Here is the original:
I don’t know if this one “elevates” the original, but I do think it’s a nice cover. I never would have guessed Morton Steven’s version could be transformed into a ballad.
Stevens’, not Steven’s.
Speaking of Linda Ronstadt, she also blew the doors off Roy Orbison’s “Blue Bayou” with a slowed-down stripped-down version that showcased her pipes.
They don’t get much better than this:
And another Batman version, by the Smithereens.
I like this version of “Sailing”
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… And yet another. I believe all the tunes listed on the album cover have been posted on You Tube. (My favorites are “Batmobile” and “Batcave.”)
Sounds a lot like “Wipe Out” to me.
Kim Carnes’ version of “Bette Davis Eyes” is the hit. But the original version was sung by the song’s co-writer, Jackie DeShannon.
I recently listened to DeShannon’s version and it’s astonishing. And not in a good way. DeShannon chose a country-pop arrangement.
Listening to this cover made me think of the scene at the start of The Glenn Miller Story where Jimmy Stewart and June Allyson are listening to a nightclub singer butcher “Moonlight Serenade” with (IIRC) a rumba beat, much to their dismay.
I can’t in good faith make the argument that either of those elevates the original, and I don’t even love the original.
Love it!