Video: Antony and the Johnsons, “Crazy in Love” (Beyonce Cover)

August 14, 2009


"Crazy in Love" was the jam the summer it came out. This was 2003, before Serato, and with the official 12-inch being just remixes, DJs either found the super random white label (Killah Kuts was no help), played it off the LP (which sounded terrible) or you were one of the lucky folks who had CDJs and knew what to do with them. Imagine Antony at some club in lower Manhattan hearing Beyonce coming through the speakers all tinny and being like, "Oh shit." He must have felt out diva'd. Probably hit him hard, because it was a couple of years before he started to cover the song. He transformed it, never even approached anything like a faithful cover—definitely smart—he knew to leave sleeping dogs lie or whatever. Or the opposite, let the dogs running around run and then his dog could go lie down with this moody dream cover. We saw him perform this at the Apollo. The only thing it had in common with Beyonce was the exquisite dress he was wearing. They are both masters.

Video: Antony and the Johnsons, “Crazy in Love” (Beyonce Cover)