And I’m not saying that the original is bad. You have to have a good song to have a good cover in my opinion. But sometimes the cover artist just understands the mission and takes what the original song did and expands on that a hundred times over.
What’re some of your guys’s favorites?
Jimi Hendrix’s version of All Along The Watchtower by Bob Dylan. It’s likely to be the only version of the song most people have ever heard.
And even Dylan agreed it was better
Is it still a cover if the original artist agrees to let you adopt the song? Dylan said it’s Hendrix’ song now.
yeah I love that Dylan said he felt like he was covering jimi when he played it.
I’m not sure I’d agree that it’s jimis song though considering he never played it out, just made the studio cover for Are You Experienced
I really enjoy this cover of Dead Man’s Party
“Am I Evil” by Diamond head, covered by Metallica, and done so much cleaner and better that I got into a full-on argument with somebody (pre-google) about it it not being an original Metallica song.
Also, I have nothing but respect for Roberta Flack and think “Killing Me Softly” was a fantastic song when she performed it, the Fugees absolutely crushed that song. Listening to the original shortly after makes it fall a little flat.
In the reverse of this, when I mention “Wagon Wheel” and somebody mentions Darius Rucker I get upset. Oh, you took a solid song with great harmonies and instrumentation, and you swapped it out to be a generic country song? Way to make it “your own” bud.
Nobody’s said Me and Bobby McGee yet?
Such Great Heights covered by Streetlight Manifesto. This is one of the songs that makes me think about how much I love my wife.
The horn arrangement just absolutely slays.
Iron and Wine do another great cover of this song
I have no idea who that is but I’m going right now to find out.
Covering Leonard Cohen. This song is one of two (the other being Grace) that got me obsessed with Jeff Buckley back in my early to mid 20’s.
It’s just beautiful.
How about a whole album? Billie Joe Armstrong: No Fun Mondays He recorded these and released them on several Mondays back in early lockdown. I love the hell out of this album.
Funny that Manic Monday is the first song on there, when there’s an old mashup remix album of American Idiot, and Whatsername is mashed with Manic Monday. The album is called Dean Gray, American Edit.
Ninja Sex Party’s cover of “The Last Unicorn.” I think the original is lovely, but their version just clicks with me.
Shrek 2’s version of “I need a hero.”The Lovemongers version of Battle of Evermore catches me the right way sometimes. I prefer the original, but their version is excellent as well
Goldfinger version of 99 red balloons absolutely nails it in my opinion
Still one of the greatest live acts around.
I prefer the 7 Seconds version
Kind of the opposite but “As the World Caves In”. Most people know the cover by Sarah Cothran , but I think the original by Matt Maltese is way, way better.
It’s a song about two people together at the end of the world, and while Sarah sings it mourning the loss of everything, Matt sings it as a love song. To me that’s the much more powerful message, that when everything is burning down, the only thing that’s left and all that really matters is being together with the person you love, and the only thing to mourn is that you won’t have more time with them.
Tori Amos has an amazing cover album but her rendition of the Eminem song ’97 Bonnie & Clyde is honestly horrifying. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4-bXS5LJGM
Also her cover of the Boom town rats I don’t like mondays is my favorite version of that song.
A-ha’s acoustic version of Take On Me is wonderful and very different from the original.
Is that what Ellie plays in TLOU2?
Not sure? I first heard it on The Magicians.
I’m all about Reel Big Fish’s cover
It works remarkably well as a ska song.
