# They did a cover of that song? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 10, 2006, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-did-a-cover-of-that-song/363924 "2006-07-10T20:24:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Bearflag70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Bearflag70](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bearflag70)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2006, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-did-a-cover-of-that-song/363924/41 "2006-07-11T06:35:51Z")
Duran Duran covered _911 is a Joke_ That was a bad choice. ---
**Author:** ![supervenusfreak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@supervenusfreak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/supervenusfreak)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2006, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-did-a-cover-of-that-song/363924/42 "2006-07-11T16:52:24Z")
I think the most recent one that made my day, was when I saw Sebastian Bach doing a tight cover of “Hollaback Girl” on “Gilmore Girls”. It definitely made me think about what songs cover bands are forced to perform in order to make a buck. ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2006, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-did-a-cover-of-that-song/363924/43 "2006-07-11T17:36:55Z")
Me First and the Gimme Gimmes are a california punk cover band. My personal favorite of theirs is _Natural Woman_. ---
**Author:** ![Spiff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiff/32/9852_2.png) [@Spiff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiff)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2006, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-did-a-cover-of-that-song/363924/44 "2006-07-11T18:32:46Z")
Shonen Knife covered the Carpenters’ _I’m On Top of the World_. And it ROCKED! ---
**Author:** ![Man\_With\_a\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cab0a1/32.png) [@Man\_With\_a\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Man_With_a_Cat)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2006, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-did-a-cover-of-that-song/363924/45 "2006-07-11T18:43:57Z")
[QUOTE=Spiff] Shonen Knife covered the Carpenters’ _I’m On Top of the World_. And it ROCKED! [/QUOTE] That’s from a CD made entirely of Carpenter songs covered by other artists. There’s more than one gem on there. Some stinkers too. ---
**Author:** ![Crotalus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crotalus/32/41_2.png) [@Crotalus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crotalus)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2006, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-did-a-cover-of-that-song/363924/46 "2006-07-11T18:49:16Z")
I went looking on the web for “Wall of Death” by Richard and Linda Thompson, and found a version by REM. Pretty cool, but Linda’s unusual harmony makes the original. REM also covered a few Velvet Underground tunes and Roger Miller’s King of the Road, but everyone probably already knows that. ---
**Author:** ![JSexton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/96bed5/32.png) [@JSexton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JSexton)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2006, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-did-a-cover-of-that-song/363924/47 "2006-07-11T18:50:32Z")
Jimmy Eat World did a slow, lazy, mellow cover of Prodigy’s _Firestarter._ I heard it a week or so ago, and didn’t recognize the song until it was nearly over. ---
**Author:** ![pinkfreud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pinkfreud/32/17603_2.png) [@pinkfreud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pinkfreud)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2006, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-did-a-cover-of-that-song/363924/48 "2006-07-11T19:03:00Z")
One of the oddest covers I’ve heard was Joan Jett’s version of “Little Drummer Boy.” Schmaltzy Christmas ballads just aren’t Joan’s forte. ---
**Author:** ![Lazlo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lazlo/32/9678_2.png) [@Lazlo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lazlo)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2006, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-did-a-cover-of-that-song/363924/49 "2006-07-11T19:29:30Z")
[QUOTE=phungi] check out [Coverville](http://www.coverville.com): a PodCast that posts an mp3 file of cover songs every week. I listen weekly and they have quite an eclectic collection of the most unlikely cover songs. Check it out… you will be glad you did… [/QUOTE] Great site, **phungi** , thanks! Now, has anyone heard a cover of _Patsy Cline’s_ **Walking After Midnight**? I would love to hear someone else’s version of it. ---
**Author:** ![Autumn\_Almanac](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d26b3c/32.png) [@Autumn\_Almanac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Autumn_Almanac)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2006, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-did-a-cover-of-that-song/363924/50 "2006-07-11T19:30:57Z")
[QUOTE=Crotalus] I went looking on the web for “Wall of Death” by Richard and Linda Thompson, and found a version by REM. Pretty cool, but Linda’s unusual harmony makes the original. REM also covered a few Velvet Underground tunes and Roger Miller’s King of the Road, but everyone probably already knows that. [/QUOTE] R.E.M. also did a pretty sweet cover of Suicide’s “Ghost Rider.” ---
**Author:** ![pinkfreud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pinkfreud/32/17603_2.png) [@pinkfreud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pinkfreud)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2006, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-did-a-cover-of-that-song/363924/51 "2006-07-11T20:44:33Z")
[QUOTE=Lazlo] Now, has anyone heard a cover of _Patsy Cline’s_ **Walking After Midnight**? I would love to hear someone else’s version of it. [/QUOTE] Bryan Adams did it, but I don’t like Bryan Adams, and I didn’t like his version of the song. YMMV. ---
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2006, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-did-a-cover-of-that-song/363924/52 "2006-07-11T21:39:13Z")
I became a fan of the Indo-European pop singer [Anggun](http://www.anggun.com/) a few years ago, and was quite surprised to hear her (kick-ass) cover of David Bowie’s “Life on Mars.” I was also both surprised and pleased by [Cowboy Mouth’s](http://www.cowboymouth.com/) cover of The Beatles’ “Tomorrow Never Knows.” Last, but not least, I’m quite fond of my version of Shawn Colvin’s “Sunny Came Home.” 😉 [QUOTE=Carm6773] Rascal Flatts have covered “Life is a Highway”. Like most Rascal Flatts, it is total dreck. [/QUOTE] That cover is the reason I bought the _Cars_ soundtrack. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2006, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-did-a-cover-of-that-song/363924/53 "2006-07-11T21:46:02Z")
[QUOTE=Crotalus] I went looking on the web for “Wall of Death” by Richard and Linda Thompson, and found a version by REM. Pretty cool, but Linda’s unusual harmony makes the original. REM also covered a few Velvet Underground tunes and Roger Miller’s King of the Road, but everyone probably already knows that. [/QUOTE] That was on the CD “Beat The Retreat: Songs by Richard Thompson”, all of which were RT covers by other artists. And speaking of RT, how about his awesome cover of Britney Spears’ “Oops I Did It Again”. ---
**Author:** ![divemaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/divemaster/32/78_2.png) [@divemaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/divemaster)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2006, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-did-a-cover-of-that-song/363924/54 "2006-07-12T01:08:16Z")
Growing up pretty much all I listened to was country music. BIG Hank Williams, Jr. fan. I had many of his albums and on one (_High Notes_, I think) he sang a song called **Norwegian Wood**. I had never heard of it before and I thought it was a little off the style I was used to for ole Bocephus. It was \*years \* later when I realized it was a Beatles song. I was surpised to find that out becasue Hank was well-known for writing most of his own stuff (or covering his dad’s songs). Why he chose to cover Norwegian Wood is beyond me, but I guess that’s why they call it album filler. ---
**Author:** ![Push\_You\_Down](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/push_you_down/32/9095_2.png) [@Push\_You\_Down](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Push_You_Down)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2006, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-did-a-cover-of-that-song/363924/55 "2006-07-12T01:41:56Z")
[QUOTE=pinkfreud] Bryan Adams did it, but I don’t like Bryan Adams, and I didn’t like his version of the song. YMMV. [/QUOTE] Garth Brooks I beleive also covered it. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2006, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-did-a-cover-of-that-song/363924/56 "2006-07-12T02:08:23Z")
[QUOTE=DonutSprinkle] Today on my XM I heard the [Violent Femmes](http://www.emusic.com/artist/10564/10564271.html) covering ‘Do You Really Want to Hurt Me.’ [/QUOTE] And on the Gnarls Barkley album, they cover the Violent Femmes song “Gone Daddy Gone.” Had to get that album after seeing them perform “Crazy” (not the Patsy Cline one) while dressed up as Star Wars characters on the MTV Movie Awards. My nominations for this thread are “Smells Like Teen Spirit” performed by Tori Amos, and the Soundgarden song “Rusty Cage” performed by Johnny Cash. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2006, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-did-a-cover-of-that-song/363924/57 "2006-07-12T02:10:29Z")
[QUOTE=Push You Down] Gnarls Barkley doing “Gone Daddy Gone” by the Violent Femmes is just odd in general. That song I think is just so completely the Femmes its pretty ballzy to try to cover it. Johnny Cash doing NIN “Hurt” wasn’t completely unsurprising… Him doing Soundgarden’s “Rusty Cage”.. WTF! [/QUOTE] Wow, that is really weird. I see my post was basically already posted…by someone else! ---
**Author:** ![Suburban\_Plankton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suburban_plankton/32/219_2.png) [@Suburban\_Plankton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suburban_Plankton)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2006, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-did-a-cover-of-that-song/363924/58 "2006-07-12T02:24:48Z")
[QUOTE=Marley23] Your mention of Richard Cheese reminds me of the excellent [Beatallica](http://beatallica.org/beatallica.html). [/QUOTE] I have nothing to add to the thread, but I have to thank you for this link. I’m downloading both their albums as I type this! ---
**Author:** ![interface2x](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@interface2x](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/interface2x)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2006, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-did-a-cover-of-that-song/363924/59 "2006-07-12T02:29:23Z")
I thought it was a little odd when Death Cab for Cutie covered “Earth Angel”. ---
**Author:** ![pesch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pesch/32/4925_2.png) [@pesch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pesch)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2006, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-did-a-cover-of-that-song/363924/60 "2006-07-12T03:56:10Z")
[QUOTE=Shoeless] That was on the CD “Beat The Retreat: Songs by Richard Thompson”, all of which were RT covers by other artists. And speaking of RT, how about his awesome cover of Britney Spears’ “Oops I Did It Again”. [/QUOTE] I heard RT’s cover of “Oops” on the radio (public radio interview) and thought it was a good song. Also on my list: - David Bowie and Bing Crosby: “Little Drummer Boy.” This was early in Bowie’s career, and he looked cadaverous next to Der Bingle. - Keith Moon: “When I’m 64” From the soundtrack to “[All This and World War II](http://www.earcandymag.com/rrcase-allthisww2.htm)”. He sings like you’d expect a drummer to sing. Being dead could only help his singing voice. - Johnny Cash covered a number of questionable songs. I’m split on U2’s “One,” but “Bridge Over Troubled waters” should have stayed in the can. But it could have been worse: > [@](#): > > Picking non-country songs for Cash was a fraught business, for there was a fine line between the bold reach and the humiliating exercise in kitsch. During the Unchained sessions, Cash and the Heartbreakers tried out Robert Palmer’s “Addicted to Love,” a what-the-hell juxtaposition that Rubin was initially convinced could work. “We recorded a basic track of it, and it was hard to stop from laughing,” says Mike Campbell, the Heartbreakers’ guitarist. “But the thing is, Johnny wasn’t laughing. He was totally caught up in it, trying to learn it and find a way into it. [Imitating Cash’s grave basso] 'Might as well face it, you’re addicted to love …’” (From "American Communion” by David Kamp; Vanity Fair, Oct. 2004) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-did-a-cover-of-that-song/363924.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-did-a-cover-of-that-song/363924.md?page=4)