Covers

[Mormon Red Death]

Dynamite Hack's "boyz n da hood" cover is the best of all time

Hands down

[Mrs. Funk]

[youtube]W91sqAs-_-g[/youtube]

Wow... and to think I thought there couldn't be anything worse than the original...

[jay santos]

I'm late on this thread. Two more good covers.

Lenny Kravitz American Woman
GnR Knockin on Heaven's Door

[jay santos]

I may be one of the few that does not enjoy covers....at least, not for the most part.

I generally find them to be very forgettable.

One bad cover....U2 trying to do Helter Skelter. Interesting because at the beginning of the song, Bono claims that the band was taking the song back from Manson. They were not successful, in my opinion.

While I agree with EPU about Tainted Love, I wonder if our opinions are a bit skewed on that one......the first time I heard tainted love, I had no idea it was a cover. Not until later did I learn that it was not a Soft Cell song. Had I been 40 years old when Soft Cell released its version, I likely would have found the Marc Almond rendition to be forgettable, as well.

A quirky cover that I still enjoy to this day is Devo's post-punk version of Satisfaction. However, I enjoy it for the kitsch, not because I think it is superior to the original.

If I had to pick one cluster of covers that I really respect.....it was Rick Rubin producing all those remakes with Johnny Cash...Hurt, In My Life, One, Personal Jesus, etc...Something about the Man in Black singing those tunes that resonated me with. I don't find any of his remakes to be superior to the originals, but his interpretation was very respectable. And Double R's decision to strip the instrumentation raw makes for some very emotional covers. His version of Redemption Song with Joe Strummer still gets me.......when Strummer comes in with the "emancipate yourself from mental slavery".....I love that version.

Johnny Cash Hurt is the best cover I can think of. Wow, that's a powerful song.

It seems every week I hear my kids listening to a new teeny bopper pop music crappy cover of a good 80's song. Sad.

[MarkGrace]

I'm not ashamed to express my occasional appreciation for progressive house music, though. Eight years with a Norwegian step-family has made me come to enjoy it.

Then I hope you picked up the Justice album in 2007. That record is ridiculous.

[Tim]

Another decent cover that I enjoy:

[YOUTUBE]<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/rQi8wEHMm5Y&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/rQi8wEHMm5Y&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>[/YOUTUBE]

I don't have a problem with Youth Group. They've had a few tracks that I've enjoyed.

[HuskyFreeNorthwest]

And here is a way out there type of cover. Definitely his style makes me laugh:

[youtube]KCv2cgIlnHA[/youtube]

I really enjoy Richard Cheese. Every time one of his versions pops up on my ipod I smile.

[HuskyFreeNorthwest]

Stevie Wonder - Jesus Children of America
[YOUTUBE]oM4wvq8MtHA[/YOUTUBE]

Soulive - Jesus Children
[YOUTUBE]HWBajtl-cds[/YOUTUBE]

Here is maybe the worst Stevie Wonder cover ever.
[YOUTUBE]7pAlE__PR28[/YOUTUBE]

[wuapinmon]

ORIGINAL (on a good stereo/good recording, it has few reggae equals), 1970

[YOUTUBE]<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/UhjBiZSfM08&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/UhjBiZSfM08&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>[/YOUTUBE]

COVER, 1992
[YOUTUBE]<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Ml4YdGaL9mo&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Ml4YdGaL9mo&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>[/YOUTUBE]

ORIGINAL (you can't hear the bass very well on this video, so it's not optimal)
[YOUTUBE]<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/6mgX_rvdDQM&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/6mgX_rvdDQM&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>[/YOUTUBE]

COVER, (with Sly and Robbie as the rhythm section) 2001
[YOUTUBE]<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/m7ZKDpFq0C0&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/m7ZKDpFq0C0&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>[/YOUTUBE]


ORIGINAL
[YOUTUBE]<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Xv6lHwWwO3w&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Xv6lHwWwO3w&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>[/YOUTUBE]


COVER
[YOUTUBE]<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/cvsI3jc4pPA&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/cvsI3jc4pPA&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>[/YOUTUBE]

[BoylenOver]

One more cover (and original) that I love:

Tegan and Sara
[YOUTUBE]jtCGODjuRq0[/YOUTUBE]

Cover by The White Stripes
[YOUTUBE]jeYyoU8kKPQ[/YOUTUBE]

[MarkGrace]

If artist wants to cover Neil Young then I say fine, go cover any song from "Everybody's Rockin'" because that was crap but please leave every thing else alone.

There are some Neil covers that I really love. Radiohead has done four (After the Goldrush, Tell Me Why, Cinnamon Girl, On the Beach -- possibly my fav of the bunch), and I'm also a huge fan of Built to Spill's cover of Cortez the Killer. I will refrain from posting that one since at 20 minutes I don't think anyone is going to listen to it anyway.

I also really like some covers Neil has done, including A Day In the Life:

[YOUTUBE]<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Hbet0Ck-zfE&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Hbet0Ck-zfE&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object> [/YOUTUBE]

My favorite Pearl Jam cover of a Dylan classic:
[YOUTUBE]
<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/q2kk-v7NLr4&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/q2kk-v7NLr4&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>[/YOUTUBE]

[BoylenOver]

These are two Black Sabbath covers I'm ambivalent about (I mean, they're completely different from the originals, but I absolutely adore The Cardigans):

[YOUTUBE]SzgZJEpLuw0[/YOUTUBE]

[YOUTUBE]XE9X_Yui1L8[/YOUTUBE]

Also, I can't help but post Metallica here

[YOUTUBE]WEC6D0ppYNU[/YOUTUBE]

[YOUTUBE]dOibtqWo6z4[/YOUTUBE]

I know people that are pissed with the Dylan cover, but I was familiar with the Metallica version long before I heard the original, so I like it.

[Surfah]

This is one of the more ballsy covers I've heard. I'm not sure just anybody can cover Michael and make it work, but Chris Cornell does an excellent job with his cover of Billie Jean:

[youtube]kS5C2Dr8jk0[/youtube]

I like Chris Cornell, but I didn't buy it.

[Sizzle]

This is one of the more ballsy covers I've heard. I'm not sure just anybody can cover Michael and make it work, but Chris Cornell does an excellent job with his cover of Billie Jean:

[youtube]kS5C2Dr8jk0[/youtube]

[Sizzle]

This one, if only for the video:

[youtube]PJQVlVHsFF8[/youtube]

This one, if only because I loved the original back in HS:

[youtube]i0-a8TIKWAc[/youtube]

And here is a way out there type of cover. Definitely his style makes me laugh:

[youtube]KCv2cgIlnHA[/youtube]