Cover songs better than the original

[DeusExMachina]

Simple. What band/artist covered a song even better than the original?

My vote goes for Jeff Buckley and Rufus Wainright with their individual covers of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah."

[stemot]

I know I`m gonna get a kickin for this, but:-

Oasis`s Cover of The Who`s My Generation from the Litle By Little single, 10x the energy of the original :)

[JNightshade]

I like A Perfect Circle's live cover of Ashes to Ashes far more than the original Bowie version. They took a sort of weird, funky song, and made it RAWK HARD.

[kaf11]

I know I`m gonna get a kickin for this, but:-

Oasis`s Cover of The Who`s My Generation from the Litle By Little single, 10x the energy of the original :)
I loved seeing them perform that song live.

[Direwolf]

Back from my ska period: Goldfinger's 99 Red Balloons. I suppose just becuase the first sucked though.

[sea]

Oddly enough, I've seen a few Slayer songs that have been covered that are better than the originals. Dissection's version of Anti-Christ, Nokturnal Mortum's cover of South Of Heaven, and Children Of Bodom's Silent Scream are all superior to the original songs. I'm not really a big fan of Slayer; they're good songwriters but the vocals ruin things for me.

[J_Tweedy]

It has to be Guns and Roses - Knocking on Heaven's Door

OR

Jimi Hendrix - All Along the Watchtower

Big ups to Dylan tho, dont get me wrong. He is our greatest ever song writer.

[Shasta]

I will survive by Cake (I think) was better than the Gloria Gaynor one.

[JNightshade]

Oh god, Shasta is so right. When I saw them live, that song was freaking EXCELLENT (well, every song was freaking excellent, but still). Then some random cute chick told me I was really hot. 'Twas a good concert.

[Kangy]

Hurt by Johnny Cash. I don't like Trent Reznor's voice that much personally, but the video to this really makes it for me. Also, Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head by Ben Folds Five ****ing rocks too :D

[StardogChampion]

Pearl Jam - Last Kiss
Pearl Jam - Keep on Rockin in the Free World. Neil Young's voice is too weak for this kind of rock song.

[mortiz]

Jimi Hendrix - All Along The Watchtower.

[ComradeBadger]

Hurt by Johnny Cash. I don't like Trent Reznor's voice that much personally, but the video to this really makes it for me. Also, Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head by Ben Folds Five ****ing rocks too :D
You sir are a genius :D

[Ennui]

Back from my ska period: Goldfinger's 99 Red Balloons. I suppose just becuase the first sucked though.
Truth.

Also, Sublime's cover of "We're Only Gonna Die For Our Own Arrogance" on the album 40 oz. to Freedom is better than the original Bad Religion version.

[Ekinflog]

Death's cover of Painkiller. :)

[IonizeMyAtoms]

Even though I don't listen to them much anymore, almost all of Me First and The Gimme Gimme's covers. Well, mainly from their earlier albums, I found their last two a bit boring for some reason. I love how they don't butcher the songs at all, you can really tell they love whatever they cover, and Spike has a pretty awesome voice

[Evo]

Metallica's Whiskey in the Jar

and

Guns n Roses' Live and Let Die

[resiurC]

I agree with Johnny Cash - Hurt. :)

[VictimOfScience]

Also, Sublime's cover of "We're Only Gonna Die For Our Own Arrogance" on the album 40 oz. to Freedom is better than the original Bad Religion version.
Wrong. Bad Religion's version is much tighter than Sublime's cover. Bud just can't thrash it up very well behind his kit.
I like A Perfect Circle's live cover of Ashes to Ashes far more than the original Bowie version. They took a sort of weird, funky song, and made it RAWK HARD.
Wrong. Bowie's version is far superior, esp. the version on Heathen--making it RAWK HARD takes something of the beauty out of it IMHO.
Back from my ska period: Goldfinger's 99 Red Balloons. I suppose just becuase the first sucked though.
Wrong. The 7 Seconds version kicks tons more ace than the wannabes in Goldfinger.
Metallica's Whiskey in the Jar
So wrong that it actually hurts. The Dubliners pwn this one.
I will survive by Cake (I think) was better than the Gloria Gaynor one.
So right.

Some of my favorite examples of cover's being better than the originals are:
The Forsaken-Blackened
Good Riddance-Come Dancing
The Bangles-Hazy Shade of Winter
Quiet Riot-Cum on Feel the Noize
Minor Threat-Stepping Stone
Dead Kennedys-I Fought the Law

[Qonfused]

Marilyn Manson's "Tainted Love."

[Cormeh]

Alien Ant Farm's version of Smooth Criminal.

[CptStern]

Simple. What band/artist covered a song even better than the original?

