CHUD.com Community › Forums › MUSIC › Music › Cover Tune Shootout
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

Cover Tune Shootout

post #1 of 162
8/29/08 at 10:46pm
Thread Starter 
The Cover Tune. When an artist records a song previously released released by another artist. Ideally, they do enough differently to make the song their own, while somehow maintaining the fine balancing act of paying homage to the original artist by respecting the source material. Whether they succeed on either or both levels is often a matter of personal opinion.

So, in the spirit of Werbal's Fast Food Hoedown, or Jonathan Banks' 500 favorite Foods, I figured I'd start this thread up. Contribute as often as you like. Comment on any previous post, to agree or let the previous poster they're out of their minds. The only rule I'd like to impose if you comment, post a cover tune pair of your own, & tell us which version you favor.

Guess I'll star us off with something a little controversial:

"Wild Horses" as originally recorded by The Rolling Stones vs. the cover by The Sundays.

Much as I love Mick and the boys, and I do, and as great as their version is, I have to give the nod to the Sundays' cover. I have a thing for female singers with ethereal voices (I LOVE Sarah McLachlan, and really dig Lush), and the singer's voice just lends such a beautiful sound to this song.

Now you try.
Reply
post #2 of 162
8/30/08 at 2:25am
I've always loved Brad Mehldau's version of Nick Drake's River Man.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkfq9GQ4n8I
Reply
post #3 of 162
8/30/08 at 2:47am
Local H's cover of Toxic: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_p1ByOu76n4
Dog Fashion Disco's cover of Grease: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a7ngjquny6g
Apoptygma Berzerk's cover of Cambodia: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DI2K8d-52rE
Nine Inch Nails' cover of Dead Souls: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PDZC38doDM

Also, I couldn't find non-live versions of Dillinger Escape Plan's cover of Like I Love You, Joshua Radin's cover of Girlfriend in a Coma or Stina Nordenstam's version of I Dream of Jeannie.
And I'm pretty sure I could find more.
Reply
post #4 of 162
8/30/08 at 4:01am
Honest Bob and the Factory to Dealer Incentives did a cover of Head Like a Hole that I love. Outside of Richard Cheese, it's the ultimate in total reinterpretation of a song. It couldn't sound more different.
Reply
post #5 of 162
8/30/08 at 4:03am
"House of The Rising Sun"

Dylan Vs. The Animals (Vs. Nina Simone Vs. etc...)
Reply
post #6 of 162
8/30/08 at 4:08am
Shoot me, but I prefer Aerosmith's version of "Come Together" over the Beatles original.

Also, while maybe not so much a "cover", I love the Ozzy/Randy Rhodes live version of "Paranoid" so very much.

Power Station's "Bang A Gong" over T. Rex's.

Oh, and lastly, Dweezil and Ahmet Zappa's "Hit Me Baby (One More Time)" over Britney.
Reply
post #7 of 162
8/30/08 at 4:09am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Martianman View Post
Shoot me, but I prefer Aerosmith's version of "Come Together" over the Beatles original.
BLAM!

thud

BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!




moan

BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!
Reply
post #8 of 162
8/30/08 at 4:26am
If I may join you...

CHA-KLINK FLICK

drop

WOOSH!

burn
Reply
post #9 of 162
8/30/08 at 9:26am
Hope those second shots were for the Power Station one!

As far as "Wild Horses" covers go, give me The Flying Burrito Brothers version.

Chaka Khan's "I Feel For You"

Jeff Beck Group had some blazing covers: "You Shook Me", "I Ain't Superstitious", "All Shook Up"

Johnny Cash "Hurt" (What a send-off!)

