉  I hope you’re not in hurry because I’d like to invite you to peek at today’s Looney Tunes A-Z Art Sketch edition up next!  X💋X💋, Cathy



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26 comments

  3. HiYa, CAThy! It’s that you?!

    (You do remember, I presume, when you used to have a blog header that included a cat saying, “It’s that you”. I’m not insane, nor am I poorly educated and unknowingly using bad grammar, when I type that at the beginning of my comments. I’m just harkening back to an older version of your blog.)

    All three of these were pretty good but straightforward covers. I would have liked all of them to have added some sort of twist or musical nuance to make the song their own. And yes, as you said, it’s not entirely fair that the first two bands seemed to be utilizing part of the original song, with the horns.

    Nevertheless, I’ve always really liked this song (it’s an earworm to me), so I enjoyed hearing the three versions, even though they were all quite similar.

    My all-time favorite episode of The Twilight Zone was titled ‘A Stop At Willoughby’, but that’s not the reason I am voting for THE WILLOUGHBY BROTHERS. I’m voting for them because – dang! – that cat can really sing!! To my ears, he was by far the best singer in this group of three. In fact, he’s probably a better singer than the original guy fronting The Grass Roots.

    Have you a terrific weekend, my friend!

    ~ D-FensDogG

    1. Stephen,

      LOL, oh yes, yes I do remember the old header now that you mentioned it. I had forgotten. Silly me!

      I’m happy to know that you enjoyed all three cover artists. Your vote THE WILLBOUGHY BROTHERS are the favorites in this showdown has nearly double the votes as the second favorite group in this act Bucket Band and The Rebels are a far distant third place. There’s still time for the act #2 to pull in a few more votes tighten up this battle but honestly I don’t think it’s gonna happen.

      Thanks for dropping by on this lovely Sunday afternoon. Okay, it’s lovely here but I hope it’s lovely out west in your neck of the woods, too. Have a bandtastic week, dear!

    1. Nicole,

      Thanks for taking time to cast your vote for the BUCKET BAND. They are catching up with the leaders but the $25K question, is will they get in front?

  5. This is a difficult choice between the The Willoughby Brothers and The Bucket Band. I going with the The Willoughby Brothers! Have a great day! ❤️

  10. I have to say the last one was the weakest for me even though they had actual wind instruments. The problem is they need more practise because the wind instruments we just not that great plus I didn’t like the lead singer at all. Now, as for the other 2, it’s tough for me because I do like the vocal in the first group but I really like the guitar playing in the second. I think I will go with the Bucket group because of the guitar playing.

    1. Birgit,

      Most aren’t too fond of the third band. The first two are generating the interest but you went against the grain and gave your vote to THE BUCKET BAND. Hooray, they are finally in the contest!!

  11. This is a difficult choice. These were all so similar that I’m not sure it was worth having three. They are all very well executed covers, but they are covers with not much new added to them. I’ll go with the Rebels since they’ve got the bigger sound with real horns.

    Arlee Bird
    Tossing It Out

    1. Lee,

      I’ve been using three covers in my second battle each month, so I didn’t want to break from what I’ve been doing and while The Rebels’ lead singer didn’t grab me, I did like the addition of the horns. THE REBELS get their first vote. Whoo-Hoo!

  12. This one was difficult. I didn’t care for the Rebel’s at all, but the first two were tough to pick the best. I’m going with the brothers too. They were a bit better.

    Have a fabulous day on the dance floor. Love and hugs. ♥

  13. I really liked the Bucket Band and they were really good but the Brothers were a little bit better on this one. I’m gonna have to go with #1 … The Willoughby Brothers. And I have to agree with Thomas about the Rebels… that guy reminded me of Jamie too. Ha ha ha.
    Cheers,
    Crackerberries

    1. Barbie,

      I’m delighted you decided to check out my showdown. Your voice has been heard with THE WILLOUGHBY BROTHERS taken their second tally in the battle. The Rebels lead doesn’t have the best vocals but I’m not getting the Jamie vibe that you and Tom picked up on. Thanks for playing along, dearie!

  14. Hi, Cathy!

    Happy mid-month BOTB Day, dear friend!

    Thanks for the shout out. “Temptation Eyes” is a fun pop rock song that was a hit in 1971 for the somewhat underrated band The Grass Roots. I’m sure there are many boomer bands and millennial tribute and cover bands that currently perform the catchy song at their gigs.

    In your battle I’m going with act #1 – The Willoughby Brothers – all the way. The boomer band’s lead singer has the same soulful quality that can be heard on the Grass Roots original, and the backing vocals blended well. The band is tight and got it right.

    Act #2, The Bucket Band, was a let down because my ears told me the lead singer occasionally sang off key.

    I liked the fact that band #3, The Rebels, had a horn section, but I didn’t think the guys played exceptionally well, and I found the lead vocals irritating. The guy reminded me too much of the “Jamie” character from the Progressive Insurance commercials.

    Therefore please give my vote to band #1 – The Willoughby Brothers. Thanks, dear friend Cathy!

    1. Tom,

      You’re the early bird with the first vote for THE WILLOUGHBY BROTHERS!

      I was happy to pay you the honors for the inspiration of this battle, my friend. Have a wonderful day!

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