Friday, November 14, 2014

FRIDAY AROUND-THE-HORN.

•   Here's a video from the audience of that Springsteen-Grohl-Brown performance of "Fortunate Son" that had the dummies dribbling this week. Something no one asked, though: was it a good cover? Well, it was a nice matey sing-along (why no one was booing and yelling "Have you forgotten 9/11", I can't guess) but pretty uninspired, unless you think the best thing you can do with a cover is get everyone to go, "Wooo, I know that song." The covers I like put a little spin on the ball -- else, why bother with a do-over? If the performer has enough personality, he or she can keep the spirit and even much of the arrangement of the original and still make it their own -- like Lucinda Williams' "It's a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock 'n' Roll)" (warning: the live versions of this on YouTube aren't very good). To me, though, the best is what The Residents do to "Viva Las Vegas": At first listen it may seem like one of their goofy glosses, but I think they really pulled something mysterious and poignant out of it. Or put it in. (UPDATE. Oooh, lots of fun covers in comments!)


359 comments:

  1. Jeremy Osner11:51 AM

    Let's not forget The Vandals' take on "Heartbreak Hotel"

    ReplyDelete
  2. Ed - That's a nifty version; reminds me of something but I can't think of what. Mexican Radio, possibly, as well as Repo Man. I could see driving across the Nevada desert to this music.

    I've always had a soft spot for the DK's cover, myself:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XT72CgEJQNQ

    ReplyDelete
  3. edroso12:06 PM

    Or John Cale's:

    ReplyDelete
  4. If you want a good Bruce cover, check out the work he and the band did this past tour with "Stayin' Alive."

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4n1GT-VjjVs

    ReplyDelete
  5. zencomix12:17 PM

    Dread Zeppelin always put a little spin on the ball

    ReplyDelete
  6. gocart mozart12:28 PM

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfJvrH7iQ3c

    ReplyDelete
  7. Mr. Wonderful12:29 PM

    Me, too, but the DK's take some liberties with the lyrics.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Although I generally agree that covers should be something other than a note for note recreation, I do have a soft spot for well done cover versions which recreate the original. Like this:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81jVdeTKiD4

    ReplyDelete
  9. BigHank5312:37 PM

    The Civil Wars did a bunch of covers, some more successful than others. Their version of The Romanitics (!) Talking In Your Sleep peels off the pop veneer to expose the creepy stalkertastic ballad underneath:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TchNCdGTRfo

    ReplyDelete
  10. gocart mozart12:39 PM

    A good cover is Zeppelin's "Dazed and Confused". Here is the original version that nobody knows.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTsvs-pAGDc

    ReplyDelete
  11. gocart mozart12:49 PM

    As French composer Claude Debussy said, “Music is the space between the notes.” Nobody knows that better than this Cat.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Buffalo Rude12:53 PM

    Drive-By Truckers do a pretty good throw-away version of Jim Carroll's "People Who Died".

    ReplyDelete
  13. Further proof of cats as Zen Masters.

    ReplyDelete
  14. They updated it for the Eighties.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Once upon a time in the country, we had musicians doing covers of songs that came out in the same year, and both original and cover would chart. Like Grazin' in the Grass which charted under Hugh Masakella and when done by Friends of Distinction.

    ReplyDelete
  16. whetstone1:08 PM

    Sleater-Kinney don't add a ton new to "Fortunate Son," but their cover is pretty ripping. Corin Tucker has a great voice for it.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5v_m5JAuBY

    ReplyDelete
  17. M. Krebs1:09 PM

    Holy shit. In other news, I just noticed that Patti Smith will be playing at a Vatican Christmas concert.

    ReplyDelete
  18. S/K could sing "Happy Birthday" and I'd be a heppy, heppy "kat".

    ReplyDelete
  19. M. Krebs1:17 PM

    I make a gift of this to you.

    http://youtu.be/FFRkvER5Yl4

    ReplyDelete
  20. tigrismus1:21 PM

    this puts a lump in my throat every time.

    ReplyDelete
  21. edroso1:23 PM

    I like this alright. What fun it must have been to be East Bay Ray back then.