And The King made "Blue Suede Shoes" his own.
Reply
post #10 of 162
8/30/08 at 10:02am
All due respect to the late great Freddie Mercury, but it's almost like they wrote Stone Cold Crazy waiting for Metallica to do it right.
Reply
post #11 of 162
8/30/08 at 10:20am
While not superior,in my opinion, I've always enjoyed Social Distortion's cover of Ring of Fire. Same goes for Weezer covering Pixies' My Velouria. As far as cover versions that can fuck themselves sideways with a hot curling iron? Scissor Sisters covering comfortably numb. It sounds like The Beegees covering it-drunk, without EVER hearing it first. That version makes me want to punch asphalt.
Reply
post #12 of 162
8/30/08 at 10:26am
Attention Musicians:

Next person to cover or sample Tainted Love gets a steel toed boot to the balls/ovaries.
Reply
post #13 of 162
8/30/08 at 10:33am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Justin Clark View Post
Attention Musicians:

Next person to cover or sample Tainted Love gets a steel toed boot to the balls/ovaries.
How many people have covered it? Two? Soft Cell, Marilyn Manson, and who else?

I still think Manson's is the best take(the original is awesome though).

*ducks*
Reply
post #14 of 162
8/30/08 at 10:41am
I've heard two teenybopper versions of it within the last 3 years or so, one a cover, one sampled, both of them runny bovine excrement.

I liked the Manson version at first too, but K-Rock in NYC played that thing into the damn ground.
Reply
post #15 of 162
8/30/08 at 10:51am
Manson's cover was Sweet Dreams... also overplayed though.

In the case of Tainted Love covers, I usually forget Soft Cell's is a cover, but that'd would be my fav one. Then Coil's.

edit: Oh but how could I forget this absolute masterpiece.
Reply
post #16 of 162
8/30/08 at 11:00am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Francis Wolcott View Post
edit: Oh but how could I forget this absolute masterpiece.
That's the sampled one. It hates me.
Reply
post #17 of 162
8/30/08 at 11:00am
Devo's "Satisfaction" is about neck-and-neck with the original, for me.
Reply
post #18 of 162
8/30/08 at 11:09am
Les Thugs do a pretty great cover version of the Dead Kennedys' Moon over Marin which reinvents it as jangly indiepop. I'd say that one is probably a tie.

For sheer bombast, you have to love The Leningrad Cowboys (& the Red Army Choir)'s cover version of Happy Together.
Reply
post #19 of 162
8/30/08 at 11:12am
I kinda liked Cowboy Junkies version of "Sweet Jane". Ethereal voiced chicks and whatnot, I suppose.
Reply
post #20 of 162
8/30/08 at 11:15am
Good:

Warren Zevon and 75% of REM doing "Raspberry Beret"
REM's covers of Pylon's "Crazy" and CCR's "Have You Ever Seen The Rain"
Grant Lee Phillips' album Nineteeneighties
Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds' covers of Neil Young's "Helpless", VU's "All Tomorrow Parties", and Glen Campbell's "By The Time I Get To Phoenix"
Bowie's album Pin Ups and his coked-up live cover of "Knock On Wood"

Bad:

The Killers shitty version of Joy Division's "Shadowplay", which they inexplicably Brundled with the Banana Splits theme.

Ugly:

Whatever the fuck Kid Rock thinks he did to "Werewolves of London" and "Sweet Home Alabama"

Also, check out this blog which posts covers every week. Interesting stuff.
Reply
post #21 of 162
8/30/08 at 11:37am
I'll go on record that, despite not really liking Bright Eyes much, he did a hell of a job retooling Sunrise Sunset.
Reply
post #22 of 162
8/30/08 at 12:12pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Francis Wolcott View Post
Manson's cover was Sweet Dreams... also overplayed though.[/URL]
He did a few others that got radio play too. Tainted Love, a boring as fuck Personal Jesus cover, and This is Halloween.

Manson's done a fuckload of covers, and he's far more hit than miss in my opinion. When he misses, he misses bad(Five to One, Get My Rocks Off, Highway to Hell), but he's done great things with other tracks(Golden Years, The KKK Took My Baby Away, Suicide is Painless, Down in the Park).

