From Kurt Cobain to Adele: early demos from the biggest names in music

A pre-fame recording from Amy Winehouse was recently unearthed, defying her estate, and it’s one of many resurfaced demos giving early insight into the talents of major stars
                                                     

Most musicians hate fans to hear their nascent demos, those early trial balloons punctured by bum notes and bad decisions. Unfortunately, the biggest stars often don’t have a choice in the matter – especially if they happen to be dead. Such a fate befell Amy Winehouse when, last week, one of her producers took it upon himself to release an early demo he had of the singer, defying the artist’s estate, which had destroyed the initial, inferior work they possessed.

By the same token, when true fans hear those early tests, they often appreciate the rare peek into the artist’s evolution. More, they usually know how to contextualize it within the body of their idol’s better-honed works. That’s good considering the number of demos that have slipped out over the years, including many that document music which pre-dates a major artist’s stardom.

Before she found a buoyant dance-pop sound for her 1983 major label debut, Madonna experimented with a host of other styles, captured on scores of demos that surfaced later. One of most fascinating contains a turbo-charged punk outburst titled Safe Neighborhood. The whipping guitars and wiry bass that fire the song fit snugly with the dominant sound of downtown New York at the time Madge moved there in 1978. Fuzzy facts surround the origin of the recording. Allegedly, it dates from 1980, around the time the singer played in a band named Emmy with then boyfriend Stephen Bray. But it isn’t included on an album Bray released in 1997 titled Pre-Madonna, nor on the other Emmy-identified demos that have since leaked. The Bray disc includes early demos of two songs from Madonna’s official debut, Everybody and Burnin’ Up. Safe easily outdoes Burnin’ as her most rock-charged performance ever. It’s a blast to hear Madonna give Lydia Lunch a run for her money with her shrieks. Another fun demo, for Love Express, captures Madonna performing solo, with just voice and acoustic guitar. It’s a fleet rockabilly romp, in the mode of prime Everly Brothers.