    ReplyDelete
  22. edroso1:24 PM

    This is Wow, as is his life story at Wikipedia.

    ReplyDelete
  23. edroso1:25 PM

    Mr. Ra would approve.

    ReplyDelete
  24. M. Krebs1:28 PM

    I had the pleasure of seeing Col. Bruce at a tiny joint about a month ago. He's a really southern legend.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Johnny Cash was fucking awesome.

    ReplyDelete
  26. randomworker1:38 PM

    Talk about obscure and incongruous covers...Doc Severinson covering In the Court of the Crimson King.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJhBBLJwwGE&feature=player_embedded

    ReplyDelete
  27. randomworker1:45 PM

    "Jim, Jake, and Joan" as in Joan Rivers! Ya. And Jimmy Page seems like an asshole in this particular story.

    ReplyDelete
  28. That's wonderfully Seventies.

    ReplyDelete
  29. Another Kiwi1:51 PM

    Wow, that's great

    ReplyDelete
  30. Another Kiwi1:51 PM

    Sounda good

    ReplyDelete
  31. coozledad1:52 PM

    The whole band came off as asinine in most stories, when they wen't coming all over the master bed in the back of their flying trailer:

    http://www.messynessychic.com/2013/07/10/im-with-the-band-on-their-private-jet/

    ReplyDelete
  32. M. Krebs1:52 PM

    Along those same lines...

    http://youtu.be/ZEjGgkRbuxI



    I had heard about this, but never heard it before now.

    ReplyDelete
  33. randomworker1:55 PM

    ...!

    ReplyDelete
  34. willf1:57 PM

    Dead Kennedys covers? Love their version of I fought the law.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9dB_ubVAnGw

    ReplyDelete
  35. willf2:00 PM

    She did a great cover herself.* Her Gloria has the original beat cold.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxygqSTO1lQ

    (*No not "Smells like teen spirit")

    ReplyDelete
  36. randomworker2:01 PM

    Nice! Thanks!

    Steve (Lawrence) and Eydie (Gormet) have one as well. Not sure who got there first!

    ReplyDelete
  37. Another Kiwi2:02 PM

    It's a rock swings and roundabouts situation

    ReplyDelete
  38. coozledad2:03 PM

    Best Paycheck cover, ever.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PRWiltjvOYk

    ReplyDelete
  39. Covering a tune should strip it to its essence.
    http://youtu.be/iv7pwrWdfp4

    DESTROY EXCESS NOTES!!

    ReplyDelete
  40. Zep stole an awful lot of music and never credited the original writers/musicians. Dan Akroyd is particularly fond of playing Zep's cover of an old blues song and then following it with the original recording--and noting that Page and Plant claim to have written the piece in the liner notes of the album.

    ReplyDelete
  41. coozledad2:17 PM

    For some reason the opening of this arrangement makes me think of Lee Van Cleef.

    ReplyDelete
  42. Buck Owens instrumental of Faded Love. About as pure honky-tonk as you're ever gonna hear.

    ReplyDelete
  43. I'm only seeing the embed code, not the actual graphic. Did I miss something?

    ReplyDelete
  44. Another Kiwi2:30 PM

    I thik you just copy the share URL not the special embed one.

    ReplyDelete
  45. coozledad2:35 PM

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iBNfZqCdi6I

    ReplyDelete
  46. Try another one. Neil's version of Oh Lonesome Me

    http://youtu.be/xN3Jt8C-F0A

    ReplyDelete
  47. Faded Love. Take 2:

    http://youtu.be/uG-JC05gv5M

    ReplyDelete
  48. Many thanks! Delayed reaction, but it's finally there.

    ReplyDelete
  49. ADHDJ3:01 PM

    Oh man. Put a quarter in me and I could do this all day...

    Cat Power, Satisfaction: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W97TF9PCKWg

    Butthole Surfers, Hurdy Gurdy Man: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76yWZcsgwF8

    Flaming Lips, What a Wonderful World: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2jimPve_BzU

    ReplyDelete
  50. ADHDJ3:04 PM

    Not bad, though the Slits' version will always be my favorite.

