Your Favorite Cover Songs

[randomguy]

Okay, so I searched the forums diligently, and apparently this thread hasn't been done before, which I find simply astounding.

Anyhow, pretty simple question:

What are your favorite cover songs of all time?

List as many as you like and, if you care to, why you like them, or what you think makes for a great cover song. Here's a few of mine just to get the ball rolling:

-The Ramones' cover of the 60's Spider-Man theme. This cover takes the horrendously catchy lyrics of the original, and adds amazing (pun very much intended) guitar and vocals. The first time I heard this, I must have been grinning from ear to ear. It's infectiously fun.

-Nirvana's cover of Leadbelly's "Where Did You Sleep Last Night?", which they performed on their MTV Unplugged set. Cobain's vocals on this cover are just blistering. It's an incredibly emotional thing to listen to, and it's the musical equivalent of being punched in the gut. Very powerful.

-Jimi Hendrix's cover of Bob Dylan's "All Along The Watchtower" is a classic, so strong that it dwarfs the original version in pretty much everybody's mind. In fact, I believe Dylan himself now plays the Hendrix version in concert, which I figure is a testament to this cover's greatness.

And that's just a sampling. What are your choices?

[silverwings]

Just discovered New Found Glory recently. Loved their covers of My Heart Will Go On, Time After Time, and Glory of Love. :D

[RD!]

I don't know a lot of cover songs, some of my favorite songs could be cover songs and I would never notice it but oh well.

The Shins - We Will Become Silhouettes; It's the shins covering a Postal Service. Impossible to hate.

Iron and Wine - Such Great Heights; This one took a long time for me to warm up to. It was my first encounter with Sam Beam and I wasn't impressed, but now I can listen to it and hear more than someone just slowly speaking the lines to the song.

Cake has two really good covers. I will Survive is fun and The Guitar Man is GOLD.

[Jon Hanson]

Warren Zevon's cover of Knockin' On Heaven's Door is beautiful. Five iron Frenzy's cover of ELO's Sweet Talkin' Woman is tons of fun.

[Kury Wagner]

Ooh that's a tough one... See, I'm extremely picky when it comes to cover songs. Most down-right suck, while others are just alright (like Jesus). I could easily name my least favorites, but this is a big harder. I'd also like to mention that it's hard enough to find a good cover, but to find a good Floyd cover is extremely hard! I've yet to really find one that I'd accept as being good.

But anyway, one worth mentioning is Don't Wanna Miss A Thing covered by New Found Glory. I actually liked that one. But it's late... I can't think... I'll edit tomorrow.

[Eidan]

Joe Cocker's cover of "With a Little Help From My Friends" eats, craps, and then spits on the Beatles' version.

Then again, I also prefer Fiona Apple's cover of "Across the Universe" over the Beatles original.

Emmylou Harris' cover to "The Boxer" is another personal favorite of mine, even though nothing will top the Simon & Garfunkel original. Dear god I love that song.

A big fan of Rufus Wainwright's cover to Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah".

Seu Jorge's covers from The Life Aquatic are all great, but my personal favorite is probably "Starman". He made David Bowie proud with that one.

[Michael24]

What I can think of at the moment . . .

* Clint Black's "Desperado" (I love The Eagles, but prefer his version.)
* Martina McBride's "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" gives the original a serious run for its money.

[Stewie]

I like almost all of the covers Johnny Cash did that I have heard. Particularly "Hurt."
Hendrix of course, (and Dave Matthews) doing "All Along the Watchtower."

[Mynd Hed]

I like Sheryl Crow's more understated cover of "Sweet Child of Mine." The Guns 'n Roses cover is, of course, also quite good.

I guess the most recent one that I really enjoyed was 311's cover of the Cure's "Love Song," although that's such a good song that you'd have to try pretty hard to do it wrong.

I read somewhere that John Lennon's "Imagine" is the most-covered song of the 20th century, and I have several good versions, including a nice one by Live.

And, of course, there are few guilty pleasures either as pleasurable or as guilty as listening to Incubus perform "Like a Virgin." (-:

[randomguy]

I like Sheryl Crow's more understated cover of "Sweet Child of Mine." The Guns 'n Roses cover is, of course, also quite good.Actually, the Guns 'n Roses version is the original. Although I too like the Sheryl Crow version.

Ooh that's a tough one... See, I'm extremely picky when it comes to cover songs. Most down-right suck, while others are just alright (like Jesus). I could easily name my least favorites, but this is a big harder.I can be pretty choosy, too. The key to a good cover song, in my opinion, is that it brings something new to the table. The cover songs that really bother me tend to be the ones that duplicate the original nearly exactly. A really great cover song puts an entirely new spin on the original, bringing it a distinctive quality and allowing you to enjoy the song on an entirely new level.

