I started playing guitar at age five, and I liked strumming it hard. I still do. We got a piano in the house when I was elevel, and I was ready for subtleties at that age that I guess five year old Susie was still unable to grasp. But Susie on guitar tends to look outward and reach outward, Susie on piano is more private, and maybe a little less obvious about things. Susie at the piano keeps secrets.
Covers can be tricky things.
I hear covers all the time where the singer does a direct imitation of the original - they don't even change the key, for godssakes. I'm getting better at this as I get older, maybe it's being more disciplined in choosing covers, or just having more experience as a living human being to bring to the songs, and a willingness to search for a new character, a new motivation, to sing the song. In that way, doing covers to me is more like acting, like being a successful actor. My favorite has got to be Shirley Horn covering almost anything - she takes her time with a tune, kinda swirls it around like cognac in a glass, finds a new color, new flavor in it. Patricia Barber is a great talent that way - she's especially good at turning a tune on its side musically.