    ReplyDelete
  51. cahuenga3:05 PM

    You know, I run into this notion a lot online regarding Zeppelin. It's a position usually made by people wishing to be
    seen as an old blues expert. Of course anyone in the music business sees these claims as mostly ludicrous. Zeppelin's versions were usually radically different than the source piece, with the exception of some directly lifted lyrics. Blues were historically passed from person to person, this was the norm. You heard it, tweaked it, made it your own and passed it on to the next. Jimmy Page’s only crime was assuming the blues model was still relevant in times of multi-million dollar contracts.

    ReplyDelete
  52. gocart mozart3:07 PM

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBer24IsEc0

    ReplyDelete
  53. mgmonklewis3:13 PM

    I can't keep up with all the cool, highbrow covers. How about some musical cheez-whiz: Erasure covering ABBA?

    Warning: If you watch this video, you will not be able to unsee it. Also, I want to burn the rap part in the middle. I want to burn it with fire.

    http://youtu.be/CN-M6lf2mtU

    ReplyDelete
  54. gocart mozart3:14 PM

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3KzP4bC1Ypg&list=PLJZH8sevmMq6NvgD9_ucuptwBxaQnAGAw

    http://postmodernjukebox.com/

    ReplyDelete
  55. Here's one of my favorite unusual covers. It's a cover of Billy Idol's White Wedding done in a slow, sad, folksy way with banjo accompaniment. It can even bring a tear to your eye if you're the emotional type.

    No kidding!
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2PDLzJ1xzQ

    ReplyDelete
  56. If there's one thing I'm most definitely not, it's an expert on music. I like some, don't like others, and that's about as far as my knowledge extends.

    Maybe "radically different" is enough of a difference; maybe it's not. I don't know. But I have heard Akroyd going on about this on House of Blues.

    ReplyDelete
  57. Good stuff.

    I especially like that cover of Satisfaction. I'm definitely gonna get an MP3 of that one.

    ReplyDelete
  58. Derek3:19 PM

    Not bad, but not even close to PJ & Bjork:

    http://youtu.be/kK02kW1mKkk

    ReplyDelete
  59. edroso3:22 PM

    I love this cover ESPECIALLY the Buju Banton part

    ReplyDelete
  60. Sob...Disqus hates me.

    ReplyDelete
  61. I have two although not particularly obscure, fit Roy's criteria well:

    NIN, Physical (You're so):

    http://youtu.be/5YPNhXrBlWk

    and Cowboy Junkies, Sweet Jane:

    http://youtu.be/x4XVJj4jER4

    ReplyDelete
  62. mgmonklewis3:26 PM

    Actually, I think Andy Bell and Vince Clarke do a great ABBA. I'm unable to look away from their homage to the original video. (Though I still hate the dated obligatory 90s rap insert.)

    ReplyDelete
  63. randomworker3:34 PM

    Another from the 60s. Sergio Mendes and Brazil 66 doing Wichita Lineman. There's a story about one of the singers but I cant remember offhand what it is.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3PZ4Edlr3Y

    ReplyDelete
  64. montag23:36 PM

    This might be a matter of degree--ranging from self-effacing promotion of the early greats to outright rip-offs. Most of the blues revivalists gave credit where it was due, and noted their changes.

    There is a big difference between borrowing a riff a few notes long, with a wink and a nod to the original composer (Jaco Pastorius would frequently throw in little rock and roll riffs into his bass solos when in concert--they served as in-jokes) and a transcribed bar after bar after bar theft of the material without credit to the originator (which is probably the substance of the current suit against Led Zeppelin by Randy California's heirs).

    Musicians understand the difference between borrowing and theft.

    ReplyDelete
  65. It hates all of humanity.

    ReplyDelete
  66. randomworker3:41 PM

    This goes in the collection for sure.

    ReplyDelete
  67. coozledad3:44 PM

    One of the singers married Herb Alpert. She didn't speak Portuguese when she first started singing with Mendez.

    ReplyDelete
  68. PulletSurprise3:44 PM

    Sturgill Simpson singing "The Promise" by Way Out West. I about drove off the road when I figured out what he was pulling off here. (And Metamodern Sounds in Country Music is one of my absolute favorite albums of the year. It reads like Waylon Jennings' unfinished works without losing its own identity.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-eWJmN8D820

    ReplyDelete
  69. randomworker3:48 PM

    Maybe that's it! I am spending altogether too much time on this project today.

