The T.Rex hit ‘Telegram Sam’ as covered by Bauhaus is completely unmissable. They are on different planets, musically speaking, yet somehow… it works.
i really like all of Johnny Cash’s covers on his newer albums. Stevie Ray’s Hendrix covers are awsome. same music, same style but so different.
the only bruce springsteen songs i can stand are the Manfred Mann covers, and they are sooooooooooo much better than the originals!
jane’s addiction’s version of ripple is cool.
Have you heard JC’s version of ‘I’m On Fire’? It’s also amazing, and should have been on ‘American III’.
My favorite cover song is Nirvana’s cover of Son of a Gun, originally by the Vaselines.
Lyrically it’s a sappy love song, but Kurt’s guitar riff makes it punk rock.
Half a year ago I burned a couple “cover songs” disks. Here’s the lists:
Banana Splits (Banana Splits) Dickies
Eight Miles High (Byrds) Hüsker Dü
My Back Page (Bob Dylan) Byrds
Can’t Help Falling In Love (Elvis) U2
I’m Not In Love (10CC) Olive
Love Will Tear Us Apart (Joy Division) The Cure
Bizarre Love Triangle (New Order) Frente!
Be My Baby (Ronettes) Travis
Don’t Give Up (Peter Gabriel) Gregorian Masters Of Chant with Sarah Brightman
Suspicious Minds (Elvis) Fine Young Cannibals
Take A Chance On Me (Abba) Erasure
Don’t Leave Me This Way (Thelma Houston) Communards
You Really Got Me (Kinks) Oingo Boingo
Seasons in the Sun (???) Too Much Joy
Satisfaction (Rolling Stones) Devo
Hit Me Baby One More Time (Brittney Spears) Mr. Bungle
Smells Like Teen Spirit (Nirvana) Tori Amos
Our Lips Are Sealed (Go-Gos) Fun Boy Three
New Year’s Day (U2) Front Line Assembly with Tiffany
Blue Moon (???) Cowboy Junkies
Disk “B”
Gin and Juice (Snoop Doggy Dogg) Sissy Bar
One (Three Dog Night) Aimee Mann
Can’t Take My Eyes Off Of You (Frankie Valli) Lauryn Hill
Like A Prayer (Madonna) Loleatta Holloway
Soul Kitchen (Doors) X
Get Down, Make Love XXX (Queen) Nine Inch Nails
Superstar (Carpenters) Sonic Youth
Like A Rolling Stone (Bob Dylan) Jimi Hendrix
Another Brick In The Wall (Pink Floyd) Alex Xenophon
Powderfinger (Neil Young) Cowboy Junkies
When Doves Cry (Prince) Quindon Tarver
Always On My Mind (Elvis) Pet Shop Boys
Silly Love Songs (Paul McCartney) Replicants
Jump (Van Halen) Aztec Camera
Across The Universe (Beatles) Fiona Apple
My Way (Frank Sinatra) Sid Vicious
Straight To Hell (Clash) Moby with Heather Nova
Some others:
Baba O’Riley (The Who) Grateful Dead
Material Girl (Madonna) KMFDM
Babe, I’m Gonna Leave You (Zeppelin) Paul Oakenfold
I Have the Touch (Peter Gabriel) Heather Nova
Secret Agent Man (Johnny Rivers) Devo
Like A Virgin (Madonna) Ciccone Youth
I Feel Love (Donna Summer) Messiah
You forgot the best one of all…“Somewhere” from West Side Story as covered by Tom Waits