Revis posted about covers that are better than the original, which made me want to do my own list. To me, a great cover is one that takes the original song and bends it into a new form, while still honoring the original song. Here is my list of great cover songs that meet that criteria. That’s not to say that these songs are better than the originals (although, in some cases they are), but different and personal to the artist covering them.
Killing Me Softly: The Fugees covering Roberta Flack
This song was our introduction to Lauryn Hill and what an introduction it was. In an era when rappers would just take a classic song or part of one and rap over it, The Fugees hit big with this brilliant cover featuring real singing from the badass Ms. Hill.
Rainbow Connection: Me First & The Gimme Gimmes covering The Muppets
Original version
Normally, I think bands that pretty much only do covers are kind of lame, but this song hits home. As a child of the 80s, I can’t help but absolutely love it.
Nothing Compares 2 U: Sinead O’Connor covering Prince
Original version
No matter your opinion of this crazy, shaved-head pixie, you cannot deny that the girl has pipes. She can sang. This song is a perfect example of her vocal chops. If I were Prince, I’d never be able to sing Nothing Compares 2 U again after I heard this.
Ring of Fire: Social Distortion covering Johnny Cash
Original version
Johnny Cash could pretty much cover any song and it would turn out amazing, but it’s rare to find the opposite. Social Distortion took one of Johnny’s signature songs, gave it their own spin and turned it into one of my favorite covers ever.
Hallelujah: Jeff Buckley covering Leonard Cohen
Original version
Heartbreaking. This song just pulls at every heart string. While I love the Leonard Cohen version, Buckley absolutely wins.
Baby One More Time: Fountains of Wayne covering Britney Spears
Original version
Take a boring princess pop song, slow it down, play it with real instruments and actually sing it with meaning and you have Baby One More Time a thousand times better than the original. Strangely, it’s not a bad song. Who knew?
Tears Of A Clown: The English Beat covering Smokey Robinson And The Miracles
Original version
This is one of those cases where taking a song into another genre altogether makes it an entirely different song. The original couldn’t be much more different from the Beat’s ska version. I absolutely love the Motown version, but The Beat’s ska anthem is the epitome of a cover to me.
Livin La Vida Loca: The Toy Dolls covering Ricky Martin
Original version
Ricky Martin’s omnipresent late 90s/early 00s anthem gets the Toy Dolls treatment with kazoos. Like every Toy Dolls song ever and unlike the original, it’s fun as hell and doesn’t take itself too seriously. Did I mention kazoos?
How Soon Is Now: The Meatmen covering The Smiths
Original version
I love the Smiths. I was one of those girls who had giant Smiths and Cure posters hanging in my bedroom. This cover is rad if for no other reason than changing the lyrics to “I’m inhuman and I need to be killed.”
Godzilla: Fu Manchu covering Blue Oyster Cult
Original version
I adore Fu Manchu. They’re the quintessential Southern California band. They all look like surfers and probably are. The mighty Fu took BOC’s song, slowed it down and added their signature heavy sound. The results are high volume worthy. Turn it up.
Red Red Wine: Tony Tribe covering Neil Diamond
Original version
Not to be confused with that awful UB40 hack band that stole Tribe’s arrangement of this song in the 1980s, this is the original ska version of Neil Diamond’s song. Tribe’s version is light years from Diamond’s and UB40’s versions.
Gin and Juice: The Gourds covering Snoop Doggy Dogg
Original version
A country/bluegrass version of Snoop’s classic song. You couldn’t really pick two genres that are any farther from each other than bluegrass and hip hop, but it totally works. It’s brilliant. Enough said.
Lake Of Fire: Nirvana covering The Meat Puppets
Original version
Whenever Nirvana covers come up, everyone always creams all over themselves about Nirvana’s cover of David Bowie’s The Man Who Sold The World, but for my money, it’s all about Lake Of Fire. The Man Who Sold The World isn’t a complete departure from the original, whereas this one is. It’s better than the original.
Me and Bobby McGee: Janis Joplin covering Kris Kristofferson
Original version
This might as well be Janis’ signature song. She didn’t write it, but she sure sang the hell out of it. The original version doesn’t even compare to the Janis treatment. I can’t even listen to the whole original; it just sounds wrong.
Borderline: The Flaming Lips, Stardeath And White Dwarfs covering Madonna
Original version
The Flaming Lips turned a rather ridiculous pop song into an epic rock opera. As the song moves along, it just keeps getting bigger. The sound is huge and the normally insipid lyrics actually seem to mean something here.
All Along The Watchtower: Jimi Hendrix covering Bob Dylan
Original version
Bob Dylan is a hell of a songwriter, but most of the time, I prefer other people performing his songs. Like this one. Hendrix’s version, with its big guitar, absolutely blows Dylan’s version, with its whiny harmonica, out of the water.
My Way: Sid Vicious covering Frank Sinatra
Original version
As far as music history is concerned, this is one of the most important covers ever. Musically, it’s pretty terrible, but stylistically, it changed the world.
I Will Survive: Cake covering Gloria Gaynor
Original version
I’ve talked before about how this is one of my favorite covers of all time. There are a few reasons. First, I love the syncopation changes. Second, the fact that it’s a male voice singing these lyrics adds another dimension to it. Third, I love the horn section. Fourth, just adding a simple swear word in the line “I should have changed my fucking lock” adds so much.
Respect: Aretha Franklin covering Otis Redding
Original version
It’s hard to top Otis, but there’s something about this song that just makes it a thousand times better sung by a woman, especially if that woman is Aretha Franklin. She reinvented it and made it her own. Redding said that he could never sing it again after he heard Aretha’s version.
My Humps: Alanis Morissette covering the Black Eyed Peas
Original version
I’m still mad at her for ruining irony for everyone in the 1990s, but she redeemed herself with this cover, proving just how completely ridiculous this song was in the first place. It’s absolutely brilliant satire. Well done, Alanis.
Country Roads (Take Me Home): Toots and the Maytals covering John Denver
Original version
I have always loved this song. Period. But Toots’ version is just so joyful. Toots is my happy music.
Hurt: Johnny Cash covering Nine Inch Nails
Original version
Ugh, Johnny, you broke my heart with this song and this video. You took someone else’s song and made it completely yours. Something about Cash at the end of his career singing this song on his throne with images of days gone by just takes your breath away.
Fish Of Gold 