My tastes are varied, and over the years I have liked many examples. From Herbie Hancock handling The Beatles' Blackbird to The Who performing Eddie Cochran's Summertime Blues to the Stranglers playing The Kinks' All Day and All of the Night, I have a fascination with these works and the originals.
Here are some of my current (though decades old) favorites:
1. Wall of Voodoo performing Ring of Fire, the Johnny Cash classic, in a weird stripped-down synthesizer version.
2. Mary's Danish reimagining Foxey Lady, the quintessential Jimi Hendrix Experience' song.
3. Liz Phair and her band playing The Tra La La Song from The Banana Splits cartoon show.
Those may be a bit out of the mainstream, but take a listen below. What are your favorite covers? What do you recommend? What in your opinion were the best covered songs? Who were the best cover musicians?
23 comments:
I listen to the "Saturday mornings greatest hits" CD often when reading old comics. It is the theme songs remade by 80-90s bands, like Tra la la that Marti mentioned. That CD is in the truck often too!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saturday_Morning:_Cartoons'_Greatest_Hits
Check it out!
Also, check out the Vitamin String Quartet. They cover pop songs to AD DC. "Where is my Mind" Pixies cover is wonderful.
Well, I don't know if I have a fav cover but I have a fav remix: Beatles Love album!
However this has plagued me since 1985. One morning on a very small military base in Germany the enlisted troops woke up the officers by playing what I think was a remake of You make me dizzy Miss Lizzie.
I have always thought it was performed by Creedence Clearwater revival or perhaps their guitarist because the guitar sounded very similar to CCR's songs. Help???
For me the greatest covered song ever is "Fields of Gold" by Eva Cassidy (originally by Sting). In case anybody doesn't know, Eva Cassidy was an American singer (from Washington D.C.) who died in 1996 aged just 33. In the year 2000 her album "Songbird" became a massive UK hit, reaching #1 in the album chart, and the two standout songs which received lots of airplay were "Fields of Gold" and "Over The Rainbow" (originally by Judy Garland of course) which are both hauntingly beautiful. But Sting's original version of "Fields Of Gold" was a favorite of mine anyway and Eva Cassidy's version is heart-breakingly poignant considering her early death.
The Screeching Weasel cover of Johnny Nash's 'I Can See Clearly Now'
Void and Minor Threat (as well as virtually all the other DC hardcore bands) covering The Monkees' (I'm Not Your) Steppin' Stone.
Easy Star All Stars covering the entirety of 'OK Computer' as a reggae album (LP title: 'Radiodread')
All these covers are life affirming and add something (energy, texture...) to the originals. Good topic!
A weird entry for this 'favorite cover' topic, but Paul McCartney covering 'And I Love Her' on his Unplugged album. Easily the most bluesy-ist rendition, some lyrics actually a whispered-duet and Hamish Stuart. Such an inspired update to a favorite Beatles standard, which I used as my own style of singing of it at gigs.
I also like pretty much any cover Diana Krall does, like 'Count Your Blessings', and 'Fly Me to the Moon' off her Paris Live CD... just fantastic.
Worst..? The Stones doing '20 Flight Rock' on their '81 'Still Life' album. I also enjoy doing that number at my old gigs, but their version was 'da worst'.
Colin J.- I agree with everything you say about Eva Cassidy - I very nearly included her as an example on this post. Great album. Great song. And as you said - heartbreaking.
CH47 - it may be the Fabulous Echoes covering "Dizzy Miss Lizzy". That is the only cover I know.
Some other cover versions I like - "Twist And Shout" by the Beatles, "Crying" by Don McClean (originally by Roy Orbison), "I Can't Help Falling In love" by UB40 (originally by Elvis), "Red, Red Wine" by UB40 (originally by Neil Diamond), "They Don't know" by Tracey Ullman (originally by Kirsty McColl but never released), "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" by Roberta Flack (originally by Kirsty's dad, Ewan McColl), "Don't Cry For me Argentina" (From 'Evita') by Madonna (originally by Julie Covington), "Another Suitcase In Another Hall" (from 'Evita') by Madonna (originally by Barbara Dickson), "I Only Wanna be With You" by The Tourists (Annie Lennox), the Bay City Rollers and Samantha Fox (originally by Dusty Springfield), "I Don't Want To Talk About It" by Everything But The Girl (originally by Rod Stewart but that was also a cover)...OK, I'll stop now :)
A fine topic today! That Wall of Voodoo cover is great, Marti! A gem of a cover.
A few of my choices:
Peter Gunn Theme, by Emerson, Lake and Palmer. Also the cover version by Art of Noise.
Tarzan Theme, by Madness. OK, so I have a thing for tv music.
"Hooked on a Feeling" by Blue Swede. Their version just blows away the original BJ Thomas song. They had me at the "oooga chagga"s...
I also think Chrissie Hynde/Pretenders did a nice Unplugged acoustic version of "Creep" originally by Radiohead.
