So what are some of your favorite covers?
Let’s pretend we’re making the ultimate covers playlist. What songs should we add to the playlist?
I’ve been on a bit of a covers discovery run lately… these are my picks:
Toxic - Stevie Ann
Smells Like Teen Spirit - Patti Smith
Hurt - Johnny Cash
Downtown - The B-52’s
Superstar - Sonic Youth
Hazy Shade Of Winter - The Bangles
Running Up That Hill - Placebo
Hallelujah - Jeff Buckley
Little Wing - Concrete Blonde
A Little Help From My Friends - Joe Cocker
Time After Time - Eva Cassidy
Common People - William Shatner
All Along The Watchtower - Jimi Hendrix
Bizarre Love Triangle - Frente
Gloria - Patti Smith
Everlasting Love - U2
Wild Horses - The Sundays
Money (That’s What I Want) - Flying Lizzards
Be My Baby - We Are Scientists
Proud Mary - Ike & Tina Turner
House Of The Rising Sun - Sinead O’Connor
Time Of The Season - Ben Taylor Band
Seven Nation Army - The Flaming Lips
These Days - Fountains of Wayne
Wonderwall - Ryan Adams
Crazy - Alanis Morissette
Glory Box - John Martyn
Mad World - Michael Andrews
… god I could go on and on. I’ll stop now.
Mad World, originally Tears for Fears and covered by Gary Jules. The cover version is truly beautiful.
Tori Amos - Smells Like Teen Spirit
Tori Amos - I Don’t Like Mondays
Garbage - Wild Horses
Lacuna Coil - Enjoy The Silence
Ben Harper - The Drugs Don’t Work
Antony & The Johnsons - Crazy In Love
Nancy Wallace - Young Hearts Run Free
Mark Ronson & Amy Winehouse - Valerie
Tina Turner - Simply The Best
Bonnie Tyler - Have You Ever Seen The Rain
Bettye LaVette - Down To Zero
Cat Power - New York
There are hundreds I’m sure, but those are all I can think of right now 
That’s easy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_zA7nukoZA
I really love a lot of the Beatles covers on the I Am Sam soundtrack, especially:
Two of Us - Michael Penn and Aimee Mann
I’m Looking Through You - the Wallflowers
You’ve Got To Hide Your Love Away - Eddie Vedder
Blackbird - Sarah McLachlan
And the rest are great, too.
Al Green’s How Can You Mend a Broken Heart
Manhattan’s Tomorrow
Soft Cell’s Tainted Love
I’m old.
Frente’s version of New Order’s Bizarre Love Triangle I’ve always found endearing.
Jill Sobule’s rendition of Warren Zevon’s Don’t let us get sick is a recent favourite.
Queensryche: Heaven on their minds (from Jesus Christ Superstar)
Welcome to the Machine
Ugly Kid Joe: Cats in the Cradle
Motorhead: Please Don’t Touch
Cake: Guitar Man
Weezer: The Weight
Shinedown: Simple Man
HIM - Wicked Game (Chris Isaac original)
HIM - Don’t Fear the Reaper (Blue Oyster Cult original)
Oingo Boingo - I Am the Walrus (Beatles original)
Puffy AmiYumi - Joining a Fanclub (Jellyfish original)
Shonen Knife - Daydream Believer (Monkees original)
Shonen Knife - I Wanna Be Sedated (Ramones original)
Tommy February[sup]6[/sup] - I’m In the Mood For Dancing (The Nolans original?)
Tommy February[sup]6[/sup] - Can’t Take My Eyes Off Of You (Frankie Valli original)
Cruxshadows - Here Comes the Rain Again (Eurythmics original)
Cruxshadows - Happy Xmas (War is Over) (John Lennon original)
Most every Apocalyptica version of a Metallica song, but Nothing Else Matters is a favourite.
Sort of ‘does it really count as a cover?’
Brian Setzer Orchestra - Rock This Town (Stray Cats original.)
hugs Tengu for showing love for HIM and Apocalyptica I’m assuming (dangerous, I know) that Shonen Knife is a J-pop band? I’ll be cheking them out for sure!
Wilson Pickett’s cover of “Hey Jude.”
Aretha Franklin’s cover of “Respect.” (original by Otis Redding)
The Jeff Beck Group’s cover of “Jailhouse Rock.” For that matter, their cover of “All Shook Up,” too. (Both on Beck-Ola.)
Willie Nelson’s and Merle Haggard’s cover of “Pancho and Lefty” by Townes Van Zandt
Another fan! Ginchy!
Yeah, they’re Japanese. Been around since the 80s, and still active. (And have a new album coming out this week!) They also have great covers of Cherry Bomb (Runaways) and Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head (Carpenters)… Obviously, their influences (and thus their sound) are broad.
Going in the other direction, Nirvana apparently did a version of their Twist Barbie live, and Sonic Youth have done Burning Farm.
Check out most things by Nouvelle Vague/Marc Collin for some takes on 80s new wave.
A few others would be Blue Monday by Tanghetto, and you haven’t lived until you hear the Theme from Shaft by Malik. There’s even a video.
Also, Senior Coconut’s version ofSmoke on the Water.
The Gourds doing Gin and Juice (some language)
Goldfinger’s 99 Red Balloons
For any horn lovers, Bonerama doing:
The Wizard
Crosstown Traffic
Whipping Post
Frankenstein
I could do this all day!
I think I’ve mentioned this before, but two of my favorites are Israel Kamakawiwo’ole’s version of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” and Ben Folds’ version of “Bitches Ain’t Shit”.
If you are a fan of covers, The Covers Project might be a help.
Not to pick nits, but didn’t Brian write the song for The Stray Cats when he was with the band?
Which is why I put that one under the header ‘Sort of ‘does it really count as a cover?’’
My bad. I misread.