An isolation-themed Hotel California cover is bringing laughter to the people of Papamoa amid the COVID-19 lockdown.
‘The Isolation Song' is a result of collaborative efforts between two friends Greg Taylor and Ben Sharplin killing time at home.
Greg, who rewrote the lyrics to the Eagles song, posted the video to a Papamoa community Facebook page this week.
His mission when writing the lyrics was simple. 'People say laughter is the best medicine, but for me making people laugh is the best medicine. I just like to put humorous stuff out there.”
Singer Ben Sharplin passionately performs the song from home, belting out the chorus 'welcome to home now in isolation – such a lonely space, such an empty space.”
Greg says the idea came about after having one too many drinks on a Friday evening in lockdown.
'After a few wines at about 10pm on Friday, I messaged Ben to see if he wanted to do a collaboration of some sort. I had no idea what song I wanted to do – but he chose Hotel California which I was happy with,” says Greg.
'I tried to make it a bit humorous - the lyrics of the actual song don't make much sense, so I thought I would make some sense out of them.”
Rewriting the lyrics only took Greg about 90 minutes. 'I was a little disappointed - I thought it would kill a whole day.”
The Auckland man is currently not working as he runs a sushi-catering business alongside his wife. 'It was just something to do – I could probably cover a new song for everyday left of lockdown.”
'People have loved it – it's funny and is even better combined with Bens singing.”
Ben also took to his public Facebook page to share the video.
'I'm really enjoying the different kind of connection with people while being shut in. Make sure you take the time to keep connecting,” he wrote.
Greg says it's a tough time out there for many Kiwis, and he hopes to produce more content over the next few weeks to inject some humour into people's lives.
He's also keen to work with any eager Tauranga musicians.
'I don't want to burden Ben, so if there are any local artists down there wanting to collaborate, they can message me on Facebook.”