# Ironic soft covers of harder songs **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 4, 2009, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironic-soft-covers-of-harder-songs/508819 "2009-09-04T02:47:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![WotNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e19b73/32.png) [@WotNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WotNot)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2009, 8:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironic-soft-covers-of-harder-songs/508819/61 "2009-09-06T08:42:47Z")
Last week’s _X Factor_ had a group called Miss Fitz auditioning with an Andrews Sisters style version of [Toxic.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFQLGu3wwls) (Starts about at 2:15) ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2009, 11:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironic-soft-covers-of-harder-songs/508819/62 "2009-09-06T11:06:40Z")
> [@Superbia-acedia](#): > > Richard Cheese did a whole album of covers in the “lounge” style. [8 of them, even, with at least 4 more in the works.](http://www.richardcheese.com/rtracks.html) ---
**Author:** ![casdave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@casdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/casdave)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2009, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironic-soft-covers-of-harder-songs/508819/63 "2009-09-06T13:19:08Z")
The Mike Flowers Pops version of ‘Wonderwall’ [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Vy1ueZf1WMQ/hqdefault.jpg "The Mike Flowers Pops - Wonderwall") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vy1ueZf1WMQ) and also ‘Light my fire’ [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/jhlSr29ilxA/hqdefault.jpg "The Mike Flowers Pops "Light my fire"") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jhlSr29ilxA) Rolf Harris - can you guess what it is yet? [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IPOIy4Kb9M4) When he was asked to cover the song, he had never heard the original and just looked at the lyrics and basic tune. He was told to make it as ‘Rolf Harris’ style as he could make it. ---
**Author:** ![C3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/c3/32/3108_2.png) [@C3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C3)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2009, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironic-soft-covers-of-harder-songs/508819/64 "2009-09-06T14:29:29Z")
Jason Mraz does [Blitzkrieg Bop](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9XhQHN_scS0). ---
**Author:** ![neofishboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/neofishboy/32/444_2.png) [@neofishboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neofishboy)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2009, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironic-soft-covers-of-harder-songs/508819/65 "2009-09-06T21:05:29Z")
Heidi Berry covers “Up In The Air” by Husker Du. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GVVP7gtwiQ](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GVVP7gtwiQ) ---
**Author:** ![wierdaaron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/eada6e/32.png) [@wierdaaron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wierdaaron)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2009, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironic-soft-covers-of-harder-songs/508819/66 "2009-09-06T21:33:21Z")
José González has a cover of Massive Attack’s _Teardrop_ (the song used as the theme for _House_) [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9B-h1EEsKDA) It’s not ironic though, unless you derive irony from unironically covering a song completely off-genre. And, for the record, people who use the term “unironically” make me want to murder. Chuck Klosterman does this all the time in his “irrelevant pop culture is extremely relevant!” essays. I’d like to unironically murder him. ---
**Author:** ![Hakuna\_Matata](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a88e4f/32.png) [@Hakuna\_Matata](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hakuna_Matata)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2009, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironic-soft-covers-of-harder-songs/508819/67 "2009-09-06T22:13:01Z")
I am not sure this qualifies—can you do a cover of your own song? But when David Lee Roth did the Bluegrass version of ‘Jump’ it seems like it qualifies. Be forewarned though it is bad (in my opinion) and you may need to bleach your brain afterwards. [Bluegrass Jump](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_sN16fdzdMg) ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2009, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironic-soft-covers-of-harder-songs/508819/68 "2009-09-06T23:26:18Z")
> [@Hakuna\_Matata](#): > > I am not sure this qualifies—can you do a cover of your own song? > > But when David Lee Roth did the Bluegrass version of ‘Jump’ it seems like it qualifies. On a similar note, the Chieftains did a celtic-tinged version of Behind Blue Eyes, with Daltry on vocals. It’s not softer so much as…less rough. Eh, I’m not really sure how to put it. [Listen for yourself.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efI6iefWpgE) (Unlike the Bluegrass Jump, though, it’s actually good in its own right…I waver between ‘close to’, ‘equal to’, and ‘better than’ the original.) ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Mondegreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/91b2a8/32.png) [@Lord\_Mondegreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Mondegreen)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2009, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironic-soft-covers-of-harder-songs/508819/69 "2009-09-07T01:04:10Z")
> [@casdave](#): > > Rolf Harris - can you guess what it is yet? > > [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IPOIy4Kb9M4](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IPOIy4Kb9M4) I haven’t even clicked the link, but I’m 99.9% sure I know what it is. There are quite a few soft covers of Stairway to Heaven on [this disk](http://www.amazon.com/Stairways-Heaven-Various-Artists/dp/B000005J65) (including dear old Rolf’s). ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2009, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironic-soft-covers-of-harder-songs/508819/70 "2009-09-07T03:16:40Z")
> [@Sitnam](#): > > ..and sexy about Nelly Fertato’s version of Gnarls Barkley’s [Crazy](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDiNd3uhwJo) Similarly, the Violent Femmes did a mellower [cover of “Crazy”](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fD-SMLTfuVw), in tribute to the pretty straightforward Gnarls Barkley cover of their song “Gone Daddy Gone.” ---
**Author:** ![Yookeroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yookeroo/32/323_2.png) [@Yookeroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yookeroo)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2009, 7:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironic-soft-covers-of-harder-songs/508819/71 "2009-09-07T07:26:45Z")
> [@wierdaaron](#): > > It’s not ironic though, unless you derive irony from unironically covering a song completely off-genre. I don’t think I’d consider most of the covers listed here as “ironic”. But then I believe there’s more actual “inter-artist” respect than we think there is. In other words (ans as an example), artists covering Britney Spears have more respect for her talent than we fans generally do. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironic-soft-covers-of-harder-songs/508819.md?page=3)