    ReplyDelete
  70. Derek3:49 PM

    Any cover by the Afghan Whigs, but this is pretty awesome:

    http://youtu.be/cvA0DHP96x0

    ReplyDelete
  71. randomworker3:49 PM

    Basically horrible I must say...

    ReplyDelete
  72. As a semi-literate, words mean something to me, & a straight cop of lyrics should be acknowledged, w/ the possible exception of answer songs.


    Lebenty-zillion yrs. ago I knew a band who gave one of their techs full co-songwriting credit for supplying one five-word line.


    Course if LZ had done that one of the Chess family would've kept the money anyway.

    ReplyDelete
  73. Derek3:53 PM

    And, after the Whigs broke up, Greg Dulli started the Twilight Singers, but picked right up where he left off with this:

    http://youtu.be/DILhyvdK9eg

    ReplyDelete
  74. montag23:55 PM

    I'll see your Erasure and raise you one Boone:

    ReplyDelete
  75. ScottRS4:01 PM

    There are so many covers better than the originals. Wilson Pickett's cover of "Sugar Sugar", Al Green singing "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart".

    Then there's this:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V4WGsMplGxU



    (Oh, and Del McCoury's version of "1952 Vincent Black Lightning)

    ReplyDelete
  76. L Bob Rife4:04 PM

    A brass band cover a techno classic:

    http://youtu.be/VkrbwOC2CNc

    ReplyDelete
  77. L Bob Rife4:07 PM

    One more, an afro-beat Duran Duran cover:

    http://youtu.be/M02hwKOYW3w

    ReplyDelete
  78. petesh4:09 PM

    John Phillips gave Michelle half the credit for California Dreaming (which supposedly amounted to a million bucks in the end) just for writing down the words. Given how wasted he usually was, I figure she probably deserved it.

    ReplyDelete
  79. L Bob Rife4:13 PM

    I also like 'backdated' covers, where you record a retro version of a modern song and then fool people that the modern version is actually the cover.

    http://youtu.be/pF1nq012EsI

    ReplyDelete
  80. randomworker4:13 PM

    OMG I have one that sounds like that. Disco Evita! They didn't speak English either!

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxHrBO9FaS0&list=PLoA9S2AqlyS1EaUFD5Z770oOh9k-aPGd0

    ReplyDelete
  81. cahuenga4:15 PM

    Kinda odd that Randy, who was aware of the controversy, did nothing. And now, 40 years after the fact his estate has opted to cash in. Very odd I think.


    And "bar for bar", seriously? It's not a wildly unique progression to start with but they are only similar at best.

    ReplyDelete
  82. L Bob Rife4:16 PM

    Upding for the sheer terribleness of that.

    ReplyDelete
  83. J Neo Marvin4:17 PM

    To be fair, it would be hard to top Sleater-Kinney's cover of Fortunate Son I saw them do in Dolores Park about 15 years ago.

    ReplyDelete
  84. J Neo Marvin4:20 PM

    Not all of her covers album is great, but I love what she did with "Are Tou Experienced".

    ReplyDelete
  85. montag24:21 PM

    I'll see your Erasure and raise you one Boone--an entire album of fizzling farts:

    ReplyDelete
  86. Another Kiwi4:23 PM

    This is so elemental. Love it

    ReplyDelete
  87. J Neo Marvin4:24 PM

    Roger Miller of Mission Of Burma did a cool Syd Barrett-like cover of "Space Is The PlCe".

    ReplyDelete
  88. montag24:30 PM

    Disqus is being uncooperative and won't embed the image. Trying again....

    ReplyDelete
  89. gocart mozart4:31 PM

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swEnwb_IBhM

    ReplyDelete
  90. from Pedantry4:31 PM

    Well, Rod stole this one too: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ex9jWJ5V014

    ReplyDelete
  91. Tracy4:39 PM

    There's also Husker Du's interpretation of the Byrds classic.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NeqyCwAeT3I

    ReplyDelete
  92. randomworker4:40 PM

    One of my all time favorites. When I sing along with this I am like dissolved in a puddle at the end. If I was playing guitar at the same time I think I would be dead.

