# Songs more well-known by their covers **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 8, 2006, 7:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-more-well-known-by-their-covers/338996 "2006-01-08T07:49:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2006, 7:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-more-well-known-by-their-covers/338996/1 "2006-01-08T07:49:24Z")
And there are bound to be many of them. For the purposes of the thread, this is not intended to be a debate as to whether the cover was GOOD or not. Likewise, I want to stay away from public domain songs, and that sort of thing. Let me give an example: The song “Hard to Handle.” Most people would tell you that it’s done by The Black Crowes (which is true). But it’s been around for quite a while before they recorded it. Any others? ---
**Author:** ![Stark\_Raven\_Mad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Stark\_Raven\_Mad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stark_Raven_Mad)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2006, 7:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-more-well-known-by-their-covers/338996/2 "2006-01-08T07:54:37Z")
Nine Inch Nails’ **Hurt**. Everyone thinks Johnny Cash wrote it. ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2006, 8:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-more-well-known-by-their-covers/338996/3 "2006-01-08T08:08:13Z")
Aretha Franklin’s version of “R-E-S-P-E-C-T”, first done by Otis Redding (IIRC) ---
**Author:** ![Bearflag70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Bearflag70](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bearflag70)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2006, 8:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-more-well-known-by-their-covers/338996/4 "2006-01-08T08:23:01Z")
_Some Guys Have All the Luck_ by Rod Stewart is more well known that the original by Robert Palmer ---
**Author:** ![Mbossa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@Mbossa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mbossa)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2006, 8:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-more-well-known-by-their-covers/338996/5 "2006-01-08T08:34:15Z")
Joe Cocker, the king of covers, has a few like that. Ones that come to mind are _With a Little Help from My Friends_ (The Beatles) and _The Letter_ (Box Tops). I also suspect that _You Can Leave Your Hat On_ was originally by Tom Jones – someone else can hopefully confirm that. ---
**Author:** ![Seven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Seven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seven)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2006, 8:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-more-well-known-by-their-covers/338996/6 "2006-01-08T08:39:38Z")
Soft Cell’s **Tainted Love** was a cover. I don’t remember who wrote it. ---
**Author:** ![betenoir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/258eb7/32.png) [@betenoir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/betenoir)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2006, 8:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-more-well-known-by-their-covers/338996/7 "2006-01-08T08:41:01Z")
> [@Stark Raven Mad](#): > > Nine Inch Nails’ **Hurt**. Everyone thinks Johnny Cash wrote it. :dubious: Who thinks that? Anyway, Jimi Hendrix doing Dylan’s All Along the Watchtower. Dylan had a number of songs made famous by other people…what’s the Byrd’s one I’m trying to think of? And Elvis’ Hound Dog counts as a cover I think. There must be a lot from the blue/r&B to rock’n’roll crossover. ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2006, 8:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-more-well-known-by-their-covers/338996/8 "2006-01-08T08:45:21Z")
> [@Mbossa](#): > > Joe Cocker, the king of covers, has a few like that. … I also suspect that _You Can Leave Your Hat On_ was originally by Tom Jones – someone else can hopefully confirm that. No, it was originally done by Randy Newman. Also, Jones’ version came after Cocker’s. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2006, 8:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-more-well-known-by-their-covers/338996/9 "2006-01-08T08:47:53Z")
> [@betenoir](#): > > Dylan had a number of songs made famous by other people…what’s the Byrd’s one I’m trying to think of? _Mr. Tambourine Man_. ---
**Author:** ![Amaranta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Amaranta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amaranta)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2006, 10:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-more-well-known-by-their-covers/338996/10 "2006-01-08T10:41:22Z")
David Bowie has said he often has younger people come up to him and tell him how awesome he is for covering Nirvana’s **Man Who Sold the World**. :rolleyes: And I think this happens to poor Otis often - along with\*\* R.E.S.P.E.C.T\*\* and **Hard To Handle** , I know people who think Pearl Jam wrote **Dock of the Bay.** It really pisses me off when people go on and on about the great beat some stupid rap song has, and how creative rappers really are, when it was really stolen (sorry, “sampled”) from an old R&B or disco song. Dumbasses. ---
**Author:** ![Ins\_Outs\_What-have-yous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8797f3/32.png) [@Ins\_Outs\_What-have-yous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ins_Outs_What-have-yous)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2006, 10:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-more-well-known-by-their-covers/338996/11 "2006-01-08T10:51:16Z")
‘Blinded by the Light’ - Manfred Mann’s version is the one that’s most well known (original by Bruce Springsteen) ‘Suzy Q’ - Creedence Clearwater Revival’s version is best known (original by Dale Hawkins). ‘Turn! Turn! Turn!’ - The Byrds’ version is best known (original by Pete Seeger; Also, some of the lyrics were taken directly from the Book of Ecclesiastes in The Bible). ‘Hey Joe’ - Jimi Hendrix’s version is the best known among many cover versions but it is an old traditional song. ‘House of the Rising Sun’ - The Animals’ version is the best known. From the [SDSTAFF report about the song](http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mrisingson.html): > [@](#): > > According to folklorist Alan Lomax in his book Our Singing Country (1941), the melody of “The House of the Rising Run” is a traditional English ballad and the lyrics were written by Georgia Turner and Bert Martin (both from Kentucky). * * * > [@](#): > > Posted by **Seven** > _Soft Cell’s Tainted Love was a cover. I don’t remember who wrote it._ ‘Tainted Love’ was written by Edward Cobb; Gloria Jones sang the original version released in 1976. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2006, 11:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-more-well-known-by-their-covers/338996/12 "2006-01-08T11:09:15Z")