My vote goes for Jeff Buckley and Rufus Wainright with their individual covers of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah."


you really gotta listen to cohen a lot before he starts to grow on you ..he's a genius just not the best singer. Kinda like Tom Waits


any cover by Van Halen is better than the original: pretty women, You really got me, Dance The Night Away, Dancing in the streets


Jimi Hendrix's cover of Bob Dylan's "All Along The Watchtower"

[brink's]

I personally enjoy the RHCP take on Higher Ground, more then the old Stevie Wonder version

+ the majority of the songs on nirvana's mtv unplugged in newyork especially the Meat Puppet stuff.

[lePobz]

Alanis Morissettes cover of SEAL's "Crazy"

OK, shoot me now.

[CptStern]

BANG!!


heeeey where you been?

[Hectic Glenn]

Pobz is back again!

All Along the watchtower, 99 red balloons i agree with very much so. Oh Oasis' cover of My Generation is amazing, they played that at V-fest and it was their last song.

Can't think of many, Biffy Clyro's version of Take me out (franz ferd), and coldplay's version (with richard ashcroft) of Bittersweet symphony (the verve) are particular favourites.

[Warbie]

It has to be Guns and Roses - Knocking on Heaven's Door

You must be joking!

Jimi Hendrix - All Along the Watchtower

Couldn't agree more :)

[DeusExMachina]

OH. OH MY GOD.

I totally forgot the greatest cover ever.

Cap'n Jazz's cover of Aha's "Take On Me." Oh god I love their cover.

[Dalamari]

I haven't quite read both pages, but if anyone said the cover of Imagine by Perfect Circle is better than the original then I hope them and their whole family die in a plane crash

[DeusExMachina]

I haven't quite read both pages, but if anyone said the cover of Imagine by Perfect Circle is better than the original then I hope them and their whole family die in a plane crash

Ugh, don't even mention that cover.

[Absinthe]

Nine Inch Nails' cover of "Metal" by Gary Numan.

[Icarusintel]

Hurt by Johnny Cash. I don't like Trent Reznor's voice that much personally, but the video to this really makes it for me.
This is the simple, and beautiful truth - that video just gets me, and his voice is perfect for the song

[JNightshade]

I like how VictimofScience is actually arrogant enough to tell me my opinion is wrong. OPINION, idiot.

[A True Canadian]

In the old days, when I heard covers of songs, I normally had't heard the original. Surprisingly I ended up liking the covers even more after I did end up hearing the original song. These tend to be of the "heavier" variety. These days, I'm starting to appreciate the originals more, but I still enjoy the covers. Here's a few:

-I was (still am) a big fan of the song "Blue Monday" by Orgy. Although the New Order, original verision, is growing on me. :)


-Back in the days of the original Batman movies, I ended up really liking "The Passenger" by Michael Hutchence on the Batman Forever Soundtrack. It wasn't until last year that I found out it was a cover of an original song (Iggy Pop I believe).


-"Sweet Dreams" by Marilyn Manson was the first ever cover I remember listening to. Still interesting, even though the only thing I still like about it now is the intro. I find Manson's voice has just gotten too annoying to listen to over time.


-"Land of Confusion" by Disturbed is the newest cover that I like listening to. I still have yet to hear the original track from Genesis. Although because I'm liking this song so much at the moment, I don't know if I want to hear it. :P


-I was also a fan of the industrial cover of Madonna's song "Music" that came out a few years ago, but the name of the band escapes me. ;(

[J_Tweedy]

You must be joking!

So who do you think does this song best then?

And for the record, im not joking- im not a huge fan of G&R exactly, just think they pull this song off very well.

[VictimOfScience]

I like how VictimofScience is actually arrogant enough to tell me my opinion is wrong. OPINION, idiot.
Yup, in my opinion, your opinion is wrong. What is so arrogant about that?

[CptStern]

-Back in the days of the original Batman movies, I ended up really liking "The Passenger" by Michael Hutchence on the Batman Forever Soundtrack. It wasn't until last year that I found out it was a cover of an original song (Iggy Pop I believe).


Iggy Pop ftw ..love Iggy especially during the Stooges era

[Absinthe]

Yup, in my opinion, your opinion is wrong. What is so arrogant about that?

Well, you do come off as a big dick when you say "wrong" to everybody else's posts.

[MilkMan12]

Hurt by Johnny Cash, I love Johnny's voice and to me it's much better than Trents...I like the guitar better too....and the lyric change in my opinion means a whole lot more in Cash's version

Instead of crown of shit...its crown of thorns...a very well placed allusion to Jesus and his suffering.

Also the best one though would have to be Stevie Ray Vaughans cover of Little Wing...OMFG is all I have to say about it.

[VictimOfScience]

Well, you do come off as a big dick when you say "wrong" to everybody else's posts.
Well I would much rather come off as a big dick as opposed to a small dick :E.

[Cormeh]

But that's just your opinion... ;)

[Ekinflog]

Death's cover of Painkiller.

[VictimOfScience]

But that's just your opinion... ;)
Heh, of course. :cheers: