Spring '08 LPs From Madonna, Coldplay, The Roots, Mudcrutch, Elvis Costello

Scarlett Johansson

Anywhere I Lay My Head 5/20

Last year actress Scarlett Johansson and TV on the Radio's Dave Sitek took a road trip from Los Angeles to Lafayette, Louisiana, to record an album of Tom Waits covers. Johansson, who has been singing since she was young (Sitek compares her baritone to Debbie Harry's voice), was offered a record deal but delayed recording until she could come up with the right songs to cover. Cut over five weeks, Anywhere I Lay My Head features ten Waits covers along with "Song For Jo," an original Johansson/Sitek composition. The Waits covers bear practically zero resemblance to the originals (short of the lyrics) and Sitek says his role was to create a "cough medicine tinker-bell vibe" that features church organ, brass, drum machines, a music box, Nick Zinner of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, two vocal guest spots by David Bowie and even the sounds of the cicadas that infested the studio. "I've heard through friends that he's very excited about it," Johansson says of Waits' reaction.