# The original was good, but it was the RADICALLY different cover version that was the hit **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 20, 2020, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-original-was-good-but-it-was-the-radically-different-cover-version-that-was-the-hit/918591 "2020-08-20T14:40:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2020, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-original-was-good-but-it-was-the-radically-different-cover-version-that-was-the-hit/918591/61 "2020-08-21T14:11:34Z")
Yes covered Paul simon’s America and made it epic. From 8 to 12 minutes and radically different indeed. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/3CACWj18ruk/maxresdefault.jpg "America (2003 Remaster)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3CACWj18ruk) ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2020, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-original-was-good-but-it-was-the-radically-different-cover-version-that-was-the-hit/918591/62 "2020-08-21T14:29:10Z")
I’d say The Damned’s version was the biggest hit, there. But I wouldn’t say any of them were _radically_ different. [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/nYVDN27CrOo/hqdefault.jpg "The Damned - Alone Again Or (1987)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nYVDN27CrOo) ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2020, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-original-was-good-but-it-was-the-radically-different-cover-version-that-was-the-hit/918591/63 "2020-08-21T14:32:48Z")
> [@TCMF-2L](#): > > Because The Night The highest-charting version of that is the 10,000 Maniacs Unplugged one (which is the one I prefer). [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/6JNcGhBWJZA/hqdefault.jpg "10,000 Maniacs - Because The Night") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JNcGhBWJZA) ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2020, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-original-was-good-but-it-was-the-radically-different-cover-version-that-was-the-hit/918591/64 "2020-08-21T15:27:30Z")
> [@TCMF-2L](#): > > How about **China Girl** written by **David Bowie** and **Iggy Pop**. **Bowie** released his version 6 years after **Iggy** and had a massive hit with it > TCMF-2L That’s an interesting pair. The background instrumentals are quite different, but listen to the vocals. Was Iggy doing a Bowie impression, or was Bowie doing an Iggy impression? ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2020, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-original-was-good-but-it-was-the-radically-different-cover-version-that-was-the-hit/918591/65 "2020-08-21T15:34:51Z")
> [@mbh](#): > > That’s an interesting pair. The background instrumentals are quite different, but listen to the vocals. Was Iggy doing a Bowie impression, or was Bowie doing an Iggy impression? Iggy’s version was not only written, but also produced by Bowie, so of course there are similarities. And I think it’s safe to say that they influenced each other throughout their career in which they crossed paths again and again. Another example of a Bowie written and produced song done by Iggy and later becoming the greater hit by Bowie himself is “Tonight” (you can clearly hear Bowie on background voice on Iggy’s version): [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/i--aKHwPPJI/hqdefault.jpg "Tonight - Iggy Pop") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i--aKHwPPJI) [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Swj3pmKric) ---
**Author:** ![TCMF-2L](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tcmf-2l/32/16553_2.png) [@TCMF-2L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TCMF-2L)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2020, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-original-was-good-but-it-was-the-radically-different-cover-version-that-was-the-hit/918591/66 "2020-08-21T15:40:21Z")
UK artist **Billy Bragg** (not sure if he is known in the US but he’s a punk / folk music, very basic guitar and vocals kind of guy) recorded the track **A New England** on his first album. It wasn’t released as a single. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/aCfRcgoPxTw/hqdefault.jpg "Billy Bragg New England") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCfRcgoPxTw) However **Kirsty MacColl** (probably best known in the US as female vocals on **The Pogues A Fairytale of New York** ) recorded a much smoother and ‘poppier’ version which became her biggest solo hit [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Vnzpg5GgQCo/hqdefault.jpg "Kirsty MacColl - A New England") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vnzpg5GgQCo) It was all very amicable with **Bragg** actually writing another verse to make the song long enough for a single. Since **Kirsty’s** tragic early death **Bragg** has tended to use the **Kirsty** extended version when he plays the song in his own concerts. TCMF-2L ---
**Author:** ![TCMF-2L](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tcmf-2l/32/16553_2.png) [@TCMF-2L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TCMF-2L)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2020, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-original-was-good-but-it-was-the-radically-different-cover-version-that-was-the-hit/918591/67 "2020-08-21T16:01:54Z")
The original **John Fogerty Rocking All Over The World** was a Number 27 hit in the US but virtually unknown in the UK [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/fEUP5yjIOB8/maxresdefault.jpg "John Fogerty - Rockin' All Over The World") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fEUP5yjIOB8) However it was a Number 3 hit in the UK for massively successful **Status Quo** and is arguably their signature tune although most of their many hits all sound the same anyway [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/Yw_sJifUYgM/maxresdefault.jpg "Status Quo - Rockin All Over The World") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yw_sJifUYgM) In America **The Quo** are probably best known for their first hit **Pictures of Matchstick Men** [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/3yIqbVDf3OU/hqdefault.jpg?sqp=-oaymwEmCOADEOgC8quKqQMa8AEB-AH-BIAC4AOKAgwIABABGHIgYShBMA8=&rs=AOn4CLBRNRy6D69KQe7AmLmB5wAod1hExg "Status Quo - Pictures of Matchstick Men (Studio-Stereo 1968)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3yIqbVDf3OU) There is possibly some irony here in that in the UK **Pictures** isn’t particularly well known and isn’t linked to **The Quo** since it doesn’t sound much like their other (60 according to Wiki) UK hits. TCMF-2L ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2020, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-original-was-good-but-it-was-the-radically-different-cover-version-that-was-the-hit/918591/68 "2020-08-21T16:58:46Z")
