# When a different artist performs a song you love **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 8, 2003, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-different-artist-performs-a-song-you-love/159850 "2003-03-08T03:49:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![FairyDust](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ccd318/32.png) [@FairyDust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyDust)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-different-artist-performs-a-song-you-love/159850/1 "2003-03-08T03:49:29Z")
The other evening while watching television a commercial for the Gap came on. The audio portion was a female singing one of my favorite oldies “Feelin’ Groovy (The 59th Street Bridge Song)”, only her rendition did not appeal to me, to put it mildly. While listening to her sing it, my mind was thinking: “DAMAGE CONTROL! DAMAGE CONTROL! MUST COMMENCE REPAIRS IMMEDIATELY!” I quickly turned down the volume on the tv, pulled out my old LP that contains “Feelin’ Groovy” performed by Harpers Bizarre (the group that made it a hit), placed it on the turntable and played it with the volume cranked way up. Gawd, that felt SO good! I think I even had an orgasm. It was SO satisfying! 😃 The only other time I experienced something like that was when I watched the episode of Xena titled ‘The Battle of the Bands’. The warrior who was in love with Gabrielle sang “Always Something There To Remind Me”, only I didn’t care for his rendition of it. I prefer Naked Eyes’ rendition of it. Ever hear one of your favorite songs being performed by a different artist, and if so, how did you feel about it? Liked it or not? ---
**Author:** ![nuthinboutnuthin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/96bed5/32.png) [@nuthinboutnuthin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nuthinboutnuthin)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-different-artist-performs-a-song-you-love/159850/2 "2003-03-08T04:30:21Z")
I hate it Fairy Dust …I HATE IT !!! JUST ABSOLUTELY HATE IT!!! when someone else does a version of a fabulous hit… I mean, WHAT NERVE!!! It can ruin a whole day… yes I can relate… ---
**Author:** ![DeVena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/dec6dc/32.png) [@DeVena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DeVena)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-different-artist-performs-a-song-you-love/159850/3 "2003-03-08T04:37:57Z")
I LOVED the Cyndi Lauper version of “I Drove All Night”, which was a remake of Roy Orbison. Both good, but I liked Cyndi’s better. But now it’s been redone by Celine Dion, who has the emotional maturity of an eggplant. There’s no feeling there - ick ick ick ---
**Author:** ![Grelby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a5b964/32.png) [@Grelby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grelby)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-different-artist-performs-a-song-you-love/159850/4 "2003-03-08T04:41:29Z")
I recently heard a cover by some female artist of “Carry On,” by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. All I could think was, WHY?? It just didn’t sound right. What made that song great was who performed it and how they did it. That cover just couldn’t get it right. Doomed from the start. ---
**Author:** ![RangerDude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9e8a1a/32.png) [@RangerDude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RangerDude)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-different-artist-performs-a-song-you-love/159850/5 "2003-03-08T05:47:23Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by FairyDust \* > \*\*Ever hear one of your favorite songs being performed by a different artist, and if so, how did you feel about it? Liked it or not? \*\* I was in a music store when suddenly they played over the PA system a Beatles hit performed by some different group I didn’t know. It was painfully bad. I had to leave the store before my head exploded. I saw the same Xena episode you mentioned in the OP: The Battle of the Bands. That was one of my favorite eps. Loved Joxer’s brother’s rendition of ‘Dancing in the Moonlight’. Loved the original hit version, too, only I don’t remember who did it and made it a hit. ---
**Author:** ![sciguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e68b1a/32.png) [@sciguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sciguy)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-different-artist-performs-a-song-you-love/159850/6 "2003-03-08T05:57:05Z")
I heard a parody (sorry, don’t know by who) that sums up my feelings perfectly: > [@](#): > > So why did Madonna kill American Pie? > Well it’s tragic but my classic has been hung out to dry > She might as well have poked a sharp stick in my eye > She’s making all the neighbor dogs cry > She’s making all the neighbor dogs cry… I distinctly remember the first time I heard Madonna’s version. It was a cold winter day, we had just gotten dumped on with snow, and I was having to drive home surrounded by people who just can’t handle driving on less-than-pristine asphalt. Suddenly, this atrocity came on the radio, and I had to listen through the whole thing before realizing that **it wasn’t a joke!