If you’re thinking of the bluegrassy version of this, it wasn’t Blues Traveler, it was The Gourds. I have the CD. I’ve also seen it online attributed to a good dozen other groups.
If there’s a BT version I haven’t heard, disregard this post.
Second that. Especially with “Rocket Man” and “Danny’s Song,” I hate the originals versions but can’t get enough of the covers.
And I can tell this is going to make me lose all my street cred (as well as any guy points), but I have to say I really like all the covers done by Sixpence None the Richer, while I actively disliked the originals. “There She Goes” is the only one I can think of now, but I know that there are a couple others that always get played in the trailers to chick flicks.
ANd I totally agree with the Moulin Rouge version of “Your Song” being infinitely better than the original.
They did a cover of Crowded House’s “Don’t Dream It’s Over,” which I find vastly inferior to the original, but that’s another thread. 
I particularly like Teenage Fanclub’s version of Madonna’s “Like a Virgin.”
Five incredible covers that IMO blow the originals away.
Snake River Conspiracy - How Soon Is Now (The Smiths)
Spineshank - While My Guitar Gently Weeps (The Beatles)
Siouxsie & The Banshees - Trust In Me (Richard and Robert Sherman - Disney’s The Jungle Book)
Digital Assassins - Night Of The Living Baseheads (Public Enemy)
Machinehead - Message In A Bottle (The Police/Sting)
Man, I’m shaking my head in disbelief at some of these suggestions.
To each his own, I suppose.
Me, too, Legomancer - and I’m really chuckling over RawkStah’s creeping old age, given that I attended my first rock concert (Aerosmith) in 1977.
The only contribution I can think of to add to this thread is Elvis Costello’s cover of the Dionne Warwick song “I’ll Never Fall In Love Again.”
Eva Cassidy’s cover of Cyndi Lauper’s Time after Time. Cyndi did a great job with it (it’s one of the two songs she wrote that I can stand), but Eva’s version made me cry. Granted, they were burying Whitney’s father in the rain on Smallville, but still. Great cover.
Phish does a great cover of the Beasties’ “Sabotage.” Also, a very…unique cover of “Gettin’ Jiggy Wit’ It.”
The Cure’s “Love Song” covered by Snake River Conspiracy (fantastic!)
Depeche Mode’s “Stripped” covered by Rammstein
U2’s “New Year’s Day” covered by Front Line Assembly, with Tiffany on vocals.
Madonna’s “Material Girl” covered by KMFDM
Jimi Hendrix’s “Purple Haze” covered by The Cure
Gary Numan’s “Are Friends Electric?” covered by Information Society
Information Society’s “Closing In” covered by Rosetta Stone
Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive” covered by Cake
Rolling Stones’ “Painted Black” covered by Mephisto Walz
The Police’s “Roxanne” by the cast of Moulin Rouge!
Andrew Lloyd Weber’s “Phantom of the Opera” by Blink 182
Bob Dylan’s “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” by The Sisters of Mercy
Just to name a few…
Did I mention that I collect cover songs? 
:eek:
Ive heard plenty of covers that i preferred to the “originals”, I put that in quotes because in these situations, I hear the cover first, so I get jarred by hearing the original.
But as for songs I’ve heard first in the original and still prefer the cover, the one that pops into mind is “Dancing Days”, STP’s cover of Led Zep.
SNR’s cover of How Soon is Now is the worst version I’ve heard (I’ve heard at least 4, by SNR, the Smiths and of course Love Spit Love, and i forget who else, no, not everclear.)
I know you won’t agree, and I don’t know if it was ever recorded, but I saw Toni Tennille on Midnight Special once sing Natural Woman, and I think it was done better than the original.
oops, SNR = Snake River Conspiracy, sorry
Whoo hoo! I was waiting to see if someone brought up Me First and the Gimmie Gimmies before I posted! Love these guys… my favorite covers of theirs are Walk Like An Egyptian and Hotel California.
Nickel Creek’s cover of I Should’ve Known Better takes a mundane pop song and makes it something worth playing over and over.
Didn’t all of Mr Shatner’s song interpretations bring out something that hadn’t been seen in the song before?
the Stranglers do a bitchen version of ‘Walk On By.’ Anyone heard it?
Essvee!!! You mean someone else in this world likes the Stranglers besides me??? Holy Sh!t!!!
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Meninblack is my favorite tune by the Stranglers, followed by Time to Die.
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Some I haven’t seen mentioned yet:
U2, “Merry Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” – originally by one of those Phil Spector girl groups that I can never keep separated in my head. (Yes, I know I’m a heretic for saying this, but I don’t care.)
Elvis Costello, “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” – the Animals, I think
Fountains of Wayne, “Better Days” --a minor, late Kinks song that they make absolutely wonderful
Tanya Donelly, “Trust In Me” – whoever did the voice of the snake in Disney’s The Jungle Book
The Ramones, “I Don’t Wanna Grow Up” --Tom Waits. Ramones covers are always better than the originals – it’s a law. But Waits’s own “Jersey Girl” kicks Springsteen’s ass.
Elvis Costello, “Withered and Died” – Richard & Linda Thompson
and that’s probably enough obscure crap no one has ever heard of for now…
The Mary Tyler Moore Show theme song, covered by Joan Jett.
The Carpenters’ Top of the World, covered by Shonen Knife.
Aerosmith’s Walk This Way covered by Run DMC (can’t believe I didn’t see this one posted by someone else).
The Bobby Fuller Four’s I Fought the Law covered by Black 47 (I saw a couple of references to the Clash’s version, but that’s nothing to what Black 47 does with the song).