    ReplyDelete
  93. PulletSurprise4:41 PM

    Seu Jorge and Almaz covering Kraftwerk:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sr4Pk-AawVk

    ReplyDelete
  94. randomworker4:46 PM

    In the spirit of covers better than originals, I might like this one better than Doris Day...

    Sly and the Family Stone: Que Sera Sera

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQZNkzP4kYw

    ReplyDelete
  95. Jimmy Smith does Funky Broadway

    http://youtu.be/e-tRllr3j8c

    Dig the album cover.

    ReplyDelete
  96. randomworker4:52 PM

    Ghastly.

    ReplyDelete
  97. Blues songs were also historically lifted (in the other sense of the word) from African-American musicians with no credit of money given. The best you can say is Page/Plant weren't the only people who did this.

    ReplyDelete
  98. Jaime Oria4:55 PM

    One of my fave covers of Oops I Did It Again -

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FfBQ3bNNwHs

    ReplyDelete
  99. L Bob Rife4:56 PM

    Ooh, Kraftwerk covers!

    http://youtu.be/X-ygv1CKzAk

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7RCb2Gwnmc

    ReplyDelete
  100. Jaime Oria4:59 PM

    For the past while, Beck's been running "Record Club", where he and his pals of the moment record an earlier record in its entirety in about 24 hrs. The results are often quite cool. F'rinstance -

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMERAf3OgZM

    ReplyDelete
  101. Jaime Oria5:00 PM

    Methinks the Alicuratti could do this all weekend, don't you?

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4Ao-iNPPUc

    ReplyDelete
  102. L Bob Rife5:02 PM

    This isn't complete without some Moog covers:

    http://youtu.be/VyW_VkOTo2k

    http://youtu.be/8wy-0YThliY

    ReplyDelete
  103. Because the original wasn't headfucky enough...

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4N3N1MlvVc4

    ReplyDelete
  104. cahuenga5:05 PM

    Page saw it as an homage to the Masters. If he was attempting to steal music why in the world would he retain the exact same well known song titles? Is he the worst thief in history? Seriously, he isn't that stupid.

    ReplyDelete
  105. mgmonklewis5:06 PM

    I appreciate the effort nonetheless. I've been a Disqus victim too many times myself.

    ReplyDelete
  106. Yes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0uBiDbsT0A
    Devil Went Down to Georgia in Klezmervision!
    (With bonus riff lifting!)

    ReplyDelete
  107. Vinegarhill5:10 PM

    I usually hate Hendrix covers, but Idris uses the original as the jumping off point for a completely rocking jazz-funk jam.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lvxq7KZoLBM

    ReplyDelete
  108. Fine. Page was a special snowflake who saw taking another artist's work as an homage.

    Everyone else who took an artist's work without crediting it was a thief. Better?

    ReplyDelete
  109. ADHDJ5:13 PM

    While we're doing Britney Spears, I've always loved Local H's cover of "Toxic": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C4-JlZbDCNg

    ReplyDelete
  110. So why is this all coming to light now -- a whopping 43 years after the
    release of "Stairway"? Mick Skidmore, who manages California's trust,
    said, "Nobody had any money, and they thought the statute of limitations
    was done." Apparently, California was so low on cash he would play
    sitar in an Indian restaurant in exchange for food.

    ReplyDelete
  111. L Bob Rife5:21 PM

    Revenge for that:

    http://youtu.be/rXOgKDBwUfM

    ReplyDelete
  112. gocart mozart5:27 PM

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mkKDlfSApQU

    ReplyDelete
  113. ohsopolite5:28 PM

    No collection of "Satisfaction" covers is complete without the Devo version (the one from the 45, vastly superior to the album version IMO). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEZCQWs60LI

    ReplyDelete
  114. It was hard to pick just ONE of the great covers by Señor Coconut, but here's his take on Smoke On The Water.

    Enjoy:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cn9k1I645a4

    ReplyDelete
  115. L Bob Rife5:45 PM

    How about Ministry/NIN covering Sabbath?

    http://youtu.be/Xjho-zVgDXo

    Ok, then how about a mariachi version of Crazy Train?

    http://youtu.be/g_5y5KrBoO8

    ReplyDelete
  116. John Wesley Hardin5:48 PM

    That cover is devastating. Great stuff.

    ReplyDelete
  117. John Wesley Hardin5:54 PM

    Covers is it? This cover of Yakety Yak by an enigmatic German band called The Drapers is a thing of surreal beauty. http://youtu.be/3zzy3qOTocY

    ReplyDelete
  118. L Bob Rife5:57 PM

    Ok, then how about a mariachi version of Crazy Train?

    http://youtu.be/g_5y5KrBoO8

    ReplyDelete
  119. John Wesley Hardin5:58 PM

    Great cover. I used to play this on the radio, back in my college DJ days.

    ReplyDelete
  120. L Bob Rife5:59 PM

    And a steel drum Gary Numan cover:

    http://youtu.be/AR3q0IrpWlM

    ReplyDelete
  121. John Wesley Hardin6:02 PM

    Es muy loco. Es muy bueno.

    ReplyDelete
  122. John Wesley Hardin6:03 PM

    Here's Sonic Youth covering Neil Young.
    http://youtu.be/q2ovGHzvuWw

    ReplyDelete
  123. John Wesley Hardin6:06 PM

    And this gem: Dinosaur Jr. deconstructs The Cure's Just Like Heaven and make it theirs. I remember the disbelief and joy I felt the first time I heard this, very stoned on a late Sunday night in 1989.
    http://youtu.be/FJLOr8S2d2E

    ReplyDelete
  124. Robert Palmer covering Gary Numan's cyberpunk "I Dream Of Wires" and doing a damn good job of it, too:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ko1GtT8lJmg

    ReplyDelete
  125. How the fuck did I never hear of these guys before? Fucking AWESOME.

    ReplyDelete
  126. John Wesley Hardin6:11 PM

    No discussion of Led Zeppelin covers should be without this. http://youtu.be/rAM1MKi7bNU

    ReplyDelete
  127. DocAmazing6:12 PM

    No Satisfaction collection is complete without the Residents:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yuCXpESnodk

    ReplyDelete
  128. ohsopolite6:12 PM

    Palmer's pre-MTV albums have some great covers, "Pressure Drop" among them. Doesn't hurt that the backing band on a lot of them is Little Feat.

    ReplyDelete
  129. John Wesley Hardin6:13 PM

    Or this.

    http://youtu.be/Teg_zbhKCMk

    ReplyDelete
  130. Another Kiwi6:14 PM

    There's a Korean lady who does a pretty good Hendrix. http://youtu.be/NfOHjeI-Bns

    ReplyDelete
  131. John Wesley Hardin6:21 PM

    From the realm of unlikely covers, here is Ministry doing an acoustic cover of the Grateful Dead. http://youtu.be/fGwMmwppLh4

    ReplyDelete
  132. No embedding, but the always awesome WFMU has a compilation of cover versions of Black Sabbath's "War Pigs"; the Faith No More cover is my favorite.

    ReplyDelete
  133. John Wesley Hardin6:37 PM

    Off their "The Real Thing" album, circa 1989. http://youtu.be/w4oZXfrf18Y

    ReplyDelete
  134. John Wesley Hardin6:39 PM

    If you like Sabbath covers, see also http://youtu.be/uh0fa64RP4Y

    ReplyDelete
  135. John Wesley Hardin6:41 PM

    Yeah, I just heard of these guys about a week ago; this video was making the rounds on Facebook. That violinist is their secret weapon.

    ReplyDelete
  136. tigrismus6:47 PM

    loving a bunch of these. This is a guilty pleasure of mine:
    http://vimeo.com/9053147

    ReplyDelete
  137. John Wesley Hardin6:48 PM

    A Grace Jones cover? |bows low| I am not worthy.

    ReplyDelete
  138. Dr Pretorius6:49 PM

    Ronstadt's cover of "Walk Away, Renee" makes me swoon.