** It was the perfect crappy cap to a bad day. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![RangerDude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9e8a1a/32.png) [@RangerDude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RangerDude)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 6:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-different-artist-performs-a-song-you-love/159850/7 "2003-03-08T06:18:18Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by sciguy \* > \*\* > I distinctly remember the first time I heard Madonna’s version. It was a cold winter day, we had just gotten dumped on with snow, and I was having to drive home surrounded by people who just can’t handle driving on less-than-pristine asphalt. Suddenly, this atrocity came on the radio, and I had to listen through the whole thing before realizing that **it wasn’t a joke!** It was the perfect crappy cap to a bad day. ☹ \*\* I’ve never heard Madonna’s version of American Pie. Don’t think I’d like to hear it anytime in the future, especially after reading your post. Thanks for alerting me about it. Excuse me now while I go pop in my Don McLean CD and listen to his hit version of that song. Hmmm. By the way, I can’t imagine anyone else doing justice to Vicki Lawrence’s hit version of The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia. Don’t even know if anyone else has tried. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Violet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/ebca7d/32.png) [@Violet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Violet)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 6:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-different-artist-performs-a-song-you-love/159850/8 "2003-03-08T06:31:04Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by FairyDust \* > \*\*I quickly turned down the volume on the tv, pulled out my old LP that contains “Feelin’ Groovy” performed by Harpers Bizarre (the group that made it a hit), of it. \*\* The group is Harper’s Bazaar. Sometimes it bothers me & sometimes it doesn’t. Led Zeppelin’s re-makes of old blues songs never bothered me. ---
**Author:** ![Tinkertoy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f19dbf/32.png) [@Tinkertoy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tinkertoy)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 6:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-different-artist-performs-a-song-you-love/159850/9 "2003-03-08T06:49:27Z")
I saw **“Smoke on the water”** sang by **Pat Boone** :eek: I was under my bed in a fetal postion wimpering for 2 days. ---
**Author:** ![gex\_gex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/94ad74/32.png) [@gex\_gex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gex_gex)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 11:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-different-artist-performs-a-song-you-love/159850/10 "2003-03-08T11:41:53Z")
Madonna’s version is alright. It’s unobtrusive and ignoreable. Don McLean’s is awful. I’d take Madonna’s version any day. ---
**Author:** ![Jberto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/8baadc/32.png) [@Jberto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jberto)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-different-artist-performs-a-song-you-love/159850/11 "2003-03-08T12:13:45Z")
I kinda like Bryan Adam’s “Heaven” when I was younger, then one day I heard some techno 120bpm remake. All I could think, meekly, was “Error… must… analyze…” Sheryl Crow’s version of “Sweet Child O’ Mine” is just wrong, wrong, wrong. I like remakes that add something to the original - Orgy’s “Blue Monday” is a good example. But let’s face it. The remakes that always stick out to us are the ones that suck. ---
**Author:** ![Intaglio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/71e660/32.png) [@Intaglio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intaglio)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-different-artist-performs-a-song-you-love/159850/12 "2003-03-08T15:00:02Z")
I also hate the “Heaven” remake - just bad, I hate when someone remakes a good song and craps it up. ---
**Author:** ![Flutterby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Flutterby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flutterby)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-different-artist-performs-a-song-you-love/159850/13 "2003-03-08T15:13:21Z")
Did someone recently do a remake of _Walking in Memphis_? I love the Cher version, but last night when it came on the radio at work I’d _swear_ it wasn’t the same song. I was singing along and I kept fumbling over the words when I usually have absolutely no problem with it. Also, the Chantal Kreviazuk version of Leaving On A Jetplane. It isn’t that bad but it drives me nuts how she sings parts of it, making it sound choppy and annoying. ---
