(Uhh, change that “3nd” to “2nd”)
So where did you find it? I tried to look it up before I posted, so I could get the info correct. (It came out in 1993, and has 18 covers on it.) Must be out of print; couldn’t locate it on any of the on-line services I know about.
Now I’m home and I have my copy in front of me…the “She’s about a Mover” by Otis Clay is wonderful, as is Howard Tate’s “Girl From the North Country” and the Four Tops’ “Walk Away Renee.” No need to puff up Ruffin’s “96 Tears.”
But it’s worth WHATEVER you pay for it to hear Pickett’s “Mama Told Me Not to Come.” He takes Newman’s whine and turns it into the savage howl of a big muscular Momma’s Boy.
The worst thing about the Phillips/Magbavox commercial is that it was a stupid idea…because if you know the song at all, as soon as they cut it off, you still hear the next line in your head: “it can’t get no worse”. Duhh, you don’t want that associated with your product.
However, though I said it before, I will reiterate: get the Oingo Boingo cover of * I am the Walrus. * Though it be blasphemy, it be damn good blasphemy that puts the original to shame.
What about Jose Feliciano’ brilliant remake of The Doors “Light My Fire”
Or the Byrds doing part of Bob Dylan’s best poem “Mr. Tambourine Man”?
Or Hole remake of Fleetwood Mac’s “Gold Dust Woman” that shows Courtney Love at her best?
There are some fantastic remakes out there.
I generally don’t pay much attention to covers, unless they’re just atrocious, or they’re covers of favorite songs. I must admit that I, too, prefer the Bangles version of “Hazy Shade of Winter”. I’m a sucker for female voices–with a caveat, which you can spot in the following Rules of Rock:
1)Don’t step on the blue suede shoes.
2)Don’t mess around with Jim.
3)Never, but f*%?$g never, do a cover of “American Pie”!
IMHO the Absolute best remake ever is Steive Ray Vaughan’s remake of Little Wing (instrumental). It respects the original with adding a completely new aspect to the song.
The worst is a toss up b/t Madonna’s American Pie and Guns-n-Roses’ version of Live and Let Die
Have you heard the Hendrix version of “Little Wing”? Awesome. I’ve only heard the Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughan versions of this song. Anybody else cover it?
I love punk rock covers of classic songs! And the ultimate punk cover band is The Dickies, with stirring renditions of:
Eve of Destruction
Knights in White Satin
Hair
Paranoid
Communication Breakdown
The Banana Splits theme
Silent Night (the christmas song)
Sounds of Silence
I’ve found that the All Music Guide is a pretty good source of general information, including reviews of a far wider and deeper range of stuff than one would expect. I’ve noticed minor inaccuracies in some of the info (release dates, etc.), and for the most obscure stuff there’s often only the barest information, but there are at least track lists for most releases. The reviews are rarely negative (as you’d expect from a site that licenses content to sites that sell CDs online), but they’re not usually way off base.
That’s where I found the track listing for Black on White. It does appear to be out of print; guess I’ll have to make the rounds of the local used disc stores.
Some good cover songs not yet mentioned:
[ul]
[li]Good Year for the Roses- Elvis Costello (Orig. by George Jones)[/li][li]Love Hurts- Nazareth (Performed earlier by Roy Orbison and by the Everly Brothers. Not sure which came first)[/li][li]Money (That’s What I Want)- Beatles (Orig. by…hmmm…The Isley Brothers, maybe?)[/li][li]Just My Imagination- The Rolling Stones (Orig. by the Temptations)[/li][li]Hard to Handle - Black Crowes (Orig. by ?)[/li][li]Dreaming My Dreams - Cowboy Junkies (Orig. by Waylon Jennings)[/li][li]If You Don’t Know Me By Now- Simply Red (Orig. by ?)[/li][li]Red, Red Wine- UB40 (Orig. by Neal Diamond)[/li][li]Twist and Shout -The Beatles (Orig. by ?)[/li][/ul]
Thank you, rackensack…very informative site, indeed. Duly bookmarked.
“Money (That’s What I Want)” = Barrett Strong
“Twist and Shout” = The Isley Brothers
Reply to Soup: Of course Hendrix’ version was outstanding. I know there have been several other versions, including (brace yourself) the Cure. I don’t think I have to tell you how bad that was. Anyway, the only other cover I’ve heard of that song is by Tuck & Patti.
One of the canonial songs any lyrical guitarist needs to learn cold, or at least examine and admire - Hendrix wrote it.
More good covers:
Not Fade Away by the Stones (originally Charles Hardin [Buddy Holly])
Nothing Compares 2 U by Sinead O’Connor (originally Prince)
I Feel 4 U by Chaka Khan (originally Prince)
::trying to resist::
::caving::
Nope, can’t resist…great covers…all, surprisingly, by the same band…hmmmm
Big Railroad Blues (Noah Lewis)
Good Lovin’ (Little Richard, by Blackwell/Maracalo)
Iko Iko (Trad./Sugarboy Crawford)
Not Fade Away (Hardin, Buddy Holly)
Walkin Blues (Robert Johnson)
Who Do You Love (Bo Diddley)
Wang Dang Doodle (Willie Dixon)
Many more, these are but a few of my Favs
Shaky Jake
Shaky Jake:
How could you leave out “Cold Rain and Snow” ?
Some of the most interesting covers of “Little Wing” I’ve experienced were performed by the Gil Evans Orchestra. It’s on a number of their live albums.
Derek and the Dominos also did a pretty good cover of Little Wing.
SRV also has a good version of Hendrix’s Voodoo Chile (Slight Return).
Uke, (or do you prefer Ike)
So many songs, just one band.
Should I add…
Watchtower
El Paso
Promised Land
Big River
Midnight Hour
Samson & Delilah
Man Smart, Woman Smarter
Matilda
Hand Jive
Smokestack Lightning…
…or just stick with my original list? 
Shaky Jake
I too prefer the Bangles’ Hazy SHade of Winter.
And some other covers I prefer:
The Fargone Beauties country version of Highway to Hell
and DAAS’ version of Throw Your Arms Around Me