"Don't" Ed Sheeran Cover by Joseph Vincent

Joseph Vincent playing live in the Becker Ampitheatre at CSUF!!

Hello, JUKEBOXERS!! It's Jewel with a new cover artist!! This week I'm reviewing a cover by Joseph Vincent because, well, he played at Cal State Fullerton today!!

I first heard of Joseph Vincent when I watched a Jason Chen collab cover of "I Want It That Way" by the Backstreet Boys. I'll put that cover down below.

Joseph Vincent is an acoustic artist who first picked up a guitar when he was just 15 years old. He began by playing covers of his biggest influences: Jack Johnson and Jason Mraz. At 16, he began songwriting and composing. He's played at a variety of venues, and as I stated earlier, HE PLAYED AT MY SCHOOL TODAY!! In August of 2008, he performed at the Annual Festival of Philippine Arts and Culture. He also entered and won a contest produced by a Filipino news-station here in SoCal called Kababayan LA-18. In 2010, he was featured on the "Wonderful Web of Wonderment" segment of The Ellen Degeneres Show. As a rising YouTube celeb, Joseph Vincent now has over 400,000 subscribers, and is currently recording his debut album.

This cover... What can I say about this cover?? First of all, I think he sounds just like Ed Sheeran, except for the accent of course. He's confident and it shows because this song is actually pretty difficult to sing. Joseph Vincent is definitely super talented. I mean, he's singing AND playing guitar at the same time. I know a lot of people can do that, but from my point of view, that's amazing. Why?? First, this song is a bit difficult to sing just because of the multitude of words. It must've been extremely challenging to find the places in which to insert a breath. Also, this song requires a semi-separate beat/rhythm for the lyrics and guitar. If you listen closely, you'll hear that the guitar and vocals are syncopated, meaning the rhythms are rather off-beat. Another reason I love this cover is really just because I LOVE his voice. It's unique and amazing and just. so. beautiful.

Not only are his covers amazing, I can personally attest to his talent as a live performer. His voice is so amazing and he performs songs almost EXACTLY like his recordings. It's absolutely beautiful and I'm so glad I had the chance to watch him even for just a few minutes.

Anyway, I really don't have anything to critique except maybe better enunciation. His covers meet all my "requirements". I don't hear any effects that mask his voice. Since he's an acoustic artist, his covers are practically as "raw" as it gets. His talent is perfectly showcased in his covers and I absolutely adore his voice!!

Just a little warning, this song does contain expletives that didn't really become clear until I listened to the cover.

Here is his cover of "Don't" by Ed Sheeran:

And here is his collab with Jason Chen:

Rating: 4 RECORDS

Information: Joseph Vincent Official Website