Take for instance, Johnny Cash's cover of Nine Inch Nails' "Hurt", which Stewie mentioned. It takes the original and does something completely different with it. It's almost like an entirely new song. Those are the kind of covers I enjoy.

A few more that fit the distinction:

-The Foo Fighters' cover of Gerry Rafferty's "Baker Street". The original is a great song with a distinctive melody, but the Foo Fighters add a fantastic hard rock spin to it.

-Another Johnny Cash cover, "Rusty Cage" (originally a Soundgarden tune) is really excellent. The original song is a fun, pulse-pounding alt-rock tune, and Cash's version is an enjoyable country tune with a twang to it. Great stuff. In fact, all of the Cash covers are great. I've never heard one I didn't like.

-There's an Austin band called AC/Dixie that exclusively plays bluegrass covers of popular songs, and they do a lot of great work. Particularly noteworthy is their cover of Prince's "Rasberry Beret", which works surprisingly well as a country song.

-Joss Stone's cover of the White Stripes' "Fell In Love With A Girl" is wonderful, and in my opinion superior to the original. Joss turns the original pop-punk tune into an R&B ballad with a soulful quality.

-I figure the Eric Clapton cover of Bob Marley's "I Shot The Sheriff" is pretty damn popular for a good reason.

-Stevie Ray Vaughan's cover of Jimi Hendrix's "Little Wing" is so distinctive that I'm not entirely comfortable calling it a cover song, but I'll mention it here for completeness' sake. The original Hendrix song is two and a half minutes long, with a great guitar riff and some vocals. The SRV version ditches the vocals entirely, preserves the melody but reworks everything else, and is seven minutes long. It keeps the spirit of the original, but turns it into a blues instrumental, and the results are awesome.

[Matt Hazuda]

I'm tried of the band, but New Found Glory's "From the Screen to Your Stereo" cover album is still a fun listen. Their cover of "My Heart Will go On" is funny.

Me First and the Gimme Gimmes "Over the Rainbow" is another good one, as is Cake's "I Will Survive" like someone else mentioned.

[Kury Wagner]

Well as a few have mentioned, Johnny Cash's cover "Hurt" is great. And like Mynd Hed, I liked 311's cover of "Love Song." Also...

Big Yellow Taxi covered by Counting Crows.
Brown Eyed Girl covered by Everclear.
First Cut is the Deepest covered by Sheryl Crow.
And of course... Smooth Criminal covered by Alien Ant Farm. :D Hah, oh c'mon. It's a great cover. I like it better than the original.

[Eidan]

I read somewhere that John Lennon's "Imagine" is the most-covered song of the 20th century
The most covered song in history is The Beatles' "Yesterday".

[Marklar]

My favorite's gotta be Johnny Cash's version of "Hurt."

I also like the Ramones' version of "Let's Dance." If you're into good ol' punk rock, Lars Frederiksen & The Bastards do some fine covers, including Billy Bragg's "To Have and To Have Not," "Leavin' Here" which I think was originally by the Yardbirds and later covered by Motorhead, and "Marie Marie" by The Blasters.
The 12 Step Rebels do a really cool psychobilly version of "Delia's Gone" by Johnny Cash as well.

[Spastic Minnow]

From "if I were a Carpenter":
Sonic Youth- Superstar
Shonen Knife-On Top of the World

Tori Amos has done a number of good covers.
Angie(Rolling Stones)
Smells Like Teen Spirit(Nirvana)
Somewhere over the Rainbow
'97 Bonnie & Clyde (Eminem) & alot from 'Strange Little Girls' (but NOT her horrible rendition of 'Happiness is a warm gun)

Cowboy Junkies-Blue Moon Revisited (Elvis/The Marcels (revised))
Lauryn Hill- Can't take my eyes off of you
The Revolting "Caulks"- Do ya Think I'm Sexy(Rod Stewart)
TMBG-Why Does The Sun Shine(old obscure childrens song)
Dead Can Dance (Kate Rusby does a great version as well)- I am Stretched on your grave (Sinead O'Connor/traditional)
Crash Test Dummies- Androgynous (The Replacements)
Living Colour- Talking Loud and Sayin' Nothing(James Brown) & the other covers from Bisquits
Red Hot Chili Peppers- Higher Ground (Stevie Wonder)

And my favorite Beatles covers:

John Denver- Mother Nature's Son (I'm sorry, I heard this one first as a little kid and it's always seemed more authentic to me)
The Breeders-Happiness is a warm Gun
Cornershop- Norweigen Wood




on the other hand... This morning I flipped on VH1 to Lisa Marie Presley absolutely destroying Don Henley's "Dirty Laundry", which really wasn't really a classic before, but Lisa Marie certainly suceeded in making it into an utter piece of smelly crap.

[Chrono1995]

Seu Jorge's covers from The Life Aquatic are all great, but my personal favorite is probably "Starman". He made David Bowie proud with that one.
I concur. I practically burned a hole in the CD playing "Starman" and "Rebel Rebel". While we're on the subject of Bowie, I'd like to mention Nirvana's cover of "The Man Who Sold the World."

My personal favorite cover of all time would have to be "Mr. Grieves" by the Pixies covered by TV on the Radio. They take the original and turn it into a slow, stoned, doo-wop dirge. Probably the most creative/addicting/kick-ass cover I've ever heard.

Scissor Sisters' version of "Comfortably Numb"...wow. If Pink Floyd ever decided to go down the path of disco and the Bee Gees, this is how the original would've sounded.

Last but not least is Beck's version of "Everybody's Gotta Learn Sometimes."

[RD!]

Last but not least is Beck's version of "Everybody's Gotta Learn Sometimes."I had no idea it was a cover!

[Colin]

Ugly Kid Joe's cover of "Cat's in the Cradle" I really like...
Orgy's cover of "Blue Monday" is a neat transformation of the original
No Doubt's cover of "It's My Life" is good, too
the cover of "Mad World" from Donnie Darko is sooo creepingly haunting... (don't remember the artist, but I'll probably think of it in a little bit)

I'm sure there are more that I can't think of right now... mainly cause I don't think my brains functioning properly right now, lol... so I'll post more as I think of 'em.

[randomguy]

the cover of "Mad World" from Donnie Darko is sooo creepingly haunting... (don't remember the artist, but I'll probably think of it in a little bit)
The artist is Gary Jules, and it's a cover of a Tears For Fears song. That is a good choice.

[Enrique]

I came across this by accident and am glad I did. There's a CD called "Stoned Immaculate", which is a collection of nothing but covers to Doors songs. It features Break on Thru by Stone Temple Pilots, Peace Frog by Smashmouth, Riders of the Storm by Creed (which, dare I say it, I like better than the original!), and even William S. Burroughs (who clearly hit his infamous peyote before recording the track :P ). This is one of my most prized CDs, I've even burned a copy because the original is getting pretty scratched up.

[DarkAngel]

I came across this by accident and am glad I did. There's a CD called "Stoned Immaculate", which is a collection of nothing but covers to Doors songs. It features Break on Thru by Stone Temple Pilots, Peace Frog by Smashmouth, Riders of the Storm by Creed (which, dare I say it, I like better than the original!), and even William S. Burroughs (who clearly hit his infamous peyote before recording the track :P ). This is one of my most prized CDs, I've even burned a copy because the original is getting pretty scratched up.Yeah, it's an incredible collection. Some of that stuff is definitely among my favorite covers. Particularly loved Break on Through, Peace Frog, and LA Woman.

Another cover I love is Welcome Home (Sanitarium) by Limp Bizkit.

[Daughterof_Evil]

"All is Full of Love," by Bjork, covered by Death Cab For Cutie. I didn't even realize it was the same song until the lyrics came on. Oddly, I've only heard it once, and then it seemed to disappear from the radio and from all radio databases, even when I called in to request it, leading me to believe I was hallucinating.

Also, Utada Hikaru covering U2's "With or Without You," and Johnny Cash's cover of U2's "One", as well as the much-aforementioned "Hurt". As well as changing the overall mood of "Hurt" (it was originally quite angry...he made it simply regretful), Cash changed one or two words, and I really prefer it to Trent Reznor's version. Unearthed is just chock full of useful and awesome covers, though, so I can't go through the whole damn thing or we'll be here all day.

[KefkaFloyd]

I could tell you one of my LEAST favorite covers -

The Goo Goo Dolls covering Supertramp's "Give A Little Bit."

The song was done right the first time, damnit, and Supertramp gets no respect. I sure hope Rick Davies is laughing all the way to the bank. Every time I hear it I just scream out "THIS IS A SUPERTRAMP SONG!" Never has something caused such irrational anger in me.

[RD!]

"All is Full of Love," by Bjork, covered by Death Cab For Cutie. I didn't even realize it was the same song until the lyrics came on. Oddly, I've only heard it once, and then it seemed to disappear from the radio and from all radio databases, even when I called in to request it, leading me to believe I was hallucinating.I've always known the DCFC "All is Full of Love" was a Bjork cover but it wasn't until today that I could honestly appreciate the song. I don't know a lot about Bjork's music but the way she just spits this song out in hard English makes it almost entirely impossible to listen to until she actually starts to sing. Much, much, better than DCFC's cover of the Smith's "This Charming Man."

[Nik Jam]

311's cover of Love Song by the Cure
The Cure's cover of World in my Eyes by Depeche Mode
Actually, most of the Depeche Mode Tribute Album "For the Masses" is good.
Mad World by Jules was not bad, it was a bit enjoyable..

Oooh. the Seatbelts did a great cover of Pink Floyd's On the Run instrumental!

[Boy Wonder]

Fear Factory's cover of "Cars" is absolutely awesome!

[murmur]

Good choices all. I'll add "Turn the Page" originally by Bob Seiger and Metallica. They really pull off some crescendos that the original's style just doesn't allow for. Then again I'm biased because it's probably my best karaoke song.:harley:

[SirLemming]

Snake River Conspiracy's cover of "Lovesong" (The Cure). It's a complete transformation. I find it amazing how 311's recent cover and this recent cover manage to be on totally opposite ends of the spectrum. 311's cover is a smooth reggae-tinted ballad, whereas SRC's cover is an aggressive, dark, epic industrial synth assault (with diabolical female vocals). They added a lot of really cool stuff to the song, so much that it's almost more of a co-writing than a cover.

[MajorTom]

One people haven't mentioned is System of a Down's cover of "Metro." I don't find the original entertaining, (I don't like New Wave) but this version is really good.

-Major Tom

[Xfox]

A lot of cover songs are worse than the original (Save Ferris "Come On Eileen"), a few are just as good (No Doubt "It's My Life"), but the only one I can think of that's vastly superior is Seal's cover of Steve Miller's song "Fly Like An Eagle". He puts a lot more energy into it than Steve did.

[Manhunter]

Jimi Hendrix's cover of "All Along The Watchtower"
Lenny Kravitz' cover of "American Woman"
Rage Against the Machine's cover of "How I Could Just Kill A Man"
Stevie Wonder's cover of "We Can Work It Out" (more energetic than the original Beatles version)

Plus, any song Luther Vandross covers, he makes his own (although I didn't really care for his remake of "Always and Forever").

[Daughterof_Evil]

I've always known the DCFC "All is Full of Love" was a Bjork cover but it wasn't until today that I could honestly appreciate the song. I don't know a lot about Bjork's music but the way she just spits this song out in hard English makes it almost entirely impossible to listen to until she actually starts to sing. Much, much, better than DCFC's cover of the Smith's "This Charming Man."
Weirdly enough, I believe there might just be two slightly different versions of Bjork singing "All is Full of Love"...I'm not sure if one is a remix or if she just messed with the levels and released another version with much more ambient bass and softer opening vocals (possibly for her "Best of" album) and that second version is actually, to my ears, better than the first. Though that would of course depend on which...came first in the first place...headache...

I'm sort of a recreational DCFC fan, so I haven't heard "This Charming Man", though I might have to go through my brother's DCFC archive and get back to you on that opinion.

[DarkAngel]

Stevie Wonder's cover of "We Can Work It Out" (more energetic than the original Beatles version)I haven't heard his version. Do you know where I'd be able to find it?

[Manhunter]

I haven't heard his version. Do you know where I'd be able to find it?
On his "Signed, Sealed And Delivered" album and on his "At the Close of a Century" collection.

[Andy Mancini]

My favorite at the present moment is Bump of Chicken's cover of The Pillows' "Hybrid Rainbow." I'm a fan of The Pillows, but Bump's version, with its mellow, pseudo-folk style and slow build, makes the original just look silly.

Others:

"Golden Years" by Marylin Manson - Unlike every other Manson cover in existence, this one has a harder edge to it but without sacrificing the song's soul.

"One" by Three Dog Night - Not may people realize this, but that song was actually written and recorded by Harry Nilsson. As much of a Nilsson fan as I am, I'll take Three Dog Night's slow build to Nilsson's "Elenor Rigby"-esque plodding any day.

"Sympathy For the Devil" by Blood, Sweat, and Tears - Any band that is able to take a fairly laid-back rock classic and turn it into a twelve minute, "Jesus Christ, Superstar" inspired track is worth a mention. Oh... and it's creepy. Very creepy.

"Istanbul (Not Constantinople)" by They Might Be Giants - Come on... I'm a TMBG fan.

"Mahna Mahna" by Cake - Picture the Muppet's song "Mahna Mahna" in your head. Now picture Cake covering that song. Hear it now? That's exactly what it sounds like.