**Author:** ![Casey1505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dc4da7/32.png) [@Casey1505](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Casey1505)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-different-artist-performs-a-song-you-love/159850/14 "2003-03-08T15:38:55Z")
Alice in Chains had no business covering “Another Brick in The Wall”. If Roger Waters was dead, he’s be spinning in his grave! ---
**Author:** ![LurkMeister](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3da27b/32.png) [@LurkMeister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkMeister)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-different-artist-performs-a-song-you-love/159850/15 "2003-03-08T15:55:46Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by RangerDude \* > \*\*Hmmm. By the way, I can’t imagine anyone else doing justice to Vicki Lawrence’s hit version of The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia. Don’t even know if anyone else has tried. > > 🙂 \*\* Reba McEntire did, in 1992 IIRC. Of course, if that final 🙂 means you already knew that, I’ve been whooshed… On the OP topic, I can’t stand Whitney Houston’s version of “I Will Always Love You.” I once got into an arguement with someone who was convinced that Whitney had written the song; I had to get out my CD with the Vince Gill/Dolly Parton duet version and show him the song credits before he relented. Oh, and I actually prefer the aforementioned duet to Dolly’s original solo version. ---
**Author:** ![FairyDust](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ccd318/32.png) [@FairyDust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyDust)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-different-artist-performs-a-song-you-love/159850/16 "2003-03-08T16:53:11Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by LurkMeister \* > \*\*Reba McEntire did, in 1992 IIRC. > > Of course, if that final 🙂 means you already knew that, I’ve been whooshed… > > \*\* Oh, no. You haven’t been whooshed. Hmm. I like Reba McEntire. Think I’ll go check out her rendition of that song. Thanks, LurkMeister, for the info. ---
**Author:** ![Rico](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rico/32/3582_2.png) [@Rico](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rico)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-different-artist-performs-a-song-you-love/159850/17 "2003-03-08T19:21:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Violet \* > \*\*The group is Harper’s Bazaar. > \*\* Take it from a 20 year music industry veteran. It’s **Harpers Bizarre** [Look at 1967, number 98.](http://patriot.net/~jhanley/mvhs72/top_hits/billbrd.htm) ---
**Author:** ![typhoon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ed8c4c/32.png) [@typhoon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/typhoon)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-different-artist-performs-a-song-you-love/159850/18 "2003-03-08T19:48:52Z")
Marilyn Manson doing “Rock ‘N’ Roll Nigger.” BAH. ---
**Author:** ![RangerDude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9e8a1a/32.png) [@RangerDude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RangerDude)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-different-artist-performs-a-song-you-love/159850/19 "2003-03-08T20:00:35Z")
FairyDust is right, Lurkmeister. I just like to use the 🙂 button, as she knows from another board that we frequent. No whoosh intended. This SDMD is actually the first board where I’ve seen the word ‘whoosh’. By the way, I don’t believe I mentioned that FairyDust is my former sister-in-law. She used to be married to my brother, but after the divorce we remained friends. At least, she’s friends with most of my family. FairyDust, good to know you were able to commence damage control in time. When I thought you had mispelled Harpers Bizarre, I feared for the worst, like maybe you won’t be able to make those delicious lamb fritters like before. (hint, hint!) Back to Reba McEntire. I’ll have to find a copy of her version of that song. Anyone seen her sitcom? ---
**Author:** ![soulmurk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b782af/32.png) [@soulmurk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/soulmurk)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-different-artist-performs-a-song-you-love/159850/20 "2003-03-08T20:08:01Z")
[This.](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000005KOE/qid=1047153718/sr=2-2/ref=sr_2_2/002-3356526-5748039) While none of te songs covered are favorites of mine, it’s just wrong. In regards to the OP, I’m still unsure about how I feel about Johnny Cash covering Nine Inch Nails’ _Hurt_. Marilyn Manson’s cover of the Eurythmics _Sweet Dreams_, and their kind of cover of CCR’s sort of cover of _I Put a Spell On You_ are, IMO, better than the originals. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-a-different-artist-performs-a-song-you-love/159850.md?page=2)