Kid Rock covered a song by Kiwi group Breaks Co-Op after discovering it during a late night YouTube binge. Photo/Getty
Kid Rock was smoking a cigar and drinking "whatever" during a late night YouTube crawl when he fell in love with a Kiwi song.
He saw the video, clicked play and heard Breaks Co-Op's The Otherside, a top 10 hit for the trio when it was released here in 2005.
Rock, known for rap-rock hits like Bawitdaba, fell in love with it.
"I was like, 'Oh my gosh! Their harmonies are as good as Crosby, Stills & Nash or anything I've ever heard'," the American musician recently told Billboard.
Rock, who was preparing to release his new album Sweet Southern Sugar, loved the song so much he asked the group if he could use it.
"It was a surprise," admits Andy Lovegrove, one of Breaks Co-Op's three members alongside Zane Lowe and Hamish Clark.
"He loved the tune and loved the Crosby, Stills & Nash reference. I guess he and his team started putting their version together and a little time after that his team contacted our management with a request to use the song."
The record label sent Rock's team the masters and the result is Back to the Otherside, a reimagining of Breaks Co-Op's original which features the same guitar hook and Lovegrove's chorus.
But there are some crucial differences, like the addition of Rock's rap-rock snarl, the inclusion of swear words and lines like: "It ain't easy growing up ... All the rage and stride for your dreams could seem handcuffed."
Listen to it below (warning: explicit content):
Rock told Billboard the song was recorded live with his band in Nashville, with Breaks Co-Op's vocals added into the mix afterwards.
"I actually took their vocals and then used a drum machine for a little bit, but for the most part it's a live Nashville band in there playing to my rap and then flying in this chorus from this other band in New Zealand."
Rock's fans have praised his take, saying it might be one of his best songs yet.
The trio have received writing credits on Rock's version of The Otherside, which was the first single released from Breaks Co-Op's second album The Sound Inside.
A top 10 hit at the time, Lovegrove said its popularity "never ceases to surprise".
"It has a life of it's own and still touches people," he said, speaking to the Herald via email from his base in the UK.
As for Rock's version, Lovegrove said the band - including Lowe, now a popular DJ on Apple Music's Beats 1 radio station - "all loved it".
Breaks Co-Op's last album, Sounds Familiar, was released in 2014.
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