Marvin Gaye’s version of **Heard It through the Grapevine** or maybe Creedence’s version or even Gladys Knight and the Pips’ version (although it was the first released) but then the original by Smokey Robinson and the Miracles was never released. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2006, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-more-well-known-by-their-covers/338996/13 "2006-01-08T13:23:25Z")
The more popular early Rock ‘n’ Roll songs were covers of R&B and Blues things that had either been recorded for the “Race” market or were lying fallow after being recorded by black artists or groups. Little Richard was among those whose work was ripped off before he became famous enough to have his stuff make the hits charts. Elvis is probably most guilty of elevating those songs to popularity. My guess is that at least half of his early work was covers. Pat Boone was another. It’s interesting to check the composer/songwriter credits on those early things. Before Lieber & Stoller, Carole King, Neil Diamond, Paul Anka and that crowd, lots of music we associate with some particular artist or group was written for somebody else. I don’t think the same logic applies to people like Sinatra since the song market in the earlier years was less for a specific artist. Some artists just did better (read that more popular) jobs of selling them. That’s one of the main reasons shows like Your Hit Parade began to die off after R&R came on the scene. Pop music became much more artist-related. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_MuD\_PhuD](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/2bfe46/32.png) [@Elmer\_MuD\_PhuD](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_MuD_PhuD)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2006, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-more-well-known-by-their-covers/338996/14 "2006-01-08T14:04:56Z")
> [@amaranta](#): > > I know people who think Pearl Jam wrote **Dock of the Bay.** You have to be joking. Blowin’ in the Wind - originally by Dylan best known by Joan Baez probably. Renegades of Funk - Rage Against the Machine, originally by Afrika Bambaataa IIRC Personally, I still prefer not to acknowledge that “Say Hello, Wave Goodbye” was written by Soft Cell (IIRC) and not David Gray. Whiskey in the Jar sometimes gets accredited to the Grateful Dead, as does Long Black Veil to the Dave Matthews Band. ---
**Author:** ![LiveOnAPlane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3d9bf3/32.png) [@LiveOnAPlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LiveOnAPlane)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2006, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-more-well-known-by-their-covers/338996/15 "2006-01-08T15:00:37Z")
“Memphis,” by Johnny Rivers. Written & originally performed by the great Chuck Berry. (Slight nitpick…I think Berry may have titled it “Memphis, Tennesee,” but am not sure about this) “Hot Rod Lincoln.” Best known as done by Johnny Bond in 1959, it was also re-covered by Commander Cody and the Lost Planet Airmen in 1972. It was originally performed by Charlie Ryan in 1955 (released in 1957). [See here for more info and another, still later cover as well.](http://www.lincoln-club.org/hot-rod-lincoln.html) “I Will Always Love You,” done by Whitney Houston. It was a big hit in 1993, and I _think_ is far better known than Dolly Parton’s original which was released in 1974. Interestingly, Parton’s version was also a hit…I think it was #1 in the C & W category. ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2006, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-more-well-known-by-their-covers/338996/16 "2006-01-08T15:02:37Z")
Janis Joplin’s two biggest hits are seldom heard in their original versions: “Piece of my Heart” (Erma Franklin) and “Me and Bobbie McGee” (Kris Kristofferson). The Beatles’ version of “Twist and Shout” is usually cited as a cover of an Isley Brothers song, but even the Isleys version was a cover of the original by the Topnotes. The Rolling Stones’ “It’s All Over Now” easily eclipsed the Valentinos’ original. ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2006, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-more-well-known-by-their-covers/338996/17 "2006-01-08T15:03:26Z")
I’ll have to do the research on who did the covers later, but I do know that my favorite Joni Mitchell songs have rarely been sung by her (I do like her “Free Man in Paris”). ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2006, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-more-well-known-by-their-covers/338996/18 "2006-01-08T15:06:07Z")
> [@LiveOnAPlane](#): > > (Slight nitpick…I think Berry may have titled it “Memphis, Tennesee,” but am not sure about this) At least on Berry’s _The Great Twenty-Eight_ LP it’s listed simply as “Memphis.” ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2006, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-more-well-known-by-their-covers/338996/19 "2006-01-08T15:07:49Z")
> [@FriarTed](#): > > I’ll have to do the research on who did the covers later, but I do know that my favorite Joni Mitchell songs have rarely been sung by her (I do like her “Free Man in Paris”). You’re probably thinking of the Judy Collins version of “Both Sides Now.” Or maybe the CSNY version of “Woodstock.” Both are much better known than the Joni versions. ---
**Author:** ![ColonelDax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/71e660/32.png) [@ColonelDax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ColonelDax)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2006, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-more-well-known-by-their-covers/338996/20 "2006-01-08T15:32:05Z")
Barrett Strong’s original version of “Money” topped out at #23 in 1959, but the cover by the Flying Lizards rose to #5 on the U.K. charts in 1979 and was used on the soundtracks of “The Wedding Singer” and “Charlie’s Angels.” The Beatles’ 1963 cover also is well known, although it doesn’t seem to have been issued as a single, according to a couple of websites I checked. Dave Edmunds had a minor hit with “Almost Saturday Night” on his 1981 album _Twangin’_; the original version by John Fogerty, who wrote the song, had appeared six years earlier. On the same album, Edmunds also covered “Singing the Blues,” although I think it’s safe to say that Marty Robbins (13 weeks at #1 on the country charts in 1956) and Guy Mitchell (10 weeks at #1 in the pop charts) had more success with their versions. (The song was written by Melvin Endsley.) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-more-well-known-by-their-covers/338996.md?page=2)