# Worst song cover in a commercial, TV show, or movie... **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 7, 2008, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-song-cover-in-a-commercial-tv-show-or-movie/466769 "2008-10-07T00:24:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![The\_Scrivener](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@The\_Scrivener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Scrivener)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-song-cover-in-a-commercial-tv-show-or-movie/466769/1 "2008-10-07T00:24:35Z")
Prodded by the extremely lame version of The Fixx’s “Saved By Zero” in a current Toyota ad. Ticks me off every time I hear it. Surely you have a pet peeve or two, maybe going back several decades? Air 'em here… ---
**Author:** ![Rysto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ecccb3/32.png) [@Rysto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rysto)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-song-cover-in-a-commercial-tv-show-or-movie/466769/2 "2008-10-07T00:28:22Z")
I haven’t paid enough attention to the commercial to remember who made it(a cell phone company?), but there’s one on TV here with a truly abominable pop-rock cover of My Generation. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Credible](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a8b319/32.png) [@Justin\_Credible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Credible)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-song-cover-in-a-commercial-tv-show-or-movie/466769/3 "2008-10-07T00:38:10Z")
There was a recent commercial that had a woman doing an awful rendition of a Credence song…I think it was Have You Ever Seen The Rain. It was horrible. I have to admit that I kind of like the cover of Hello, Goodbye that was on a Kohl’s commercial a while back. ---
**Author:** ![Manduck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/manduck/32/256_2.png) [@Manduck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Manduck)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-song-cover-in-a-commercial-tv-show-or-movie/466769/4 "2008-10-07T00:48:39Z")
The version of My Generation in the Nikon ads is pretty bad. ---
**Author:** ![Lisa-go-Blind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Lisa-go-Blind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lisa-go-Blind)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-song-cover-in-a-commercial-tv-show-or-movie/466769/5 "2008-10-07T01:25:27Z")
The version of Scandal’s “Goodbye to You” (covered by The Veronicas) in the ads for Yaz birth control is pretty awful. The (original) version of “Walking on Sunshine” by Katrina & The Waves is one of the most overused songs in advertising, though at its heart it’s not a bad song. What _is_ terrible are the countless cover versions that pile on the cheese and up the obnoxiousness to unlistenable levels. Do the ones in ads for local car dealerships count, where they change the lyrics to shill for the business? For that matter, any cover versions that change the lyrics of the song to refer to the product. ---
**Author:** ![tanstaafl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ba8739/32.png) [@tanstaafl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tanstaafl)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-song-cover-in-a-commercial-tv-show-or-movie/466769/6 "2008-10-07T01:51:40Z")
Not from a commercial or anything, but [Worst… Cover… EVER!!!](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkMWdI2IKiw) (YouTube link). ---
**Author:** ![The\_Scrivener](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@The\_Scrivener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Scrivener)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-song-cover-in-a-commercial-tv-show-or-movie/466769/7 "2008-10-07T02:20:13Z")
> [@Lisa-go-Blind](#): > > Do the ones in ads for local car dealerships count, where they change the lyrics to shill for the business? For that matter, any cover versions that change the lyrics of the song to refer to the product. Sure, go ahead and use the local stuff, just don’t expect many others to recognize the reference. As for the product placements, they’re really altered versions but that makes them even more offensive as cover versions, and thus all the more appropriate for inclusion here. It’s funny, but like pretty much everyone else, I’ve been annoyed to various lengths by a zillion covers over the years… but now that I’ve started a thread on them, I can’t recall them. Much as I prize uncanny recall of many a sundry subject, I chalk this form of amnesia as beneficial to my emotional well-being, not to mention my ability to enjoy pop music. ---
**Author:** ![Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hazle_Weatherfield)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-song-cover-in-a-commercial-tv-show-or-movie/466769/8 "2008-10-07T03:16:52Z")
> [@The\_Scrivener](#): > > Prodded by the extremely lame version of The Fixx’s “Saved By Zero” in a current Toyota ad. Ticks me off every time I hear it. > > Surely you have a pet peeve or two, maybe going back several decades? Air 'em here… It’s criminal, is what it is! ---
**Author:** ![pepperlandgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f17d59/32.png) [@pepperlandgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pepperlandgirl)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-song-cover-in-a-commercial-tv-show-or-movie/466769/9 "2008-10-07T03:22:52Z")
There is nothing worse than the Jonas Brothers singing **Hello, Goodbye** for Target. I die a little inside every time I hear that commercial. ---
**Author:** ![Finagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-song-cover-in-a-commercial-tv-show-or-movie/466769/10 "2008-10-07T03:38:24Z")
> [@The\_Scrivener](#): > > Prodded by the extremely lame version of The Fixx’s “Saved By Zero” in a current Toyota ad. Ticks me off every time I hear it. > > Surely you have a pet peeve or two, maybe going back several decades? Air 'em here… Not only is it a bad cover, but “Saved by Zero?” A long-forgotten song from 1983? Who is their target market, over 45 boomers nostalgic for their youth? ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Credible](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a8b319/32.png) [@Justin\_Credible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Credible)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-song-cover-in-a-commercial-tv-show-or-movie/466769/11 "2008-10-07T04:26:23Z")
> [@pepperlandgirl](#): > > There is nothing worse than the Jonas Brothers singing **Hello, Goodbye** for Target. I die a little inside every time I hear that commercial. Please note that that IS NOT the cover version I was referring to earlier. I don’t want anyone to think I like that group. The version I said I liked was by a female singer. ---
**Author:** ![TheBoltEater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/779978/32.png) [@TheBoltEater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheBoltEater)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-song-cover-in-a-commercial-tv-show-or-movie/466769/12 "2008-10-07T05:54:01Z")
> [@pepperlandgirl](#): > > There is nothing worse than the Jonas Brothers singing **Hello, Goodbye** for Target. I die a little inside every time I hear that commercial. Funny, I have the same reaction every time I hear “Viva Viagra” ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-song-cover-in-a-commercial-tv-show-or-movie/466769/13 "2008-10-07T13:32:40Z")
A local car dealership has been using Blondie’s _Call Me_ for years. It’s fargin’ awful. At one point they changed the last line to “Call us!” Not sure of the exect lyric, but at one point it was something like Car or truck or SUV Lately it’s been changed to Car with better MPGs ---
**Author:** ![Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellis_Aponte_Jr)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-song-cover-in-a-commercial-tv-show-or-movie/466769/14 "2008-10-07T13:40:23Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > A local car dealership has been using Blondie’s _Call Me_ for years. It’s fargin’ awful. At one point they changed the last line to “Call us!” > > Not sure of the exect lyric, but at one point it was something like > > Car or truck or SUV > > Lately it’s been changed to > > Car with better MPGs This sounds awesome. Is it on youtube? ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-song-cover-in-a-commercial-tv-show-or-movie/466769/15 "2008-10-07T14:36:43Z")
> [@Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](#): > > This sounds awesome. Is it on youtube? I can’t find a reference to it anywhere. I think the dealership is Ernie Boch, if you want to Google it yourself. ---
**Author:** ![Yorikke](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yorikke/32/4335_2.png) [@Yorikke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yorikke)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-song-cover-in-a-commercial-tv-show-or-movie/466769/16 "2008-10-07T14:44:45Z")
> [@tanstaafl](#): > > Not from a commercial or anything, but [Worst… Cover… EVER!!!](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkMWdI2IKiw) (YouTube link). That’s the worst thing that humans have ever done, EVER. Joe ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-song-cover-in-a-commercial-tv-show-or-movie/466769/17 "2008-10-07T14:45:29Z")
Given that I have never been actually watching the television any time this has come on, but at one point I thought that the (I assume) Bright Eyes cover of “Devil Town” was the worst ever. Then I heard the original and realized that they actually prettied it up some. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-song-cover-in-a-commercial-tv-show-or-movie/466769/18 "2008-10-07T14:48:09Z")
> [@Lisa-go-Blind](#): > > The version of Scandal’s “Goodbye to You” (covered by The Veronicas) in the ads for Yaz birth control is pretty awful. One would think they would use a song that would remind people that it can let people avoid certain “Situations”. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Scrivener](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@The\_Scrivener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Scrivener)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-song-cover-in-a-commercial-tv-show-or-movie/466769/19 "2008-10-07T14:49:48Z")
> [@Finagle](#): > > Not only is it a bad cover, but “Saved by Zero?” A long-forgotten song from 1983? Who is their target market, over 45 boomers nostalgic for their youth? To apply a 45-single metaphor, if the “A side” of this thread is panning a bad cover, the “B side” would be defending the honor of the original. I’m [cough]substantially under 45 years old, and my favorite musical period is 1977-1982 or so… and I still love the New Wave power pop songs like “Saved By Zero”. More to the point, how many other well-liked songs have a catchy “zero” riff that can be exploited to publicize a zero-interest rate, whose copyright owners were willing to license it (for a reasonable sum) for this purpose? Probably… you guessed it… zero. [QUOTE=TheBoltEater] Funny, I have the same reaction every time I hear “Viva Viagra” [/QUOTE] Ooh, that’s another really bad one. Even more egregious when you consider how much money has already been made off of Elvis’ hits, and for that matter, his estate. Thanks to the moneychangers in charge of Elvis’ temple, there’s a generation of young people who’s growing up associating that song with Viagra instead of Las Vegas, dammit. (Although for a certain kind of tourist in particular, there is a logical enough correlation, but I digress.) If our democracy was serious about following the example of Ancient Greece, we’d have an “Anti-Corruption of the Nation’s Youth” law which would compel the cynical purveyors of the “Viva Viagra” ad to drink hemlock cocktails until they’re as dead as, well, Elvis. I can imagine that if Elvis were still alive, he might well be persuaded into doing such a commercial, but that’d be his call, his cover, and his creaky hip-swivelling. A signature moment of the strangeness of our times is that the standard-bearer for Viagra is the uncharismatic Bob Dole, of all people. Surely Elvis could’ve blown Bob Dole clear back to Kansas… ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-song-cover-in-a-commercial-tv-show-or-movie/466769/20 "2008-10-07T14:51:32Z")
> [@The\_Scrivener](#): > > Surely Elvis could’ve blown Bob Dole Anyone seen an ad for brain bleach lately? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-song-cover-in-a-commercial-tv-show-or-movie/466769.md?page=2)