Some songs get covered over and over. Dylan and the Beatles get covered to death. Sometimes if you like a song, you want to hear all the versions of it.
Dark End of the Street(8)I have the James Carr original, plus covers by Richard and Linda Thompson, Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton, Aretha Franklin, Percy Sledge, The Flying Burrito Brothers, Linda Ronstadt, and Eva Cassidy.
Hallelujah(5) I have the original Leonard Cohen version and covers by John Cale, Jeff Buckley, Rufus Wainwright, and Bono
Both of these songs have been covered more than that, but these are the versions I actually have. They’re easy to collect in the mp3 era.
I have a copy of an album called “Pachelbel’s Greatest Hit” which is a collection of versions of his Canon. Fun. and I still get mesmerized by this tune.
Statesboro Blues. So far, I have the original Blind Willie McTell version, the Allman Brothers’s electric version, Taj Mahal, Alice Stuart* (lovely acoustic guitar version) and another I just found recently.
b]Rhapsody in Blue** – many versions, including one by Oscar Levant, George Gershwin (from player piano rolls) and my aunt (who’s a Julliard trained pianist).
Apparently I have 35 versions of “Love Will Tear Us Apart.” Only 3 are by Joy Division. There might be one more version from a “Best of” that I haven’t bothered ripping.
I used to collect versions of “I Put a Spell on You,” which happened to be the first song I ever had two versions of. Off the top of my head, I had it by:
Screamin’ Jay Hawkins
Nina Simone
Creedence Clearwater Revival
Manfred Mann
Arthur Brown
Fever Tree
The Five Americans
The Animals
Audience
Alan Price
I always wanted Roxy Music to record it. Eventually Bryan Ferry did record a version, but the arrangement was nothing like what I had in mind.
Leon Russell recorded a song of his own called “I Put a Spell on You” (on the same album as another song titled “Give Peace a Chance” that wasn’t the Lennon song). Too bad, as he would have done a good job with the original.
I have lost count of how many versions I have of “Amazing Grace.” I just love that song, even though as a Roman Catholic I reject its theological content.
On one of the most important differences between Roman Catholic and most Protestant theologians, how is salvation achieved? through “good works” (the RC position) or by God’s grace (the Protestant position), the song comes down solidly on the side of “God’s grace.”
I enjoy listening to covers of Here Comes the Sun – Richie Havens’ well-known version is probably my favorite.
On the other side of the emotional spectrum, I really like Everyday Is Like Sunday; it’s about the only Morrissey/Smiths song that I can listen to at all. The Pretenders and 10,000 Maniacs both have lovely versions of it.
A great piece, but to me, it absolutely lives or dies based on the performance. Sometimes it’s too fast, sometimes it’s too slow, sometimes it’s too mechanical, sometimes it’s so overly interpretted that the rhythm is lost. My favorite version is a Telarc release of the Cincinnati Pops. Someday, I want to go to a live performance with really talented musicians and the original arrangement.
If you want to get a little creative in cover versions, try to find Rhapsody in Bob, performed by piano and a cappella quartet (The Bobs). I was in the audience when that was recorded.
I love the song Shenandoah and have a load of versions of it.
I also love The Lowlands of Holland and The Sally Gardens which I own several versiosn of too. These don’t count so much in that they’re all somewhat traditional songs to begin with.
The Afghan Whigs also did a cover of this song, on their “What Jail Is Like” EP.
I don’t know if they’ve released it officially, but A Perfect Circle has also covered this song – there’s a live recording floating around the ether that pairs it with a cover of Ozzy Osbourne’s “Diary of a Madman”.
I love the Irish song “The Wind that Shakes the Barley,” and so far I’ve collected versions of it by Dead Can Dance, the Chieftans, the Clancy Brothers, Fire + Ice, the Dubliners, and Solas.
Without really trying, I have versions of “All Along The Watchtower” by
Bob Dylan
Jimi Hendrix
Dave Mason
Michael Hedges
Dave Matthews Band
Frank Marino & Mahogany Rush
Pat McGee Band
Affinity
Eric Clapton and Lenny Kravitz (don’t know where that came from)
and a 7+ minute jam from Night of the Guitar featuring
Steve Howe (Yes)
Leslie West (Mountain)
Robby Kreiger (Doors)
Randy California (Spirit)
Steve Hunter (Lou Reed, Alice Cooper, Peter Gabriel)
Pete Haycock (Climax Blues Band)
Andy Powell & Ted Turner (Wishbone Ash)
Alvin Lee (Ten Years After)