Even better than the real thing?

[DiracPool]

I wanted to start this thread as kind of an offshoot of the "best songs ever" thread. The spirit of this thread is to post cover versions of popular (or even not so popular) songs that you think are better than the original (or that you just really like:tongue:)

As a part-time songwriter, doing a good cover of a song is an art in itself, every bit as challenging as writing an original song and sometimes even more so since there's no a priori expectations on you when creating an original. It's all about manipulating the arrangement of the song to give it your personal signature.

I used to do an acoustic act at several clubs in the Seattle area with a couple buddies of mine, mostly classic rock covers that were rich in vocal harmonies, CSNY, etc. We always made an effort to do unique arangements of the songs, which, as stated above isn't always easy because the temptation is to play and sing it in the arrangement of the commercial copy.

In any case, I'll start it off with a song I just stumbled on a couple days ago, David Gray's cover of Dylan's, "Meet me in the Morning."

 

[DiracPool]

Of course, we could generalize this thread to any artform, say remakes of movies, etc. It could be any work of art that you think was actually an improvement on the original.

 

[WannabeNewton]

Probably the most famous example of a cover that is better than the original (with all due respect to the great Bob Dylan of course, I mean Hendrix doesn't hold a candle to Bob when it comes to writing profound music):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jwAdFZT2VOQ

 

[Jimmy Snyder]

I happen to like Bob Dylan's singing but I know there are many who would say you can't cover a song of his without improving it. Here's one for them.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXMW2otJXMQ

 

[collinsmark]

Whether you're a Johnny Cash fan or not, it's hard not to like this song:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ml4HylhHFGk

Johnny wrote this song for his pet hamster, "Billy."

I'm kidding. It actually was written by Chris Cornell of Soundgarden, and originally recorded and performed by Soundgarden.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rusty_Cage

 

[Adyssa]

I love this cover of Pink Floyd's "Have A Cigar" by Primus, an alternative band from the 90s led by Les Claypool on bass and vocals. He plays a mean groove, and while it's a tasteful cover (IMHO), they really make it their own.

 

[jbunniii]

 

[DiracPool]

I love this cover of Pink Floyd's "Have A Cigar" by Primus, an alternative band from the 90s led by Les Claypool on bass and vocals. He plays a mean groove, and while it's a tasteful cover (IMHO), they really make it their own.

Oh yeah, that's what I'm talking about. I couldn't turn this song up loud enough, it was warbling my bass woofer.

 

[WannabeNewton]

There is no band that can play a Pink Floyd song better than Pink Floyd =D.

 

[DiracPool]

There is no band that can play a Pink Floyd song better than Pink Floyd =D.

Yeah, I'd have to agree with that, Newton, but that Primus cover was rockin in its own way. It goes in the "Not better but I really like it" category. I can imagine that bass line going on for years and decades and not getting bored with it.

 

[Jimmy]

I love this cover of Pink Floyd's "Have A Cigar" by Primus, an alternative band from the 90s led by Les Claypool on bass and vocals. He plays a mean groove, and while it's a tasteful cover (IMHO), they really make it their own.

Les Claypool's Frog Brigade did the entire Animals album live back in 2000.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cHGudSBtbck

I wouldn't say it's better than the original but it's pretty damn good.

 

[BobG]

In any case, I'll start it off with a song I just stumbled on a couple days ago, David Gray's cover of Dylan's, "Meet me in the Morning."

Can we just have a thread of people who's cover of "Meet me in the Morning" is better than Dylan's original version?

I'd toss in Sarah Jarosz, but I think her cover of Tom Wait's "Come on Up to the House" is better.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DzapgZI5SEc

 

[Curious3141]

"There she goes" - original by The La's, cover by Sixpence None The Richer:





"No woman no cry" - original by Bob Marley, cover by Boney M:



3xdx5go9C-w[/youtube] (I realize...rd, I can't stand the Guns n' Roses version).

 

[DiracPool]

"Knockin' on Heaven's Door" - original by Bob Dylan, cover by Eric Clapton

Oh boy, that Clapton version is great. Poor Bob. The G&R version is great too. But that's the thing about G&R, they don't really have too re-tool any song they cover, they're style is unmistakable and incomparable.

 

[jbunniii]

Over the years, there have been many renditions of Eric Bogle's 1971 folk song And the Band Played Waltzing Mathilda, but none can equal the Pogues' version. They own this song now.

 

[jbunniii]

P.S. Ever noticed that Youtube clips sound like crap when they are embedded, but if you open them in Youtube they sound better? Is it a way to encourage us to sit through ads?

 

[ImaLooser]

Over the years, there have been many renditions of Eric Bogle's 1971 folk song And the Band Played Waltzing Mathilda, but none can equal the Pogues' version. They own this song now.

Long long ago I heard this over the radio sung by a woman and it was the greatest. It had a big effect on me. You've inspired me to look it up in this cyberage. It's Joan Baez. i don't see how anyone who has heard this could become a soldier.

It's funny, I remembered that song had a very clever and effective musical trick so I started writing songs that way. Listening to it now I find that it isn't that way! So I made up that trick myself without knowing it. Best musical idea I ever had.

There are thousands of covers that are better than the originals. Mainstream jazz is nothing but covers. So I'll pick possibly the silliest cover ever. IMO it's better than the original too, which makes it REALLY silly.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBmM79YadYM

 

[jbunniii]

There are thousands of covers that are better than the originals. Mainstream jazz is nothing but covers. So I'll pick possibly the silliest cover ever. IMO it's better than the original too, which makes it REALLY silly.

LOL, the guitar solo starting at 2:30 sounds like it could have come straight off a Steely Dan record.

 

[Curious3141]

Dissident Aggressor - orig. by Judas Priest, cover by Slayer:





I love Priest, but somehow Tom Araya's vocals seem to fit this song a LOT better than Rob Halford's. And the song just seems to have a more definite purpose and a real menace in the hands of Slayer.

Turnabout is fair play, so here's Slayer themselves being pipped. By a chick.

Raining blood - orig. by Slayer, cover by Tori Amos.





She's taken a thrash metal classic and made it into the ultimate moody goth anthem.

 

[collinsmark]

This is Sinéad O'Connor's most famous song by a long shot. But she didn't write it (even though she typically sings mostly originals). This song was actually written by Prince. It was originally recorded and performed by Prince when he was with his band called The Family (I won't embed the original, but here's a link to a live version if you want: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GehNAFWWjEQ).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iUiTQvT0W_0

This song is so associated with Sinéad O'Connor that that some might even say it's the Sinéad O'Connor song; though I've never understood why it was this song that became so incredibly popular: I consider myself a fan of Sinéad O'Connor's music, but I've always thought that several of her other songs were much better than this, including anything on her first album, Lion and the Cobra.

 

[1977ub]

I find I tend to like the first version of a song I get familiar with, even if it is a cover... most 60s/70s hits by 3 Dog Night are actually cover versions. I loved a lot of Tomita records and wasn't as fond of the classical sources, but for classical pieces I become fond of first, I could really hear why so many people don't like Tomita's versions.

I like lush instrumentation and complex chord-changes in general. I find that in nearly every case, a cover is a song which simplifies and loses some of these, and thus I tend to hear them with a somewhat disappointed ear. Here's an example of the reverse - a very bare-bones Stooges song that is turned into something very lush:

 

[DiracPool]

...most 60s/70s hits by 3 Dog Night are actually cover versions.

I don't think so...There's a difference between a "cover" version of a song and a song that was not written by the artist that performed it originally. If a recording artist needed to write their own songs in order for them not to be labeled "covers," then virtually every popular country act would be labeled a cover band. A "cover" version of a song is one that comes out after an initial studio version has hit the market. It doesn't matter whether the initial performing artist actually wrote the song or not.

It is true that 3 dog night, at least in their heyday in the 70's, did not write their own songs. They chose the songs for their albums from a pool of literally hundreds submitted to their agent(s) by hopeful songwriters around the globe. A big part of their success was being able to pick the gems from the stones. However, none (or very few) of the songs they recorded were re-makes of existing published performing art. Doing so would have greatly diminished their royalty payments from their albums.

Chuck Negron talks a lot about this in his book, "Three dog nightmare." An excellent read I highly recommend.

 

[1977ub]

Chuck Negron talks a lot about this in his book, "Three dog nightmare." An excellent read I highly recommend.

aha interesting thanks.

 

[collinsmark]

The song Mad World deserves a mention. Originally a song by Tears for Fears, written by Roland Orzabal and sung by bassist Curt Smith (both member of Tears for Fears), the original is here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFsHSHE-iJQ.

More than two decades later is it was covered by Gary Jules. This is a phenomenal cover.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4N3N1MlvVc4

 

[Curious3141]

The song Mad World deserves a mention. Originally a song by Tears for Fears, written by Roland Orzabal and sung by bassist Curt Smith (both member of Tears for Fears), the original is here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFsHSHE-iJQ.

More than two decades later is it was covered by Gary Jules. This is a phenomenal cover.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4N3N1MlvVc4

Yes, this version is much better than the original. In fact, I was introduced to it when Adam Lambert covered it for American Idol. His performance of the song is considered one of the very best ever on the show:



American Idol has often been reviled, and rightly so. I don't even watch the show anymore now that Simon Cowell has left the show and the entertainment value's plummeted. But there were other moments on the show that were pure gold.

I especially enjoyed David Cook's performances on two songs:

1) Cook covering Chris Cornell (of Soundgarden/Audioslave fame) covering Michael Jackson singing Billie Jean:

First, the MJ version:



Next, the Chris Cornell cover:

R0uWF-37DAM[/youtube] Finally, t...ding me) think he should've won it by a mile.

 

[1977ub]

1) Cook covering Chris Cornell (of Soundgarden/Audioslave fame) covering Michael Jackson singing Billie Jean

Fodder for a whole other thread here, but I enjoy when pieces are referenced by another song, lyrically or with a strong / long sample.

This odd cover of Hank Williams' "Kaw-Liga" by The Residents uses Billie Jean as the baseline.



"Kaw-Liga" samples the rhythm to Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean" and did well in Europe; it is as close as the Residents ever got to a bona fide commercial hit.
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stars_&_Hank_Forever:_The_American_Composers_Series

 

[ImaLooser]

Billie Jean? I'll take Hong Kong accountant Susan Wong.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OkVYI38KmSU

Most of what Eva Cassidy did was better than the original, including some very famous classics. Her "Over The Rainbow" was voted the pop song of the century, and most singers sing it Eva's way now. I would have thought that impossible. Many think her "Wonderful World" is better than Louis Armstrong's. Hard to believe. (I call it a tie.) My fave by her is Fleetwood Mac's Songbird. That's as close to perfection as pop gets. It also gets my vote for most beautiful guitar playing ever.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KStHm4ihHMg

Most of what Charice "Hurricane" Pempengco of Philippines does is better than the original too. No small task, as she is going up against Celine Dion, Whitney Houston, and Beyonce Knowles.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vygQafnAO3w

 

[1977ub]

I was weaned on "The Ventures" - dad had LPs around - about half of the tunes are covers. I like their version of Jumpin' Jack Flash. Here's another nearly-all-instrumental version of that song I learned about a couple of years that I really enjoy.



thanks to
http://www.allmusic.com/album/essential-mix-98-01-mw0001055865

 

[lisab]

(For some reason this page won't load smoothly, so my apologies if this has been put up already...but what are the chances of that?!)

Just Like Heaven - Katie Melua
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Rmil_raUtU

 

[WannabeNewton]

I like this cover way better than the original one by the Stones. Plus, the lead singer was the first woman I ever fell madly in love with...and after the bone crushing defeat of knowing it could never reciprocate I decided it would be the last :p.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BiyCkSOF1pc

 

[1977ub]

Whole Lotta Love is nearly a cover of this.

 

[Jimmy Snyder]

Ain't nothing like the real thing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIJBJd7v5Nk

 

[DiracPool]

Ain't nothing like the real thing.

Sure there is Jimmy, its called "Even better than the real thing."

 

[DiracPool]

Jimmy, if you think you're going to win this battle because Donny is your "soldier of love," I'm afraid you're going to lose.

 

[ImaLooser]

I was weaned on "The Ventures" - dad had LPs around - about half of the tunes are covers. I like their version of Jumpin' Jack Flash. Here's another nearly-all-instrumental version of that song I learned about a couple of years that I really enjoy.



thanks to
http://www.allmusic.com/album/essential-mix-98-01-mw0001055865

That's hilarious. To me this is the real 60's. Yellow plastic go go boots. The stuff that you hear now wasn't really that popular. The Monkees were the biggest act going by far.