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Points: 19943 		Direct Link To This Post Topic: Top 10 Cover Versions of all time
    Posted: October 27 2014 at 13:21
Apparently the Pet Shop Boys have recorded the best cover version of all time (see http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-29791820 for full details). Where is Yes' "America"? Where is Lone Star's "She Said, She Said"?

The top 10 tracks in the vote are as follows:

  1. Pet Shop Boys - Always On My Mind
  2. Johnny Cash - Hurt
  3. The Stranglers - Walk On By
  4. Jimi Hendrix - All Along The Watchtower
  5. Jeff Buckley - Hallelujah
  6. Soft Cell - Tainted Love
  7. Joe Cocker - With A Little Help From My Friends
  8. Sinead O'Connor - Nothing Compares 2 U
  9. Muse - Feeling Good
  10. Whitney Houston - I Will Always Love You
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Points: 16130 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 27 2014 at 13:56
I would have ranked Whitneys cover as being among the worst cover versions ever recorded. Pet shop boys would come a close second. Utter dog sh*te. Suprised that ear splitting toe curling Mariah Carey song's not on there..

Best from that list for me would be The Stranglers.
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Points: 10047 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 27 2014 at 14:10
Originally posted by Blacksword Blacksword wrote:

Utter dog sh*te.
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Points: 20503 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 27 2014 at 14:36
Hendrix: All Along the Watchtower and Like A Rolling Stone. Sorry, those two are it.

Edited by SteveG - October 27 2014 at 14:37
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Points: 26171 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 27 2014 at 18:14
This is the best
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Points: 24391 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 27 2014 at 18:44
The above list contains some excellent songs, but others are just meh. Some truly outstanding covers are missing, such as those recorded by Deep Purple  in their early years ("River Deep Mountain High" and, of course, "Hush") or Blue Oyster Cult ("Roadhouse Blues" and "Born to Be Wild"). And what about Faith No More's intense "War Pigs"? Rush released a whole album of covers a few years ago that was rather good. Lots of great stuff that the compilers of that list probably ignore.
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Points: 46828 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 27 2014 at 18:48
now you've done it darling... I have to hear this.. before it gets too late and can' blast it!!!

awesome!!!
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Points: 10215 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 27 2014 at 18:53
^ Speaking of Deep Purple, their cover of 'Hey Joe' is quite good too
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Points: 26171 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 28 2014 at 02:49
Yes did some nice covers as well on their first 2 albums

Also one very obvious one
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Points: 2689 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 28 2014 at 04:18
Two entire albums of covers:
"Hybrid Kids" by Morgan Fisher.
"Third Reich 'n' Roll" by The Residents.

Ten songs not included in the OP list (which itself is just one of many such lists, of course)
Aretha Franklin - Respect.
Led Zeppelin - When The Levee Breaks.
Amii Stewart - Knock On Wood.
Laibach - Sympathy For The Devil.
Flying Lizards - Money
The Beatles - Twist And Shout.
Elvis Presley - Hound Dog.
Siouxsie & The Banshees - Helter Skelter.
Senor Coconut - The Robots.
Santana - Black Magic Woman.
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Points: 23997 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 28 2014 at 04:43
Another one (once one of my guilty pleasures - I even liked it more than the original Embarrassed):

Donna Summer - State of Independence
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Points: 10047 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 28 2014 at 06:07
- Some favorite progrelated covers (somewhat)

Robert Wyatt - Shipbuilding (Elvis Costello) & Stay Tuned (Anja Garbarek)
Susanna and the Magical Orchestra - Subdivisions (Rush)
Woven Hand - Truth (New Order) Ain't No Sunshine (Bill Withers)
Tori Amos - Raining Bood (Slayer)
The Unthanks - Out of the Blue (Robert Wyatt) Starless (King Crimson)
Die Anarchistische Abendunterhaltung – 2+2=5 (Radiohead)
The Residents - Hit the Road Jack (Ray Charles) Kaw-Liga (Hank Williams)
Voivod - Astronomy Domine (Pink Floyd)
Siouxie and the Banshees - You're Lost Little Girl (Doors), Hall of Mirrors (Kraftwerk), Dear Prudence (Beatles)
Laibach - Across the Universe (Beatles)

- Other

Буготак – Каар меге (= Nirvana - Rape Me, in tuvan throat singing version)
Brave Combo - Double Vision (Foreigner)
Marvin Gaye - Cloud Nine (Temptations)
Human Drama - I'm Not Like Everybody Else (Kinks) they also covered Carpet Crawlers on the same album btw.
This Mortal Coil - 16 Days/Gathering Dust (Modern English) Song to the Siren (Tim Buckley)
Bangles – Hazy Shade of Winter (Simon & Garfunkel)
Nancy Sinatra - Bang Bang (Cher/Sonny Bono)

