They kinda did it better - Page 2

"NIN: Their version of 'Dead Souls' is superior to the original."

Wow, man, that is a terrible, terrible thing to say.

Would Patti Smith's cover of "Gloria" count? Because I fuckin' love that song with a fiery passion.

I stand--well, sit and type--in awe.

Across the Universe is one of my favorite Beatles songs, but I like Fiona Apple's cover of it more.

Lesseee..

The Hollies' "I Can't Let Go." Not all of Doris Troy's grit can top those harmonies.

I suppose the Talking Heads' "Take Me To The River" needs to be mentioned as being roughly on a par with the Reverend Al. Levon Helm's is pretty good, too.

Richard Thompson's "Season of the Witch": love the original, but it lacks a twisted seven-minute guitar solo.

The Untouchables' "I Spy (For The FBI)" : faster and funnier than the original. Their "Agent Double-O-Soul" isn't bad either. In the same vein, but not quite there: The Specials' "Sock It To Em, J.B."

It's damn close. One of those ones where it gets by on the re-thinking as much as the performance.

She is, in fact, awesome. And has always envied me seeing Elvis Costello at Hollywood High School, so it all balances out.

I've come to prefer the Anthrax cover of "The Bends" over Radiohead's for a while now.

Ack! I couldn't disagree more. Reznor's vocals are ok and the guitar sounds good, but the drums and the bass are so dumbed down from the original. Peter Hook's bassline is wicked and totally shreds NIN's version, and no one really drums like Stephen Morris.


To add to the topic, I think Bowie's recent covers of both "Cactus" and "Pablo Picasso" ended up kinda better than the originals. The original "Pablo Picasso" is awesome, but it's a mess, and Bowie turns it into something really tight and sinister. I love The Pixies' "Cactus," but I prefer Bowie's version to the original album version--however, when I saw the Pixies after their reunion, they totally re-claimed it.

Live and Let Die - Guns N' Roses > Wings
Mama Kin - Guns N' Roses > Aerosmith
Sweet Dreams (Are Made of These) - Marilyn Manson > Eurythmics
Knights in White Satin - The Dickies > The Moody Blues
Paranoid - The Dickies > Black Sabbath
The Pusher - Blind Melon > Steppenwolf

You might hate them but The Dickies really make those songs their own. The others are just some of many favorite. You could also include every song "Me First and the Gimme Gimmes" has done.

Nah. The OTT goofiness is what makes "No Quarter." I mean, Page fucking slowed the damn thing down so the recording would have that ridiculous/eerie effect. With those moans and gurgling keyboards, t straddles the line perfectly between scary and silly; when Tool does, it's just another moody Tool song. I like to think that Zeppelin had a much bigger sense of humor about songs like this than they're given credit for.

Cohen's early recordings sound fine, but once you hit the 80s, the keys come in hard, and Jennifer "I've Had the Time of My Life" Warnes and her saccharine backup vocals muddy up the mix. I think MissZooey's main problem is with his voice, but for me, it's those godawful arrangement choices. There are exceptions (I mean, no one deserves to hear Bono's cover of "Hallellujah"), but I much prefer the covers to latter-day Cohen.

I actually heard people complaining about that version after I saw them live. I thought it was great.

The guy owns pretty much any R&B or classic rock'n'roll hit he wants, but I've gotta say his version of "London Calling" falls a little short. Still, that's more the exception than the rule with him.

I know some people just aren't fans of U2, but come on. Just because Cash has a weathered, iconic voice doesn't mean that he can just speak-sing his way through anything and make it instantly "better" than the original. It's a nice cover, but better than the original it ain't.


I don't think their "Darling Nikki" tops the original, but it's not bad. Their version of "Down in the Park" does top the original, though.

imho,t.

For a different approach, you should check out Tom Jones' horns-infused live version. I'm not sure I'd say it's better than Redding's or the Black Crowe's, but it works remarkably well with that inimitable Tom Jones lead-footed soul vibe.

That Drive By Trucker's cover of Zevon is appropriately grimy in a way that the original isn't, but changing the words messes up the rhyme and cadence of the lyrics. I do not approve.

WTF? Sarcasm?

If we are talking Foo covers, I am partial to "Baker Street".

Oh god, I forgot about that cover. "Songs in the Key of X" was a great album, I gotta dig that out and get it on my computer. It had William S. Burroughs doing a cover of "**** Me Kitty". Awesome.

They also did a (imho) superior version of "Baker Street". I like the wailing guitar more than the wailing sax. ETA: Leper beat me.

Hendrix's "Watchtower" is to Dylan's, as Whitney's "I Will Always Love You" is to Dolly's.

You gain virtuosity, volume, and hysterics at the expense of thoughtful interpretation of the lyrics. Not a trade I'm willing to make.

To me, the one doesn't cancel the other (at least in the case of "Watchtower"). I don't think Hendrix glosses over anything in the song, I think he expands it.

Though it is worth noting that the version of "Watchtower" that appears in Guitar Hero 5 is Dylan's, not Hendrix'.

The lyrics describe something immanent, but not yet arrived. The wind is just beginning to howl, but Hendrix makes the whole thing into an apocalyptic maelstrom. The Thief doesn't "kindly speak", he yelps like stuck pig. That said, the guitar playing is awesome.

This borders on heresy, but I prefer McCready/Ament/Cameron/Cornell's version of "Hey Baby/Land of the New Rising Sun" more than Hendrix's original.

While Hendrix's vocal delivery might be guilty of that, his overall interpretation of the song isn't. The guitar parts blatantly mimic automatic rifle fire. I think he gets what Dylan is saying with the song and manages to say it in his own way.

Television did some insanely great covers. Unfortunately, the two that don't quite top the originals ("Fire Engine" and "Satisfaction") were released, while several of the ones where they blew the originals apart (including "Psychotic Reaction" and "Let's Talk About Girls") are only available on marginal boots.

Big Daddy's rockabilly version of My Heart Will Go On owns Celine Dion twenty different ways to Sunday. And while I don't think it equals the original, their Welcome to the Jungle cover that grafts GnR onto The Lion Sleeps Tonight is fried gold.

Thanks for the tip on Television "Psychotic Reaction", Jeb. Adore them, but have never heard their cover.

It's pretty wild. When he'd get really into it, Lloyd used to unwind his low E string and drag it back over the guitar neck for some truly demented werewolf noises.

I prefer Devo's cover of Can't Get No(Satisfaction) to the Rolling Stones version.

I like that one, but the relationship between original and cover kind of functions differently than a lot of these others (at least as I hear them). It's more like commentary on the original; like you need to know the original exists for Devo's rethinking to have maximum impact as a dismantling of a classic.

You don't need to know Dylan's "Watchtower" to get everything you need out of Hendrix's.

Partly. Quality comparisons aside, they make nearly every song they do more "fun" than the originals. Lets not get into a semantics argument though, I think they're a fun cover band but I wouldn't argue that their version of "Isn't She Lovely" is better than Stevie Wonder's original. Fun is fun though.

What don't you like about it? I'm just curious. I'm not a big fan of 80's synth pop so its obvious why I like the SOUND better in the remake. I also like that it creates its own mood and tone instead of strictly mimicking the original. I'm not stating a case, I just figured I'd explain what I like about it since I'm asking you why you don't. And if you just don't like it, I'm cool with that explanation. You said "no" six times so I suspect you have a lot to say about it.

Wait... is this Dave Stewart?

I prefer Bauhaus' version of Ziggy Stardust slightly more than Bowie's.

Not in a million years.

Did this get to the second page without mention of The White Stripes version of "Jolene"?

Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds covers of "Black Betty" and "Stagger Lee". "Stagger Lee" is hard to pin pint though. Too many versions of the song for me to nail down the definitive version let alone the original. Having said that, this is my preferred cut of the song.

Tom Waits "Hokey Pokey" It OWNS, man. I dance evry time it comes on my stereo.

Edit: The more I think about it the less these selection belong here. They're not so much covers as versions of standards. "Black Betty" is associated with Steve Miller in my head but its an old blues song. Disregard these. I guess they don't fit.

Same here. All those washed-out guitars make it sound really epic.

Alright, I got one. Tom Waits "Heigh Ho" from the Disney covers album Go to Sleep. Marianne Faithfull's cover of "Baby Mine" is all kinds of awesome too.

Edit: and yes, I think those two songs are better than the originals. The question becomes is it because I already am familiar with the songs as they appeared in the films or do they stand on their own merits? I assert the latter.

Big Daddy is fucking amazing. It kills me that their stuff is way, way out of print.

Cream's 'Crossroads'>>>>>Robert Johnson's 'Cross Road Blues'

Deep Purple's 'Hush'>>>>>Billy Joe Royal's 'Hush'

No Doubt's 'It's My Life' >>>>>Talk Talk's 'It's My Life'

David Bowie's 'China Girl'>>>>>Iggy Pop's 'China Girl'

Ike & Tina Turner's 'Proud Mary'>>>>>Creedence Clearwater Revival's 'Proud Mary'

It's not bettered, but Kelly Clarkson's cover of The White Stripes' 'Seven Nation Army' from just a few days ago made me all giddy inside.

I'm gonna disagree with you on these two as a matter of taste. Talk Talk had some grit to em which I prefer. Ditto "China Girl". Iggy just sounds so much sleazier in his take. And that's why I love him.

In other Kelly Clarkson news, The Gaslight Anthem make "I Do Not Hook Up" sound like a Springsteen song. But it's the Gaslight Anthem; they make everything sound like a Springsteen song.

Live Lounge has some great reinterpretations in their history. Other ones I love or really like:

The Noisettes doing the Killers "When You Were Young." like a girl group song.

Alicia Keys slowing down and pumping up the Fray's "How To Save A Life." It doesn't entirely work, but it's certainly better than the Fray's.

Lady Gaga does, I don't know, something with Coldplay's "Viva La Vida." And I do think it's safe to say that Young at Heart does for "Fix You" what Johnny Cash did for "Hurt."

Here's the Mystery Jets doing a cute cover of "Bleeding Love," and this isn't from LiveLounge, but here's a fun cover of "Hot and Cold" from a Ukranian band.

And here's Amanda Palmer covering "Brick" with the Boston Pops. It's great.

And maybe my favorite recent cover, and definitely one that fits with this thread, Los Straitjackets bringing a surf rock sensibility to "My Heart Will Go On."

Yeah, I can hear where you're coming from. I prefer the shiny bombast and power-pop of No Doubt and Bowie's versions.

And there is more than enough room in the world for both of these opinions to coexist in harmony. Aaawwww!

Dude, you are fucking awesome!

Rath is the King Of Finding Awesome Cover Tunes.

As of a couple months ago, their greatest hits album was available on iTunes.

Long may he reign!

Those are just a few I thought of when thinking of LiveLounge tunes. I've got over 3 thousand cover songs, between singles and full albums on my computer at home.

And I can't believe I forgot about Marianne Faithfull's new album of cover songs, Easy Come, Easy Go, where she covers Neko Case's "Hold On Hold On" (which doesn't really work on the album), but brings the fire to a cover of the Decemberists' "The Crane Wife 3" (with Nick Cave!).

And, thanks to the YouTube sidebar, I found this.

I love the Queen version too, but I'll say Metallica's version of Stone Cold Crazy.

Johnny Cash's version of Hurt is the only song that has ever made me cry (although to be fair there was a little booze involved in that one) and as much as I like the original is far better.

Fear Factory's version of Cars by Gary Numan.

Children of Bodom's cover of Oops I Did It Again, joke or not, is a huge step up from the original song.

I was able to find "Cutting their Own Groove" (which is just as good), but not any of their earlier stuff.

Haha, Dave is my 65-year-old father-in-law. He can't stand Cash because "all he does is talk. That's not singing!"

Here are a couple covers of mediocre songs that I think turn great because of the performances- "Careless Whisper" by Ben Folds/Rufus Wainwright and "Crazy" by The Twilight Singers. I'm kind of a sucker for Dulli's voice anyway but the way they slow down the tempo just makes the song work better, I think.

Probably borderline blasphemy, but I love SRV's instrumental cover of Little Wing more than Hendrix's original. Does that one really count as a cover since it's an instrumental? Gah.