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First off, I love your choices of Imagination, Stand By Me, I Fought The Law, and Respect which is so good that many people are shocked when they hear it's not the original.
I'll add these off the top of my head:
All Along The Watchtower - Hendrix - and obvious choice I guess.
Stormy Monday Allman Brothers
(What's So Funny About) Peace, Love and Understanding - Elvis Costello
She's A Woman - Jeff Beck
Ruby Baby - Donald Fagen
While My Guitar Gently Weeps - Jake Shimabukoro
Hell's bells. I never knew that! I learn something new on the Intertubes every single day.
My favorite covers I've listened to today:
"I Wish I Knew" - Derek Trucks Band (Trucks' solos are incredibly melodic and distinguishable from anyone else's guitar sound, and Mike Mattison's vocals fill me with such a deep and genuine joy.)
"High and Dry" - Jorge Drexler (His voice is as smooth and sweet as honey, and just as thick with emotion, too.)
"Jesus Just Left Chicago" - Phish (On the live album Slip, Stitch and Pass; piano/guitar solos that build and build so, so slow, then release with a bang, kinda like a... Well, you know.)
"Cortez the Killer" - Warren Haynes and Dave Matthews Band (Version from the Central Park show; I watch/listen to this song on the DVD, and my hair stands on end throughout the whole thing.)
I cheated a little here. It was from his early days with Brinsley Schwartz and I think only about 5 people ever heard it. I stuck the Elvis' classic as an opening track on one of my mix CD's and followed it up with Monkey to Man and it got me through some of the darkest days of the Bushco - to this day the song kills me, especially when he sings, Where are the strong / who are the trusted?
An as far as this is concerned:
Trucks’ solos are incredibly melodic and distinguishable from anyone else’s guitar sound
I couldn't agree more. I think he is the best guitarist to come along in many a year. Just brilliant.
And thanks for the tip on Warren jamming with DM. I just queued it up on YouTube
Haynes really kills it with DMB during the Central Park concert - DMB gets a bad rep I think because of their overzealous frat-boy fans, but they are insanely talented.
As for Phish, I'll say this: When they're off, they're way off, but when they're on, magic happens. Their cover of "Jesus" really is worth a listen, I think.
Here's the lineup, although the early discs shipped out for review say the order could change:
1. Are You Experienced?
2. Everybody Wants To Rule The World
3. Helpless
4. Gimme Shelter
5. Within You Without You
6. White Rabbit
7. Changing Of The Guards
8. Boy In The Bubble, The
9. Soul Kitchen
10. Smells Like Teen Spirit
11. Midnight Rider
12. Pastime Paradise
Also, I really like her cover of Dylan's Wicked Messenger.
I can't say I have a hierarchacal list. The lines are too fuzzy. For example, producer Norm Whitfield recorded "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" with Smokey and the Isleys (unreleased) before hitting w/ Gladys Knight and then a year later w/ Marvin Gaye. Is Marvin's verison a cover? Maybe. It certainly hit after Gladys Knight's making it a prime candidate for #1 on any covers list.
However, I will offer a couple worth noting:
First, The Beatles' "Twist & Shout." As Aretha did w/ "Respect," The Beatles seized that song and held on to it forever; and it may be John Lennon's greatest vocal.
Second, Elvis Presley's volcanic (Arlen Specter's word, but I like it!) 1973 version of Chuck Berry's "The Promised Land." The Kings last great moment and one of his best. Rocks like a mother. And the song fits him like a leather jump suit.
Third, Warren Zevon's version of "Back in the Highlife" which I think was on Mutineer. Completely remade the song as a down tempo broken boozer's lament for a comeback he knows is never coming. Brilliant!
Fourth, the Band's version of Marvin Gaye's "Baby Don't You Do It" from Rock of Ages just flat out smokes! (A list of the best rock covers of Motown songs would be a much more managable list to assemble.)
One I don't love is Hendrix' "Watchtower." I adore Hendrix and actually believe almost ever facet of his music is dramatically UNDERrated. But I think his "Watchtower" slogs rhythmically. He fluffs the lyrics badly and not because he's altering 'em creatively, he just has no idea what the words are or what they're about. One of the most overrated records of all time. And I don't think Dylan ever played Jimi's arrangement. What he said in an interview was that it was weird to play the song because it felt like he was playing a tribute to Hendrix. I guess that says Jimi seized the song despite my personal beefs with the performance (I can think of two dozen Jimi performances I'd save first from a burning building, including another cover, "Hey Joe").
Patti Smith is a genius of covers. Among the greatest covers I've seen her perform in concert are: Paint It Black, When Doves Cry, and maybe best of all, George Michael's Father Figure. Can't wait to hear her do Changing of the Guard and Pastime Paradise. And yeah, her Wicked Messenger was fabulous.
For the sake of clarity, as I think you already know this, it should be noted that while Gladys Knight and the Pip's version was released first, Marvin's take was actually recorded earlier but rejected by Berry Gordy for release. Whitfield convinced Gordy to revisit and change his decision after Knight's version was a hit.
You Really Got Me - Van Halen covering the Kinks
http://youtube.com/watch?v=0YRqkRmRocQ
I Can't Quit You Baby - Led Zeppelin covering Otis Rush
http://youtube.com/watch?v=NZNMWtI0N_A
Everything on The Rolling Stones record England's Greatest Hitmakers but especially their cover of Slim Harpo's I'm A King Bee. I love that track so much that I play the record regularly just to hear it.
Sweet Jane - Mott The Hoople's cover on the All The Young Dudes record.
North Country Girl - Dylan and Johnny Cash [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmLL4Fzmo8c], The Eels, and Pete Townshend
http://avc.blogs.com/a_vc/2006/08/song_of_the_d...
Twist and Shout - yeah, that's a great choice and you know I love Promised Land - left Elvis off because he did so msny covers, really and was from a different era. (Then again, I did put Johnny Cash on there).
But the gem in your list is the Zevon track - I love that recording and play it all the time.
Fred, I know your obsession with that Cash-Dylan track! It is a great one...
Hell, Elvis's Sun recordings of That's Alright Mama, Mystery Train, and Good Rockin' Tonight would, in my book, push everything but Respect off Tom's list. Hound Dog too, if the criteria include singers who made the songs their own, these definitely belong w/ Twist & Shout, Watchtower and Respect. The King's Blue Suede Shoes too!
BTW, just thinking about this, that first Aretha Atlantic album is full of classic covers. Besides Respect there's A Change is Gonna Come and Drown in My Own Tears, all great versions.
That's spectacular.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hS3hEuAbuLE
And the new Pearl Jam cover of The Who's "Love, Reign O'er Me" is surprisingly good, too.
but, i digress - it's a somewhat surprisingly 'lightweight' bit of joyful pop that i have to nominate as my 'best cover':
it has to be 'love machine' originally by girls aloud but as covered by my local band, the arctic monkeys - makes me smile like no other pop song. the fact the arctic monkeys are all sheffield wednesday fans only serves to remind us of their eccentric take on the real world. but, listen to that cover and try to not smile - is impossible.
mind you, in a somewhat heavier music genre, with a serious music hat on, jack white in white stripes incarnation doing 'joleen' is pretty darn nerver tingling, especially live.
enjoy your sunday, folks!
Joleen is great - has that edge of madness quality I love.
Killer. The expanded edition of Live At Leeds is a Must_Have. They were a force to be reckoned with, and when you get right down to it, they were merely a trio when they were live in those days. Compare their live sound to Zeppelin's. I'm not going to get into a pissing contest about those two bands, as I love them both, and I think the three guys in Zep were all good rock players, especially the underrated John Paul Jones. But live? They couldn't touch The Who.
Elvis. It's All Right. Isn't that one that got it all started in the first place?
And it needs to be said, even though I think Tom disqualified them from the game, that virtually every cover that The Beatles did became Beatlesongs. Current favorites include You've Really Got a Hold on Me, Anna, and Baby, It's You. John singing his heart out with Paul and George as the two best backup singers ever.
BTW, ou can hear a low-res snippet of the original version of (What's So Funny About) Peace, Love and Understanding here. Click "all songs" once you get there.
My vote would have to be Eric Clapton's version of Bob Marley "I Shot the Sheriff." Not only did Eric do the song sweet justice, but it had a huge social and political impact. The song helped introduce Bob and his message to millions of fans. How many of these cover songs made the listener go out and buy the original artist material? Good question.
Peace, I and I, One Love
mpm
My favorite thing about cover songs is how some artists can make songs "theirs" while still paying tribute to the original. In my opinion, that's a major part of what artistic expression is all about. Some of my favorites that I haven't seen on the list yet include:
- Babe I'm Gonna Leave You, Led Zeppelin (Joan Baez): speaking of Zeppelin
- The Thrill Is Gone, Jerry Garcia & David Grisman (B.B. King): amazing how they changed this song's genre while making it sound as pure as the original
- The Man Who Sold The Word, Nivana (David Bowie): gave GenX exposure to the lesser known side of Bowie
- Hallelujah, Jeff Buckley (Leonard Cohen): song covered by many, this one stands out
- To Go Home, M Ward (Daniel Johnston): might be considered "too new" although this has to be considered an instant classic
- Masters of War, Pearl Jam (Bob Dylan): as immediate - and prevalent - as ever
- Take Me to the River, Talking Heads (Al Green): takes balls to cover Al Green, but they did it right
- Rock n' Roll, Jane's Addiction (Velvet Underground): quintessential band from late 80's LA scene covers quintessential band from late 60's NY Scene
- One, Johnny Cash (U2): I don't think I ever actually realized how haunting this song is until I heard Cash sing it
- Straight Outta Compton, Nina Gordon (NWA): if you haven't heard this, go to www.ninagordon.com/sightsandsounds.html - comical, bizarre and moving at the same time
When Will I Be Loved--Linda Rondstadt
The Theme From Get Carter--Stereolab
Spooky--Lydia Lunch
Rosalyn--David Bowie
I'm Only Sleeping--Roseanne Cash
My Way--Syd Vicious
Blinded By the Light--Manfred Mann's Earth Band
and getting better now that others have joined in.
i am particularly into Josh Stylman's choices.
we should be doing playlists instead of just listing tracks.
i wanto to put Josh's list on right now!
What does everyone think about Johnny Cash's version of Nine Inch Nails' "Hurt"? The first time I heard it, tears ran down my cheeks the entire length of the song, and I felt downright meloncholy for a good hour afterward. The shakiness in Cash's voice as he sings such desperate lyrics is just heart-wrenching.
Weezer's Say It Ain't So - Juliana Hatfield
and here's one I can't get a copy of, because although he must have recorded the whole song it's never been released:
Christina Aguilera's Beautiful - Elvis Costello
also, we did this on Metafilter a year ago.
My Favorite Things - John Coltrane. Absolutely brilliant.
Oh, ab-so-LEWD-ly!
Tom, we must be about exactly the same age -- but it didn't take me more than about 0.0006 seconds to realize this was a girl singing about a girl, and this stirred an odd combination of lust and fear in the 15-year-old moi. Patti just didn't give a rip what you thought of her little sexually transgressive thoughts, and (not having yet read Genet or Burroughs) this was probably my first contact with utterly unapologetic same-sex lust. Wow.
I absolutely loved -- and still do -- the way the band explodes on the line "And I've got this crazy feeling that I'm gonna/Uh-uh, make her mine" -- without question my introduction to the power of punk ("Horses" was a full two years before "Never Mind the Bollocks," if you can believe it...). The racing heart, the surging adrenaline, the impulse to destroy something useless...
Good to see Jason being his usual contrarian self. I agree completely about Hendrix's take on "All Along the Watchtower." It's a psychedelic tour de force, chock full of jaw-dropping production, a real grab-bag of chewy Electric Kool-Aid candyfloss -- but it completely misunderstands the actual song itself. Dylan's original, which is the centerpiece of perhaps the most anti-psychedelic record ever made, is icy-cold, sere, and deeply, deeply frightening.
(I think the most fascinating thing I've ever heard anybody say about "All Along the Watchtower" -- and dammit, I can't bring up the critic's name right now -- is that it can be viewed as a circle. Finish the lyric "Two riders were approaching/The wind began to howl" and then go right back to the top: "There must be some way out of here...!" -- if there is a Hell, it must involve something like the realization that No, There Is No Way Out of Here....
I'm surprised no one's yet brought up the Beatles' coruscating cover of Otis Redding's "Day Tripper." Man, they really rip through that one!
...And I'm wondering precisely what is involved in "poodling." If a pub is at the end of one's poodle, it certainly must be a pleasant enough activity.
After I heard "Horses" for the first time, I didn't listen to much Jethro Tull anymore. The kid who gave me the record really hated it -- he'd been given it by a well-meaning sister, but the kid was unalterably steeped in prog (poor thing), and let's just say, what they had there was a failure to communicate.
How about really bad covers? I'll nominate Yes's awful, awful, awful Pomp-Rock-ification of Simon & Garfunkel's "America"....
Sweet Dreams - Marilyn Manson. Of course he did that on purpose, but it still hurts to hear it.
Tutti Fruitti - Pat Boone. Talk about completely missing the point.
When A Man Loves A Woman and Dock of the Bay. - Michael Bolton. What can I say that can possibly describe the sheer audacity of that ham-fisted souless wannabe sullying those classic records?
she is so right, Warren and Dave killed it with that number.
he comes dancin' across the water
cortez, cortez
oh yeah
http://youtube.com/watch?v=2qs9DAne5VY
wow!
Also I'm partial to Joy Division's cover of "Sister Ray" and Frank Black and the Catholics doing Tom Waits' "Black Rider" (the opening-track version on Black Letter Days). Finally, even more obscurely, P. J. Harvey does a great "Is That All There Is?" on the album she did with John Parish.
Finally, let me second Fred's praise of Josh's list, save for the "Straight Out of Compton" track, which I don't get. Garcia/Grisman's "The Thrill Is Gone" really is a great remake. The Jerry Garcia Band did a nice cover of Marley's "Stop That Train" as well.
So many great choices that I had to wrack my brain to offer any new ones, but I have a couple. Number one, Everything I Own by Ken Boothe. It's the Bread song done as reggae, and it's a great example of the kind of emotional range that often gets neglected in the popular view of reggae. The strong beat is there for sure, but the mood is very gentle, lilting, and the end result very much something that a lover would sing to the beloved. What always struck me as treacle in the original version seems authentic here. It can be found on the Tougher than Tough anthology.
Number two: the mention of the Jerry Garcia Band reminded me of his version of Señor (Tales of Yankee Power). I'd always written it off as one of Dylan's wordy Seventies misfires, but the JGB version has the ominous feel of a good Fifties western--something bad is about to happen, and it's too late for regrets or protestations of innocence: everything will be swept away, and you always knew you were getting in too deep. Or, at least, that's my reading.
!!!
I heard this as a bumper on some NPR show or another recently, and I was immediately struck by exactly the qualities you describe. It's a really lovely reworking of the song, turning, as you rightly say, treacle into something quite warm and wonderful.
Nice one!
Couple of songs missing but I think most are here:
-Trapped- Bruce Springsteen's take on the Jimmy Cliff classic
-Friend of the Devil- Counting Crows
-Every Grain of Sand- Emmylou Harris's cover of the Dylan classic.
For me the worst cover is Rod Stewart's butchering of Tom Waits's Downtown Train.
The Hendrix Watchtower SMOKES the Dylan original. Before you pounce, I was only bating you above, I like a little Dylan and make my offering at the alter now and again, but PLEASE, the vocal coming out of the guitar solo still gives me chills even after hearing it a billions times. What, do you guys hate rock?
Add to the list Aerosmith’s “Train Kept a Rollin’ “ (don’t EVEN argue with me unless you’ve actually listened to it more than once). Judas Priest’s “Diamond’s & Rustâ€Â, Blackfoot’s “Wishing Well†(although the original is DAMN good), Nazareth’s “Love Hurtsâ€Â, Faith No More’s “War Pigsâ€Â… I’ve got more, but the greatest all time best cover/version is Stevie Ray Vaughn’s “Tin Pan Alleyâ€Â. I know Jason’s going to toss out some obscure artist to counter my posit, but there is NO WAY anybody comes close to the Stevie Ray version EVER (I have a half finished post on I need to resurrect).
The idea of A Newcritics Radio stream or podcast parking area could actually pull me out of the funk I’m in right now…
From their 1974 album Get Your Wings: "Train Kept a Rollin'", originally done by The Yardbirds, if I'm not mistaken. I begged my parents for an electric guitar, bought the tablature to that album, and would play along with the solos on this track. Joe Perry's guitar sounds like the scream of wheels against the metal of a train track (and so did my guitar efforts, and not necessarily in a good way...)
I got teased relentlessly at middle school for talking about all the Aerosmith concerts I was dragging my parents to (and for wearing black leather pants in an 'effort' to be as cool as Joe Perry - ok, maybe I deserved the harrassment...)
But I did grab the attention of my first "official" boyfriend that year, who thought it was super cool that I could play guitar. His name was Russell, and last I heard, he was in jail in Kentucky for drug-related charges.
Thanks, Aerosmith! ROCK ON.
that is the best wrong song ever in a way. I collect different versions of it. Patti's is by far the most innovative in its imagining of the song.
Other best covers are
"I wanna be your man" Rolling Stones version
"If She Ever Comes Now" Nirvana version
Everything the headcoatees ever did but especially "Length of Pipe" and "I've gotta move".
"Can't seem to make you mine" Alex Chilton version.
Actually there are a few artists whose whole gig is doing amazing covers. Like the Cramps.
You discovered that record in 1997 and I in 1976 and we both share the same affinity for it. There is only one reason for that being the case: it's a great fucking record and the Train Kept a Rollin' anchors that side of the LP so nicely doesn't? You get a little taste of some original composition with first track "SOS Too Bad" and BOOM!!! hear comes that awesome opening lick which I STILL can't figure out how to do the pull offs to make it some like the record. I almost can't listen to Train Kept a Rollin'" without hearing "SOS Too Bad" first. How 'bout the fade into "Spaced"?
Get Your Wings is perfection. It needs re-mastering and re-release.
Well, Patti Smith's version of Gloria is a great start. Other immediate covers that jump to my mind (probably now that Spring is here) are Johnny Thunders' Pipeline, the Cramps' Surfin Bird, half a dozen Ramones songs, and of course, Louie Louie by the Kingsmen.
For pure emotional kick in the gut, however, I have to agree with commenter Jennifer Jo Janisch's pick of Johnny Cash doing Nine Inch Nails' "Hurt." One of the most powerful songs I've ever heard. Another cover in the same vein is Nina Simone's version of Dylan's Ballad of Hollis Brown. Strong stuff.
Get Your Wings is a FABULOUS record. Speaking of remastered - wish granted! That opening lick is the last two strings on the 12th and 13th fret, if my memory of the tabs serves me correctly!
Another Aerosmith song I painstakingly mastered on my Fender Squier Strat in 1997 was "Dream On." I was so stoked when I could play along with all those cool, clean solos. I think I still remember how to play it, and I sadly haven't picked up a guitar once in the last year or so. :(
I love listening to their early records and noting how Steven Tyler's voice evolved over the years. He always said "Fake it 'till you make it," and he was definitely doing that on their debut album and others. He's admitted to trying as hard as he can to sound like an old black bluesman. Then and now, that son of a bitch has one of the best voices in rock and roll.
"I'm in heat, I'm in love, but I just couldn't tell her so, NAW NAW NAW!!!"
Aerosmith's cover of Come Together on Live is absolutely the best cover of that song every done and I like it way better than the Beatles original.
And Love Hurts by Nazareth. When I heard GP's original, I thought he was covering Nazareth. I kid you not.
beautiful.
1. Higher Ground by Chili Peppers.
2. Gloria by Patti Smith
3. Head On by the Pixies
4. Nothing Compares to You by Sinead O'Connor
5. Hey Joe by Hendrix
6. Sympathy For The Devil by Jane's Addiction
7. Money by The Flying Lizards
8. My Way by Sid Vicious
9. I Want you Back by The Bouncing Souls (I heard this live in 1990? and I still remember it well. I don't know if it was ever recorded.)
Fred, the original was by Roy Orbison. The song was written by Felice and Boudleaux Bryant, who also wrote many of the Everly Brothers' early hits. Not to mentions , familiar to anyone who has watched one of the University of Tennessee's sports teams on TV, as it's the tune that the UT band plays over and over and over adn over.
And, keeping with the Indian slant, I will offer this Bhangra cover album of the Sex Pistols for Neddie Jingo's bad cover throwdown. I haven't heard the whole songs, but the samples are enough.
The Creedence version of "Heard It Through the Grapevine."
"Absolutely Sweet Marie" by Jason and the Scorchers.
I'll second whoever added "Take Me To The River"
Someone mentioned "Hallelujah, Jeff Buckley (Leonard Cohen): song covered by many, this one stands out" Never heard that version; I'd like to ,but I think it would be tough to top John Cale's cover.
Aretha covering Carole King's "You Make Me Feel Like A Natural Woman"
Bonnie Raitt covering John Prine's "Angel From Montgomery"
Janis Joplin covering "Summertime" and "Ball And Chain" and "Bobby McGee".
Three for the price of one.
The Dixie Chicks covering Stevie Nicks's "Landslide"
The Indigo Girls covering The Grateful Dead's "Uncle John's Band"
Dittos to the Stevie Ray Vaughn covering Hendrix's "Little Wing". I weep in joy.
Jimi Hendrix covering Dylan's "All Along The Watchtower"
The Allman Bros w/ Duane covering T Bone Walker's "Stormy Monday"
I am actually real familiar with Tricky's "Black Steel"; it's Public Enemy's that I hadn't heard.
"Frontin" - Jamie Cullum cover of Pharrell & Jay-Z
and I second "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" - Jake Shimabukuro covering George Harrison's tune
Wild World by Jimmy Cliff
Put a Spell on You -- Creedence Clearwater
Heard it Through the Grapevine by CCR
Police & Thieves - Clash
California Sun - Ramones
Sweet Jane - Mott the Hoople
Stranded in the Jungle - New York Dolls
Summertime - Janis Joplin
Working Class Hero - Screaming Trees
Old 55 - Eagles
don't rush back, jay kay. please.
i suggest everyone tries to listen to that song.
in the morning, and does not stop until you get to work.
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I love the song of Red Hot Chili Peppers and Gun's N Roses..
And also Bon Jovi...