- I also love these jazz instrumental-versions
 
Brad Mehldau - Black Hole Sun (23 minute long version, Soundgarden) Knives Out (Radiohead) 
Bad Plus - Velouria (Pixies)
George Benson - White Rabbit (Jefferson Airplane)
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Points: 2689 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 28 2014 at 06:59
Ah yeah, I forgot about George Benson - that album also has a great version of California Dreaming.

I've seen Tori Amos perform Raining Blood, she does tons of great covers.  My favourite of hers is "If 6 Was 9" in which she puts her piano through a Marshall amp.
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Points: 23997 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 28 2014 at 07:09
Fish - Something in the Air (Thunderclap Newman)
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Points: 19943 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 28 2014 at 07:56
Originally posted by Blacksword Blacksword wrote:

I would have ranked Whitneys cover as being among the worst cover versions ever recorded. Pet shop boys would come a close second. Utter dog sh*te. Suprised that ear splitting toe curling Mariah Carey song's not on there..

Best from that list for me would be The Stranglers.
I'm with you entirely there, Andy.
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Points: 9869 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 28 2014 at 08:58
Hallelujah and All Along the Watchtower are the only ones I like from that list.  Even in the case of Hallelujah, I prefer K D Lang's version.  Gildenlow's is also damn good.

I am not a big covers guy.  But if I had to pick one, I'd probably go with Carpenters' This Masquerade.  They made a career out of rearranging other people's songs and were particularly fond of ones written by Paul Williams and Leon Russell.  They put the pieces together from Russell's interesting but somewhat disjointed original and delivered one of their underrated songs and also one of their jazziest.  

I also like Peter Gabriel's interpretation of Listening Wind.  I am only moderately fond of the original so I don't listen to the Gabriel cover very often either.  But the way he has re-imagined it is just brilliant, unbelievable.


Edited by rogerthat - October 28 2014 at 08:59
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Points: 4335 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 28 2014 at 09:41
Have to agree with them on Johnny Cash.  Towards the end of his life, on those American Recordings albums, there were maybe only 1 or 2 covers that weren't far superior to the original versions.
 
 
Hendrix's version of "All Along the Watchtower" is also far superior to Dylan's.  Bob Dylan can NOT sing.  I also agree with Soft Cell and Joe Cocker but the rest of the list I can't really speak to.  I am kind of surprised they left Janis Joplin's version of "Me and Bobby McGee" off their list.  I'm not a fan of hers but it seems to be a beloved piece of rock history, for whatever reason (a lot of people from that era had soft spots for nail-on-chalkboard voices, I guess).
 
 
If this were a prog list I'd probably include, just off the top of my head: Yes' version of "America", the Strawbs' version of "Will You Go", ELP's "Hoedown" and "Pictures at an Exhibition", Egg's "Fugue in D Minor", and, of course, Jethro Tull's "Bourree"
I'm sure there are a ton that I'm missing.


Edited by manofmystery - October 28 2014 at 09:42


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Points: 4335 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 28 2014 at 09:44
For some reason I completely ignored their #1.  Willie Nelson's cover is the definitive version of "Always on my Mind".  Yipes are they off on that one.


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Points: 15007 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 28 2014 at 10:24
Originally posted by Raff Raff wrote:

And what about Faith No More's intense "War Pigs"? Rush released a whole album of covers a few years ago that was rather good. Lots of great stuff that the compilers of that list probably ignore.
 
There is no "probably" — so-called journalists get a thrill from ignoring seminal rock acts. Picking Pet Shop Boys as their #1 is proof. I mean, PSB? LOL!
 
Originally posted by Stool Man Stool Man wrote:

Santana - Black Magic Woman
 
One of the covers that has gotten the most mileage ever!
 
Originally posted by manofmystery manofmystery wrote:

Hendrix's version of "All Along the Watchtower" is also far superior to Dylan's.
 
Absolutely. Definitely. Without a doubt!
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Points: 16130 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 28 2014 at 11:51
Originally posted by someone_else someone_else wrote:

Another one (once one of my guilty pleasures - I even liked it more than the original Embarrassed):

Donna Summer - State of Independence


Yeah, I preferred Donna's version too, although I like the orchestral re-working on Jon Andersons album 'Change we must'
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