Dan Auerbach Morphs '70s Track on 'Keep It Hid'

Dan Auerbach is a self-described "workaholic." When he's not working with drummer Patrick Carney in the Black Keys, he's producing albums for emerging artists like Jessica Lea Mayfield or attempting to marry hip-hop and rock with the BlakRoc project. When Auerbach is not doing any of that, he's just being Dan Auerbach, the guy from the middle of Ohio who's currently touring behind his debut solo album, 'Keep It Hid.' To bring it full circle, he produced the debut album of his backing band.

"They gave me a demo when I was on tour with the Black Keys," Auerbach says of meeting Hacienda, the Texas four-piece that, along with My Morning Jacket drummer Patrick Hallahan, make up Auerbach's touring band, the Fast Five. Auerbach has been on the road promoting 'Keep It Hid' for most of the year and he has yet to reschedule his canceled December tour dates, though the album's 'Goin Home' appears on the soundtrack to the George Clooney movie 'Up in the Air.'

As year-end lists begin to roll out, don't be surprised if you see 'Keep It Hid' in more than one place. The album, released in February, features everything from a song Auerbach's dad wrote to the opening duet with his uncle, 'Trouble Weighs a Ton.' "That's the kind of music that I'd play at family reunions," he says of the bluegrass and blues that inspired the acoustic ballad. "I've been singing songs like that since I was 15, 16 -- songs that are based in soul, based in folk. That's how I learned how to play guitar."

Diversity is Auerbach's strong suit. His favorite artists range from the post-World War II era bluegrass duo the Stanley Brothers, soulman Sam Cooke and hip-hop's most notorious 10-piece, the Wu-Tang Clan. The debut's only cover, the deep-thumping 'I Want Some More' is a lost vintage '70s pop track. 'This group, Jon and Robin, were trying to be like Sonny and Cher," Auerbach explains of the find. "They had super-'70s clothes on, super-'70s floral prints, right when 'The Brady Bunch' were hip." The original cut of the song was recorded at Robin Hood Brians' studio in Tyler, Texas. "Robin Hood Brians recorded the first ZZ Top records and is a local legend around those parts," Auerbach says of coming across the find. "It's almost like polka."

The version on 'Keep It Hid' is anything but polka, and to hear the differences, check them out below.

Jon and Robin, 'I Want Some More'