*edit- I may be at risk of getting shot by Greg and Renn(and other Beatles fans), but Fiona Apple's Across the Universe cover is still my favorite version.
Reply
post #23 of 162
8/30/08 at 12:19pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nexus-7 View Post
Fiona Apple's Across the Universe cover is still my favorite version.
They'll have to shoot us both. Helps that it tied in well with the film it was made for, but it's just a great cover in its own right.

And to tie that back in with Manson, Fiona Apple also did a trip-hoppy version of Sally's Song from Nightmare Before Christmas that was just aces.
Reply
post #24 of 162
8/30/08 at 12:34pm
Flipper's "Sacrifice" as performed by The Melvins

The Beatles' "Something" as performed by Booker T. and the MGs
Reply
post #25 of 162
8/30/08 at 12:37pm
I prefer Fiona Apple's cover of Across the Universe to The Beatle's original.
Reply
post #26 of 162
8/30/08 at 12:40pm
I happen to be listening to The Prodigy's Always Outnumbered, Never Outgunned right now for the first time(diggin' it a lot, Juliette Lewis does a great job, too), and I never realized Love Buzz wasn't an original Nirvana tune. Considering they're one of my favorite bands, I don't know how this eluded me all these years.

I only found out now because The Prodigy samples the original. Weird.
Reply
post #27 of 162
8/30/08 at 12:41pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Miyazaki View Post
I prefer Fiona Apple's cover of Across the Universe to The Beatle's original.
I like Bowie's.

Original tune wrongly eclipsed by a cover? Nina Simone - "Please Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood".
Reply
post #28 of 162
8/30/08 at 12:49pm
I think Bauhaus' cover of Ziggy Stardust is slightly superior to Bowie's. All that guitar reverb is what pushes it over the top for me.
Reply
post #29 of 162
8/30/08 at 12:50pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Miyazaki View Post
I prefer Fiona Apple's cover of Across the Universe to The Beatle's original.
Really?

Dwight Yoakam made his name with a killer cover of "Honkey Tonk Man".

The Byrds always did Dylan well. Favorite "You Ain't Going Nowhere".
Reply
post #30 of 162
8/30/08 at 12:54pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nexus-7 View Post
He did a few others that got radio play too. Tainted Love, a boring as fuck Personal Jesus cover, and This is Halloween.

Manson's done a fuckload of covers, and he's far more hit than miss in my opinion. When he misses, he misses bad(Five to One, Get My Rocks Off, Highway to Hell), but he's done great things with other tracks(Golden Years, The KKK Took My Baby Away, Suicide is Painless, Down in the Park)..
Yeah I know, my point was that "his" cover, as in the one that actually worked is Sweet Dreams....
I don't mind the Personal Jesus one because it had good use at nightclubs, so that was kind of ok... and I think I didn't completely hate the This is Halloween one, so maybe is not bad.

But back on topic, how about Sunday Bloody Sunday?
A song apparently everyone can play better than U2.
Reply
post #31 of 162
8/30/08 at 12:59pm
Manson's cover of "Sweet Dreams" does not work at all. So heavy handed.

Now Devo's "Satisfaction" on the other hand deconstructs the original, making fun of it, all the while still getting the original joke.
Reply
post #32 of 162
8/30/08 at 1:02pm
Oh but it was in that movie with the house and the hauntings!
Reply
post #33 of 162
8/30/08 at 1:12pm
I said I liked Fiona's cover the last time we did this thread, and nobody backed me up then!
Reply
post #34 of 162
8/30/08 at 1:19pm
Re: Across The Universe
Love The original like a good friend.
Adore The Fiona Apple rendition.
Would marry the Rufus Wainwright/Sean Lennon/Moby version.


Moving on to others:
Though they didn't change it much, the Foo Fighters do a great "Baker Street".
Also greatly enjoy Placebo's take on "Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others"

Others to follow.
Reply
post #35 of 162
8/30/08 at 1:19pm
I brought it up in one thread. Not sure if it was yours though. PTA's music video for it is great as well.
Reply
post #36 of 162
8/30/08 at 1:29pm
Two for Bjork: It wasn't until a few years ago that I found out It's Oh So Quiet is a cover.