    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSXfMQuiqwg

    ReplyDelete
  139. tigrismus6:55 PM

    Followed on to "Around the World" this guy is fabulous!

    ReplyDelete
  140. The Persuasions: Let It Be


    To be honest, the Persuasions' entire catalog, afaict, is covers. And pretty much every one is an improvement. If you like a capella, doowop, gospel sound, there's none better.


    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hDT8SfBH28U

    ReplyDelete
  141. Disboose7:47 PM

    I was just about to post 1000 Homo DJs. Props, L Bob.

    ReplyDelete
  142. You saying we don't?

    The Gourds: Gin and Juice (Bluegrass cover of Snoop Dogg)

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4hGSR5njZE

    ReplyDelete
  143. L Bob Rife7:49 PM

    That's When In Rome.

    ReplyDelete
  144. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vNc5o9TU0t0

    ReplyDelete
  145. drkrick8:13 PM

    That would be with the exception of the multiple courts that have awarded royalties to the owners of the copyrights of the directly lifted lyrics. But I'm sure you're much more of an expert on the relevant law than them.

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  146. Mark_B4Zeds8:13 PM

    Eight miles high: Husker Du:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NeqyCwAeT3I

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  147. John Wesley Hardin8:13 PM

    Outstanding choice. Wish I had thought of it first.

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  148. Mark_B4Zeds8:14 PM

    and the album version:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xBKyBlJ_JN8

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  149. OhioAstro8:14 PM

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHRFZFmEq9o is what I think of when I think of cover versions that cast a completely new light on a song

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  150. Mark_B4Zeds8:16 PM

    Damn, should have read the whole thread before I posted.

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  151. John Wesley Hardin8:17 PM

    Son of a bitch, I should have thought of this, too. I love this so, so much. No less an authority than Lou Reed said it was ""the best and most authentic version I have ever heard."

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  152. John Wesley Hardin8:18 PM

    What's the difference between a cover and a standard? Anyway. http://youtu.be/z3y3f1VfkuQ

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  153. Did someone say "Pressure Drop?" Here's a non-ska/reggae version.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_p03E7Ktvhs

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  154. And speaking of non-reggae covers of reggae classics,
    Jerry Garcia and Dave Grisman covering Jimmy Cliff's "Sitting In Limbo"
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QCJ9mflho8

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  155. John Wesley Hardin8:27 PM

    Alright, one more and I'll stop spamming, but who covers the fucking B-52s? Nobody, that's who. Except these guys. http://youtu.be/pYulEKYcCgo

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  156. Fats Durston8:38 PM

    Kind of a cover: "Skank in Bed"
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1NhR0lA2M4

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  157. Speaking of Gary Numan covers...
    Foo Fighters: Down In the Park
    (There's a Marilyn Manson cover as well. I don't care for it.)
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mpBd2TB06Uo

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  158. Fats Durston9:03 PM

    Because flute:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c9GS3SofhdU

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  159. Abso-fucking-lutely.

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  160. Pardon the promotion, but one of my favorite local bands here in Las Vegas does nothing but surf-guitar instrumental covers of various metal, punk, or hiphop songs. Often accompanied by a burlesque dancer.


    So, Here is Thee Swank Bastards (ft. Svandora LaVey) doing The Dead Kennedys' "Police Truck", instrumental.


    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=22T_JhA4pLo

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  161. L Bob Rife9:23 PM

    W O W

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  162. gocart mozart9:31 PM

    So the guy who wrote "Dazed and Confused" also wrote the Dr Pepper jingle "I'm a Pepper . . ." and the Army's "Be all that you can be" Interesting.

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  163. gocart mozart9:45 PM

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mkDH1xNN9wI

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  164. What a talented cat!

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  165. Another Kiwi9:56 PM

    Brilliant stuff.

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  166. Another Kiwi10:04 PM

    Love it

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  167. Last week, I discovered that "Pablo Picasso" was covered by this guy:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69Ro_QC2V9U

    And these folks:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_CCbENmNaI

    Whodathunkit?

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  168. He's one of those gentleman thieves that used to crop up in pulp stories and an occasional movie. Too bad David Niven's not alive to play him.