Off the top of my head, with no great thought:
Kirsty MacColl - Billy Bragg's, "New England."
Emiliana Torrini - Simon and Garfunkel's, "Sound of Silence."
Dave Edmunds and Rockpile - Elvis Costello's, "Girls' Talk."
Robert Plant - Tim Buckley's, "Song to the Siren."
Soft Cell - Gloria Jones', "Tainted Love."
Regina Spektor - the Beatles', "While My Guitar Gently Weeps."
Siouxsie and the Banshees - the Beatles', "Dear Prudence."
Embrace - Coldplay's, "Gravity."
Grace Jones - the Pretenders', "Private Life."
Donna Summer - Jon and Vangelis', "State of Independence."
On the negative side, I've just heard Andrea Corr's cover of the Blue Nile's, "Tinseltown in the Rain," and am convinced it's the worst cover version I've heard since the Nolans covered the Smiths', "Panic."
I agree with Steve on Tainted Love by Soft Cell ... I actually like the Marilyn Manson version too. Others that come to mind:
The Relient K's version of Manic Monday (originally by the Bangles);
Kiss by Tom Jones and the Art of Noise is way better than Prince's version for me;
I really like Metallica's version of Whiskey in the Jar ... I love the Thin Lizzy version too, so I can't choose between them;
Damone does a great acoustic version of Iron Maiden's Wasted Years;
And I love Bif Naked's version of We're Not Gonna Take It from the soundtrack of Royal Rumble (the original was by Twisted Sister, of course).
Van Halen's first single:
"You Really Got Me"
Far surpasses the Kinks original.
Yoyo
Hello, I would like to contribute Jakes version on the ukulele of while my guitar gently weeps. It is a must see on YouTube. It is the gold – standard for inspiration for ukulele players. Thank you!
Great topic and so many great covers mentioned so far. My first thought was just about anything by Linda Ronstadt - That'll Be The Day, When Will I Be Loved, It's So Easy, Poor Poor Pitiful Me, Blue Bayou, You're No Good...the list goes on and on...
Tom
Joe Cocker's "With a Little Help From My Friends" is the Gold Standard for "Covers That Transcend The Originals". I do like Blue Suede'a reading of "Hooked on a Feeling" though.
The Smithereens have a fun cover album, called... well, The Smithereens Cover Tunes Album. Good versions of Time Won't Let Me, You Really Got Me, and The One After 909, among others.
Speaking of While My Guitar Gently Weeps, and of Prince, a long time ago J.A. Morris (if my shaky memory serves) recommended the 2004 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame all-star cover of Harrison's song. Prince just kills it on his solo at the end.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SFNW5F8K9Y
Doug
Note to the Beatles fans here, The Easy Star's Lonely Hearts Dub Band is worth a listen too. It shouldn't work but it does.
Ditto their Dub Side of the Moon.
Doug - Yes, indeed, the Prince / Tom Petty tribute to George, playing "While my Guitar..." is worth a look! What I picked up on was Tom Petty, kind of strumming away, while Prince is going bat crazy... kind of like this look of "I don't get what the little dude is doing on the guitar."
And if I may again, everyone should youtube "Jake While my guitar" on ukulele and he pops right up. It's got a respectable 15 MM hits. Prince is a puny human that Jake could smash imho. It is the gold standard for all us aspiring, middle-aged, Uke players.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puSkP3uym5k&list=RDpuSkP3uym5k#t=0
For what it's worth I've also included my favorite cover of Tequila on the Melodica. Just youtube "Melodica Tequila".
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rbPYmGq74eI
And if any of you are Hungarian (I'm 50%) or even not, then I strongly,strongly encourage you to youtube "Melodica Czardas" by the greatest Japanese pianist Suguru Ito at about 1:45 into it your head will start spinning. (Czardas is traditional hungarian folk music.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOLvaEnaVUo
Happy Viewing
I completely forgot about "The Tide Is High" by Blondie ! Also "Rocket Man" by Kate Bush, " Please Mr. Postman" by the Carpenters, " I Will Always Love You" by Whitney Houston, "Leaving On A Jet Plane" by Peter, Paul & Mary...
A couple of my favorite covers are the Beatles version of "Money (That's What I Want)" and St. Etienne's "Only Love Can Break Your Heart", a Neil Young classic, which brings up his cover of "Four Strong Winds".
Whaaaat..?? No love for Shatner's 'Rocket Man' or 'Mr Tambourine Man'..?
Please, people...!?!
This morning while listening to the radio (92.7 "The Valley", WVLI, Kankakee, IL), I heard Gladys Knight & the Pips' cover of "I Heard it Through the Grapevine". If that doesn't get you moving... loved it! I also dig CCR's version of that tune, which is quite different in its swampiness. Of course others have covered the tune - it's one of those songs that you can enjoy in many, many different forms.
Doug
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