The Jonas Brothers definitely didn’t let Switchfoot down. As part of a special anniversary edition of the latter band’s breakthrough 2003 album The Beautiful Letdown, Joe, Nick and Kevin Jonas have released their version of the influential record’s title track.
Produced by John Fields, “The Beautiful Letdown (Jonas Brothers’ Version)” dropped Friday (Aug. 25), featuring the three brothers replicating Switchfoot’s original slow-burning alt-rock recording. Complete with whirling strings and call-and-response vocals, the track marks the third cover contributed by a guest artist to be released off Switchfoot’s upcoming 25-track celebration album, The Beautiful Letdown (Our Version) [Deluxe Edition].
“We grew up listening to their album The Beautiful Letdown, and ‘Meant to Live’ was a huge influence for us,” said Joe in a statement on behalf of his brothers. “‘Twenty Four’ was the first song that me and Kevin ever played together. This album has incredible significance for us on an emotional level but also sonically it was a big part of our sound.”
“The guys in the band have always been so supportive of us,” the DNCE frontman added. “Thank you for inspiring us and we are so happy to be part of this project singing one of our favorite songs ‘The Beautiful Letdown.’”
The Jonas Brothers cover follows reimagined recordings of Beautiful Letdown songs from Jon Bellion, who put his spin on “Meant to Live,” and Ingrid Andress, who recorded her take on “On Fire” for the project. Those three covers will appear alongside upcoming contributions from One Republic’s Ryan Tedder, Dayglow, Twenty One Pilots’ Tyler Joseph and more on The Beautiful Letdown (Our Version) [Deluxe Edition], which will follow Switchfoot’s May 2023 re-release The Beautiful Letdown (Our Version).
The original The Beautiful Letdown album came out in 2003, marking Switchfoot’s very first entry on the Billboard 200. More than a year after its release, it peaked at No. 16 on the chart.
“The first time we met the Jonas Brothers was on our tour bus somewhere in the middle of the country,” said Switchfoot frontman Jon Foreman. “This was at least a decade ago and I had never heard of them before. (Apparently I live under a rock!) They seemed like wonderful, talented young men … From the beginning, I’ve been impressed by their musicality and talent.”
Stream the JoBros’ cover of Switchfoot’s “The Beautiful Letdown” below:
