“Pink Cadillac” by Aretha Franklin is full of fun and energy.
Bruce Springsteen’s is draggy and almost unintelligible. I have nothing against The Boss in general, but yuk!
I think Cash kills Cave on that song but I don’t really like either version of *Hurt *all that much.
The Brecht version.
Ah. Now that I hear it, Lotte Lenya is definitely better. (But she was a professional singer.)
Gary Jules’ version of “Mad World” by Tears for Fears … as it appeared in Donnie Darko.
It’s got such sad lyrics, and Tears for Fears recorded with this upbeat tempo as kind of an irony … peppy beat, miserable lyrics. But Jules did it basically as a dirge and it come across very powerful.
Heh, I was going to post the Cash cover of “The Mercy Seat” as my example. 
I think it is absolutely haunting.
Agreed. I heard this version before the original and thought the original wasn’t even close to STP’s version.
Jack Batty, I think the original is much better than the Jules version. I think there’s a subtext that goes with the synthy-upbeat TFF version that his version misses. But it’s a good take, and probably got those guys a nice wad of cash, so it’s all good.
Warren Zevon’s cover of Dylan’s Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door brimmed with emotion–he was recording, as he knew all too well, his last album. His vocal gives the song a special urgency.
Patti Smith’s cover of Van Morrison and Them’s Gloria has real power–almost majesty.
The Beatles, with Lennon’s enthusiastic vocal made the Isley’s Twist and Shout their own.
Rage Against the Machine’s The Ghost of Tom Joad is better than Springsteen’s
Manfred Mann’s Earth band’s Blinded by the Light is better than Springsteen’s
Springsteen’s Jersey Girl is better than Tom Waits’
Jimi Hendrix’s All Along the Watchtower is better than Dylan’s
Janis Joplin’s Bobby McGee is better than anyone else’s
Of course, Nazareth’s version was also a cover (of Roy Orbison).
Oh, I can’t believe I forgot Madison Park’s cover of Roxy Music’s “More Than This”. Great song; much better than the original.
Valete,
Vox Imperatoris
Speaking of versions that people argue about, Jeff Buckley’s version of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah”, I think, is the best one. Granted, I’ve only ever heard Rufus Wainwright’s version, but I like Buckely’s better.
I own Jeff Buckley’s, Rufus Wainwright’s, k.d. lang’s (on the recommendation of an old thread), and have heard John Cale’s, U2’s, and the Leonard Cohen original, at least.
I’m going to throw my vote (again) behind Jeff Buckley, though k.d. lang brings something quite beautiful to the song.
I mentioned that in the very first reply. I’ve a good dozen or more covers of the song by a wide variety of artists, and Buckley’s is near the bottom. The original, by Cohen, *is *the bottom.
My favorite version is by Allison Crowe.
QFT. I also don’t understand the public’s infatuation with Hallelujah by Jeff Buckley. I don’t like the original much, but find Buckley’s version borderline unlistenable.
The best cover of all time is Last Caress by Metallica. Does what every good cover should: takes an underrated song and brings attention to it while simultaneously making it 10x better.
Prince’s “I can’t make you love me” over Bonnie Raitt’s.
The Beatles “You’ve really got a hold on me” over the Miracles.
Blur’s Maggie May over Rod Stewart’s
No Doubt’s “It’s my Life” over Talk Talk’s. I thought that one was an original until after Cold Case played the first version.
Janis Joplin’s “Maybe” over the Chantels.
Not better, but Seal’s “A Change is Gonna Come” is just as good as Sam Cooke’s.
Pretty much anything written by Bob Dylan sounds better when recorded by other people.
But I gotta say that Alison Kraus’ version of Baby, Now That I’ve Found You beats the socks off the original version by The Foundations.
Uhhg! No way! Maiden’s Number of the Beast is epic. It’s one of the best - if not the best - popular metal songs ever. I’ve been seeing - not just in this thread, but for a couple years now, online and off - that any old schmendrik with a guitar and a microphone can take a good song, slow it down and play it acoustically, and people will think it’s profound. If someone says Dynamite Hack’s version of Boyz in tha Hood over Eazy E’s, my head is gonna explode.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again:
William Shatner’s version of Common People is way better than Pulp’s.