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  169. tigrismus10:20 PM

    This one brings another to my mind: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vyoL63r50k

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  170. steve barlow10:32 PM

    Who gives a shite. You pussy

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  171. steve barlow10:32 PM

    You are an idiot

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  172. steve barlow10:32 PM

    Are you a Jew? Boy you are ugly

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  173. steve barlow10:34 PM

    Hey Jew Bag

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  174. steve barlow10:36 PM

    Where's your butt hurt boi friend Kordo? I'd kick both your asses at the same time. You are a bald pussy

    ReplyDelete
  175. Gromet10:39 PM

    This version of this song has been killing me for about 25 years.

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  176. Gromet10:46 PM

    This is much more likely, and for me it is the version of this song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDgPZScj5Ak&list=RDUDgPZScj5Ak#t=9

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  177. L Bob Rife10:52 PM

    And if you're really serious about Kraftwerk covers, Strictly Kev from DJ Food has a series of at least six mixtapes of Kraftwerk covers, samples, and emphemera:


    https://soundcloud.com/strictly/kraftwerk-kover-kollection-vol

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  178. Gromet10:55 PM

    Ooooh, just skipping around, I like what's going on around minute 14-16.

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  179. PulletSurprise11:21 PM

    And a steel drums Joy Division cover:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bLuaKkZxaQ

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  180. Kurt Barlow11:30 PM

    I raised you to feast on the warm blood of the living, not to behave in this ignorant and rude fashion; you are a disgrace to the house of Barlow!

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  181. Hot Jazz Murder Music11:52 PM

    I was introduced to M. Coconut via his album of Kraftwek covers; this is my personal favorite: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ilA6JQKPgTw

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  182. AGoodQuestion11:55 PM

    I was going to make a Debussy/pussy pun, but it seemed doomed to be misunderstood.

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  183. AGoodQuestion12:03 AM

    Gotta join in the fun here. Behold, David Bowie's Pixies cover.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Te2-zTHSzCk

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  184. AGoodQuestion12:10 AM

    The Residents influenced a shocking number of artists, including Primus. But yeah, that "Viva Las Vegas" had me thinking of Wall of Voodoo too.

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  185. AGoodQuestion12:12 AM

    Of course the DKs weren't the first punk band to take on that song.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKIzjF25sP8

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  186. AGoodQuestion12:20 AM

    What can I say? Kids today.

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  187. DocAmazing12:26 AM

    You want Black Sabbath covers, do you?

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9AvEpg8BwM

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  188. Kurt Barlow12:41 AM

    Thank you, mortal; perhaps some evening you could invite me into your domicile and together could discuss the vicissitudes of the young and laugh at the follies of the living at leisure?

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  189. AGoodQuestion12:45 AM

    Okay, there's already so much great stuff up here that I'll be listening to it all for days to come, if not weeks. Still, one more before I depart for the night. Back in her alt-country days the divine Neko Case covered Scott Walker. The good one.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Md4wXiTbnQ4

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  190. Been listening to a lot of Blondie these past couple of days. The Tide is High is a cover of an old Paragons tune... love the weird "Star Wars" spoof here.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppYgrdJ0pWk

    Here's audio for the original:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQXqkiKXiHc

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  191. Shane MacGowan covers Neil Diamond:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UaWMLUgeluc

    Notable mainly because Cáit O'Riordán is playing bass here.

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  192. Hot Jazz Murder Music1:27 AM

    Huh, it's the troll equivalent of the type of drunk you find loitering outside the entrances of bars, swaying and directing profanity-laden threats at anyone walking by: "Whatta yuh lookin' at, mu'fuckah? Kick yer ass. . ."

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  193. That's an awesome version... the only thing it's missing is that weird little car thing.

    I prefer the Foo Fighters to Nirvana... hands down.

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  194. And yeah, I know it was for one of those "Idol" type shows, but Sandra Dahlberg did a creditable cover of Vargtimmen:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJzW2Vde5aU

    Her interpretation is especially impressive considering that the wolf is typically seen as a symbol of male lust and aggression, as conveyed in the original:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ow712WkL6HA

    ReplyDelete