Conversely, it's a rare thing anyone tries to cover her and succeed (Attention metal bands: Army Of Me does not warrant or lend itself well to covers. Please stop.), but Death Cab For Cutie does a version of All is Full Of Love that's right up there with the original.
Reply
post #37 of 162
8/30/08 at 1:32pm
Speaking of Bjork, her cover of "You Only Live Twice" is pretty good, and this is awesome.
Reply
post #38 of 162
8/30/08 at 1:41pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by James Kimbell View Post
and this is awesome.
I forgot about this. Yes, it is awesome.

On the Bond theme front: I'm still coming up blank trying to find words for this.
Reply
post #39 of 162
8/30/08 at 1:51pm
I think Hendrix cover of 'All along the watchtower' is pretty much the gold standard.
Reply
post #40 of 162
8/30/08 at 2:00pm
I absolutely adore the DeVotchKa version of Venus In Furs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4CQEruH1JQ

It's weird because it's both similar to the original and massively different, the instrumentation really helping to take the focus away from the singers attempt to ape Lou Reed's delivery.
Reply
post #41 of 162
8/30/08 at 2:05pm
Sorry, I can't seem to edit my original post so.

Actually that version of Venus In Furs works better live when the singer just sort of yelps as shown here

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zdbIaULyPUw
Reply
post #42 of 162
8/30/08 at 2:06pm
Oh, also. The Cardigans cover of Iron Man...just weird and cool. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SzgZJEpLuw0
Reply
post #43 of 162
8/30/08 at 2:14pm
The Chameleons bested The Beatles with their cover of Tomorrow Never Knows...it's longer too.
Reply
post #44 of 162
8/30/08 at 2:36pm
Glad to see that Cardigans cover get some love. It's the track that cemented that, yes, I loved First Band On The Moon.
Reply
post #45 of 162
8/30/08 at 3:36pm
The only Derrick Green-era Sepultura song I really like is their cover of "Bullet the Blue Sky", even if it doesn't touch the original.

Rage Against the Machine's version of "How I Could Just Kill a Man" (there's a few more I remember liking on Renegades, but I can't recall which ones)

Pantera's version of "Planet Caravan"

Megadeth's "These Boots"

People already mentioned Dead Souls, Hurt, and Stone Cold Crazy or as James always seems to call it: "Stone Motherfuckin Cold Crazy!"
Reply
post #46 of 162
8/30/08 at 4:01pm
Gavin Rossdale covered The Pixies "Where is my mind?" on his Live from Las Vegas at The Palms. I heard a 30 clip. It sounds okay I guess.
Reply
post #47 of 162
8/30/08 at 4:11pm
I like Soundgarden doing Devo's "Girl U Want"

Eddie Vedder avec Mike McCready doin' Masters of War (from the Bob Dylan 50th birthday extravaganza ). That's the best version Mr. Vedder has done either with the other Pearl Jams or solo.
Reply
post #48 of 162
8/30/08 at 4:14pm
Crowbar's cover of "Dream Weaver".
Reply
post #49 of 162
8/30/08 at 4:20pm
Some of those metal covers are awful. Louder doesn't equal better.

I did like that Henry Rollins/ Bad Brains cover of "Kick Out The Jams". And I have a soft spot for The Beasties' version of "I'm Down".
Reply
post #50 of 162
8/30/08 at 4:40pm
A couple off the top of my head:

Nina Simone, "To Love Somebody"
Rob Zombie, "Blitzkrieg Bop" (Look, I didn't say it was better than the original, but I like it.)
Guided By Voices, "Baba O'Riley"
Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
  Back to Forum: Music
CHUD.com Community › Forums › MUSIC › Music › Cover Tune Shootout