The North Island’s Cover Me Canada contestant said she was “thrown under the bus” which resulted in her and her band being booted from the popular show.
“I really feel that’s what happened,” Georgia Murray told the Gazette.
The CBC asked musicians from across the country to submit recordings of themselves performing a cover song from a Canadian songbook.
Eight acts were chosen to appear on Cover Me Canada, a contest that will earn the winners a Universal recording contract and $100,000.
Murray and her band were kicked off the show on Thanksgiving Day, after performing Spirit of the West‚ Home for a Rest.
“The concept of the show is to give artists songs outside their comfort zone, for them to interpret and make their own,” said the 27-year-old who grew up near Port McNeill, but now calls Victoria home.
“That song is not only outside it, but not even close to any zone we’re in.”
Murray said she and her band decided to turn the “bar song” into a ballad.
“We did it very down tempo and emotional and try to have a nice vocal performance, instead of having it all upbeat and crazy.”
Murray said she and her band worked out the new arrangement, but that changed.
“I don’t know if I’m allowed to say this, but we were told by the network people we had to do it up tempo and similar to what the original song is,” she said.
Murray said she and the band were frustrated by the demand.
“We thought that was crazy because the whole premise of the show is to make (these songs) our own … and they said they wanted the crowd to get into it and we had to feature our fiddle player.”
Murray said the band had spent the lion’s share of rehearsal time learning the song in the slower tempo, yet they had to be in studio to record the song the way they were told to do it.
“We hadn’t even come up with the new arrangement by then,” she said.
Murray said the producer said he’d help them with the new arrangement, but when the next day came around, he changed his tune.
“He sung a very different tune in front of the cameras,” she recalled.
“He yelled at us and screamed at us and told us we were totally unprepared and how the hell could we show up like this.”
Murray said she and her band mates were shocked and felt betrayed by the producer, who she did not name.
“We believed him the day before when he said he’d have our back, help us work it out and there’d be no problem, that was not the case.”
Murray admits her performance wasn’t one of her best.
“But we were critiqued by the judges, but every thing they critiqued us on was the exact way were were told to do it.”
Murray said she knows some might believe her to be a sore loser, but that’s simply not the case.
“I know we didn’t do a great performance, but it wasn’t the worst of the night, either.”
Despite the bad taste in her mouth over the way she was booted from the show, Murray said she’s grateful for the exposure.
Besides, she has one more shot at winning Cover Me Canada.
The show is allowing a viewer’s choice vote where one of the eliminated bands can be brought back to compete on the show.
The vote takes place Oct. 23.
Go to http://www.cbc.ca/covermecanada to learn more.
