Cover versions

rockyracoon | 09:53 Sun 04th Dec 2011 | Music

46 Answers

I absolutely hate it when my favourite songs are covered, you might understand my horror when I switched on Sky News this morning to some young fella singing U2's With Or Without You! Argh, anyone else hear it?

christmas song

Pirate song. Shoot cannon balls across the deck

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sara3

bigbadmarty.. 2 excellent covers. I love Elvis Costello :o)

erin-x

There are quite a few good covers out there.. I usually like the covers that are done on Radio Ones live lounge. And I love Ewan McGregors version of "Your Song", but Moulin Rouge is my favourite film so i'm biased! Lol :-)

bigbadmarty

he's a legend sara - like most of the early Stiffs :)

Arksided

Please please please let me get what I Want ( on the Advert) is better than the smiths one, not as good as Dream Academy one though.

..and lets not forget the masterpiece that covered 'stairway to heaven' nope not Rolf (Respect) I mean the Far Corporation.

Mattk

'Please please please let me get what I Want ( on the Advert) is better than the smiths one'

Nope.

For every 100 songs covered you may get 1 that is good.

4getmenot

chain reaction - steps

flipnflap

I think this version of With Or Without You is better than U2's:

It was used by ITV to promote Series 2 of Downton Abbey recently

andy-hughes

It may be that some artists are aggrieved when a cover version performs better than their own, but such is life. Alexandra Burke's cover of 'Halleluah' was always going to make the Number One after X-Factor, even though it is a por third behind Jeff Buckley's version, and Len's - in that order - but they all took the top three places in the chart, so Len gets some serious royalties which boosted his bank balance after being ripped off by his former manager - hence his need to tour again in his seventies.

I think all posters have the right idea - some cover versions are just laughable and or horrible, some bring an entire newe dimension to a song, and some franly eclipse the original.

A good song will hopefully shine through, and it may lead a section of listeners to check out the origianal which can often be a good result.

jno

I think the Stones' version of I Wanna Be Your Man is better than the Beatles', but I'm not sure whose was actually recorded first.

I.Don No

Whitney Houston with I will always love you............omg can that woman scream, pity she can't sing though...terrible cover version....although I am sure DP laughs all the way to the bank with that one!

Quite often, so I have heard, when Dolly Parton is about to sing it on stage she opens with 'this is the way it should be sung'

andy-hughes

I agree I.Don No, although the definitive version is Linda Ronstadt's - she was gifted the song by DP for an album, and her emotions just bleeds out of the speakers as the song goes on - unlike Witless Useless who thinks emotion is something you rub on acne.

mccfluff

scissor sisters did a cover of a floyd song that made me cry it was so crap

erin-x

Comfortably Numb was pretty crap... They should never have done it.

The best cover I can think of is Jimi... All Along the Watchtower.

jno

Manfred Mann's Dylan covers were pretty good - I believe Dylan himself was quite happy with them. Mighty Quinn and If You've Gotta Go, and so on.

andy-hughes

I adored the Scissor Sisters' cover of 'CN' and i speak as a massive Floyd fan. Their version underlined the maxim that a good song is a good song, and it can be treated totally differently and still stand up.

There are exceptions to every rule of course, step forward Wet Wet Wet and your version of 'With A Little Help From My Friends' - I wonder if the Lennon / McCartney / Cocker restraining order is still in force?

WyeDyed

Manfred Manns Earthband - Blinded by the Light and Spirits in the Night both by Springstein also Robert Wyatt's cover of Shipbuilding by Elvis Costello all excellent unlike...
Boyzone's Father and Son and, as Erin-x said, Comfortably Numb shouldn't be allowed.

Arksided

Not in the same league as Comfortably numb... but DJ Sammy should have left Don Henleys 'The Boys of Summer' well alone.