> [@Brayne\_Ded](#): > > Does “From a distance” by Bette Midler count? I heard the original version by the guy that wrote it - just once. It never got played, unlike Bette Midler’s take on it. “From a Distance” was written by Julie Gold, not a guy. The first recording of it was by another woman, Nanci Griffith. Maybe you’re thinking of the Cliff Richard version, which came out at the same time as the Bette Midler version? That one didn’t chart in the US, but it made #11 in the UK. (Midler’s hit #6 there.) ---
**Author:** ![Chad\_Sudan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chad_sudan/32/4509_2.png) [@Chad\_Sudan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chad_Sudan)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2020, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-original-was-good-but-it-was-the-radically-different-cover-version-that-was-the-hit/918591/69 "2020-08-21T17:48:51Z")
Both the original and the cover are brilliant - and so, so different: Take Me to the River - Al Green [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/9FBUgdhxe9M/maxresdefault.jpg "Al Green - Take Me To The River (Official Audio)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FBUgdhxe9M) Take Me to the River - Talking Heads [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/yFS67lfCXXQ/maxresdefault.jpg "Talking Heads - Take Me To The River (HQ)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFS67lfCXXQ) ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2020, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-original-was-good-but-it-was-the-radically-different-cover-version-that-was-the-hit/918591/70 "2020-08-21T18:53:04Z")
An obvious one I only just thought of: I Will Always Love You. A delightful song by [Dolly Parton](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TboluGTslbc) - a wistful farewell to Porter Wagoner, I believe (and for years a little known gem). And then there was [Whitney Houston](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3JWTaaS7LdU) who - oh, what’s that word again? Oh yes, ruined it (colossal hit). j ETA - PS, I had no idea that Take Me To The River was a cover. Thanks, @Chad_Sudan ---
**Author:** ![Chad\_Sudan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chad_sudan/32/4509_2.png) [@Chad\_Sudan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chad_Sudan)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2020, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-original-was-good-but-it-was-the-radically-different-cover-version-that-was-the-hit/918591/71 "2020-08-21T19:23:32Z")
Seconded! The Dolly Parton original is such a tearjerker because she’s _suppressing_ her heartbreak - not belting it out to the rafters! (Hmm, didn’t realize it was about Porter Wagoner!) ---
**Author:** ![MrAtoz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@MrAtoz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrAtoz)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2020, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-original-was-good-but-it-was-the-radically-different-cover-version-that-was-the-hit/918591/72 "2020-08-21T20:10:00Z")
Although it’s generally regarded as the epitome of 70s cheese nowadays, there’s no denying that Terry Jacks’s “Seasons in the Sun” was a huge hit when it was released in 1974: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/-tPcc1ftj8E/maxresdefault.jpg "Terry Jacks - Seasons In The Sun (Official Audio)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-tPcc1ftj8E) How many of you have ever heard the original version, “Le Moribond,” by Belgian singer-songwriter Jacques Brel? It is…very different. [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MB58PuNYO8o) ---
**Author:** ![RealBigOleDummy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realbigoledummy/32/4415_2.png) [@RealBigOleDummy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealBigOleDummy)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2020, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-original-was-good-but-it-was-the-radically-different-cover-version-that-was-the-hit/918591/73 "2020-08-21T20:29:15Z")
Indeed, Gary Jules OWNS that song now. Can hardly even listen to the Tears for Fears version ---
**Author:** ![ThisIsTheEnd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thisistheend/32/4713_2.png) [@ThisIsTheEnd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThisIsTheEnd)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2020, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-original-was-good-but-it-was-the-radically-different-cover-version-that-was-the-hit/918591/74 "2020-08-22T00:03:26Z")
> [@Treppenwitz](#): > > Nothing compares 2U - [The Family](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZlzN0Gtpp8) (a Prince side project) - [Sinead O’Connor](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-EF60neguk&vl=en-GB). (Actually, I’ve always been surprised these are so similar - they’re close enough that I marvel that nobody saw the greatness til O’Connor did it) They’re similar moods and tempos, but the arrangements are totally different. The Prince arrangement wasn’t really distinctive and the O’Connor vocal really sold the lyrics better. ---
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2020, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-original-was-good-but-it-was-the-radically-different-cover-version-that-was-the-hit/918591/75 "2020-08-22T01:36:05Z")
