Toad the Wet Sprocket’s version of Kiss’ “Rock & Roll All Nite”
Johnny Cash rocked a version of NIN’s “Hurt”
I’m fond of The Divine Comedy’s version of QOTSA’s “No One Knows”
Tricky’s cover of Public Enemy’s “Black Steel”.
Soft Cell’s Tainted Love/Where Did Our Love Go gave both songs a completely different spin.
The Gourds version of Snoop Dogg’s Gin And Juice
Alanis Morisette’s tongue-in-cheek cover of My Humps.
Ane Brun’s cover of “Big in Japan”.
Chris Daughtry’s slow acoustic cover of Lady Gaga’s Poker Face
Luther Right and The Wrongs cover the entire album The Wall…in bluegrass.
You can find snippets of it, IIRC, on youtube, their website and their myspace page. IMHO it’s worth tracking down.
ETA
Comfortably Numb
As a side note, they got Roger Waters’ blessing on the album
Have to agree with this, plus I love his reinterpretation of Queen’s “We Will Rock You” and “We Are the Champions” as well.
I always thought the Lemonheads’ cover of “Mrs. Robinson” was pretty rad.
Bernadette Peters’s version of “You Can’t Get a Man With a Gun” turns the song from a cheerful ditty (as sung by Ethel Merman) to a sad reflection on the character’s failings.
Lyle Lovett does a nice interpretation of "Stand By Your Man.’
This is the song I came into this thread to mention.
Well, that and the Kingsmen’s version of “Louie, Louie”.
I always liked Alien Ant Farm’s version of Smooth Criminal but am not hip enough to understand the video.
And then Coil did their take on Tainted Love:
I wouldn’t call it a radical departure, but I’ve always loved Faith No More’s version of “Easy (Like Sunday Morning)”.
And “Hit Me Baby One More Time” by Travis is also good.
The example I always give in these threads: Husker Du’s cover of The Byrds’ Eight Miles High.
On similar lines Dynamite Hack’s cover of Easy-E’s “Boyz n tha hood.”
Fleetwood Mac - “Somebody’s gonna get their head kicked in” covered by many different punk bands like the Rezillos and Youth Brigade.
In the Pines/Black Girl/Where did you sleep last Night
Interesting song
Already about a century old when
Ledbelly popularized it
“High lonesome” rendition by Bill Monroe & his Bluegrass Boys
“Ace of Spades” by Motorhead
“Ace of Spades” by Hayseed Dixie
While we’re on the subject of blue grass covers of metal songs, there’s also the Meat Purveyors’ cover of Ratt’s “Round and Round”. Unfortunately, I can’t find a link to the Meat Purveyors’ version on YouTube.