The House of the Rising Sun - most folks know the Animals but it was done by everyone. > **[The House of the Rising Sun](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_House_of_the_Rising_Sun)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > > > "The House of the Rising Sun" is a traditional folk song, sometimes called "Rising Sun Blues". It tells of a person's life gone wrong in the city of New Orleans. Many versions also urge a sibling or parents and children to avoid the same fate. The most successful commercial version, recorded in 1964 by the British rock band The Animals, was a number one hit on the UK Singles Chart and in the US and Canada. As a traditional folk song recorded by a... Folks with radically different takes: Woody Guthrie, Leadbelly, Pete Seeger, Andy Griffith, Miriam Makeba, Joan Baez, Bob Dylan. " According to [John Steel](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Steel_(drummer)), [Bob Dylan](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Dylan) told him that when he first heard The Animals’ version on his car radio, he stopped to listen, “jumped out of his car” and “banged on the bonnet”, inspiring him to go electric.[[30]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_House_of_the_Rising_Sun#cite_note-30) [Dave Van Ronk](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dave_Van_Ronk) said that The Animals’ version—like Dylan’s version before it—was based on his arrangement of the song.[[31]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_House_of_the_Rising_Sun#cite_note-31) [Dave Marsh](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dave_Marsh) described the Animals’ take on “The House of the Rising Sun” as “…the first folk-rock hit”, sounding “…as if they’d connected the ancient tune to a live wire”.[[2]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_House_of_the_Rising_Sun#cite_note-marsh1001-2) Writer Ralph McLean of the [BBC](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BBC) agreed that “It was arguably the first folk rock tune”, calling it “a revolutionary single”, after which “the face of modern music was changed forever”. ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2020, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-original-was-good-but-it-was-the-radically-different-cover-version-that-was-the-hit/918591/76 "2020-08-22T02:07:42Z")
I found this out from an article that was "15 hits you didnt know that were covers " about 10 years ago you have to admit the change from a guy discussing/bragging on how he didnt mind being a booty call for girls to a female empowerment song …id think that takes the prize ---
**Author:** ![SwissMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e79b87/32.png) [@SwissMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SwissMan)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2020, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-original-was-good-but-it-was-the-radically-different-cover-version-that-was-the-hit/918591/77 "2020-08-22T02:36:55Z")
I think I found one that hasn’t been mentioned yet: “Hurt” The original, by Nine Inch Nails: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/OvoTktdpIiI/maxresdefault.jpg "Hurt") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvoTktdpIiI) The famous cover by Johnny Cash: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/8AHCfZTRGiI/maxresdefault.jpg "Johnny Cash - Hurt") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8AHCfZTRGiI) Even Trent Reznor admitted “that song isn’t mine anymore” after he heard Cash’s version. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2020, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-original-was-good-but-it-was-the-radically-different-cover-version-that-was-the-hit/918591/78 "2020-08-22T02:49:44Z")
While the 2 versions are pretty similar, the Shocking Blue original version of Venus is very 1960s. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/8LhkyyCvUHk/maxresdefault.jpg "Shocking Blue - Venus (Video)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8LhkyyCvUHk) And the Bananarama cover is very 1980s. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/d4-1ASpdT1Y/maxresdefault.jpg "Bananarama - Venus (Official Video)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4-1ASpdT1Y) ---
**Author:** ![Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/face_intentionally_left_blank/32/288_2.png) [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Face_Intentionally_Left_Blank)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2020, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-original-was-good-but-it-was-the-radically-different-cover-version-that-was-the-hit/918591/79 "2020-08-22T03:45:44Z")
The first Allman Bros album was released in 1969 and didn’t do too well at first, only selling 35,000 copies. It featured a few now well-known songs: the studio versions of Whipping Post, Not My Cross to Bear, and the song I came to write about. [Dreams (I’ll Never See).](https://youtu.be/rK_5cJpM06k) A mellow song with soaring, but subtle, slide guitar. Just beautiful, gorgeous work. I’ve listened to this song on repeat at times, just for that guitar. [Molly Hatchet released their version](https://youtu.be/jTZHHQplIX8?t=5) on their debut album in 1978, which sold 1,000,000 albums in 2 years. Keeping more or less the same structure, it nonetheless manages to distinguish itself from the original, particularly with how they interpreted the extended guitar solo. Whereas Duane’s was ethereal, MH’s version was more to the rock side of Southern Rock. With three guitarists trading off sections, I have no idea who did what, but it all comes together beautifully. A great example of a cover song: keeping true to the original, while adding enough of their own style to justify it. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2020, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-original-was-good-but-it-was-the-radically-different-cover-version-that-was-the-hit/918591/80 "2020-08-22T06:07:20Z")
This thread is Trivia Gold! Where do you people come up with this shit? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-original-was-good-but-it-was-the-radically-different-cover-version-that-was-the-hit/918591.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-original-was-good-but-it-was-the-radically-different-cover-version-that-was-the-hit/918591.md?page=5)