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What are the best cover songs that reinterpret the original into a different genre, style, or mood?
Inspiration came when I was listening to Busy Signal - One More Night, a half-cover of the Phil Collins original. Reggae and dancehall have a lot of examples like this but it's usually interpolating or covering the chorus rather than the entire song.
So, which do you know? If you could post links for both the cover and the original, that'd be ace. I'd say sampling in hip-hop usually doesn't qualify here, unless there's clear conceptual connection to the original song beyond just the beat.
Also, if anyone suggests the Chet Faker version of No Diggity, I will start a riot in here.
The biggest example to me is Hurt by Nine Inch Nails which really does take on a different vibe entirely when sung by Johnny Cash
I'll second this one. The difference is incredible and both great tracks in their own rights.
NiN even stated that Johnnie's was the definitive version now, or something along those lines?
Wow, that's amazing. Many thanks for giving me the correct text around all this.
It is certainly bitter, but, I think, bitter sweet.
Wait, what?!
I wonder if this thing will ever be released. Trent Reznor and El-P have both said they've worked on this now.
This was my first thought as well! But while we're on the same song, I'd also like to add:
I never heard any of those before but they’re excellent. Thank you for showing me something new today.
Astrophysics! They've done a few good covers with Hatsune Miku, such as a reimagining of Kraftwerk's The Model with first-person lyrics. The one of New Order's Blue Monday is the first time I'd heard the song too, which has some good synth lines.
This is probably the best example for me too, but many of the cover songs Johnny Cash did for his American Recordings series of albums were great (especially the ones on the first album)
I was never much of a Johnny Cash fan until his version of Hurt landed and I did an instant 180. I finally understood his talent.
I was going to mention Johnny Cash's cover of Depeche Mode's "Personal Jesus" which is a personal favorite of mine.
He just has incredible pacing and emotion on his songs.
I just saw this interview by Rick Rubin not too long ago talking about this song, he actually convinced Cash to do the cover in the first place. Apparently Johnny Cash didn't even want to do it originally. Freaking mind-blowing given how great it turned out.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-7_loqsEWY&pp=ygUvaW50ZXJ2aWV3IHRhbGtzIGFib3V0IGh1cnQgY292ZXIgYnkgam9obm55IGNhc2g%3D
If you visit the Johnny Cash museum in Nashville, the chair he sat in during the video is the last thing you'll see before you leave. It's properly haunting.
Mad World by Gary Jules. So good that even Tears for Fears performs it that way sometimes.
I agree - I prefer the original in so many ways, but I can still say the Jules cover is still great in its own right. I don't hate it, but it does feel a little too on the nose to me.
One of my absolute favorites.
Wow, I had no idea that was a cover, there's too much 80s pop to keep track of. I love when the original artist can own up to someone outdoing their original, and this deserves it.
Holy shit, I didn't even know the Jules version was a cover! Mind blown, thanks for that.
omg yes. i’ve been hunting that! because i don’t always pay attention to who does what. id say my fave too.
All Along the Watchtower is a big one.
House of the Rising Sun by The Animals solidified a folk song into popularity.
Blue Monday by Orgy turned a bland song into something really cool—I like New Order but not their original version of Blue Monday.
The Man Who Sold the World, yes Nirvana did this Bowie song but the Midge Ure is even more transformative. It showed up in MGSV and it’s one of my favorite covers.
Not just any folk song, either. Arguably the oldest secular composition in American history.
For me, Frijid Pink did it best.
There's a live cover of Eminem's Lose Yourself by Australian country music artist Kasey Chambers floating around Youtube that is pretty intense. It starts a little slow but it pays off by the end.
https://youtu.be/S70xek3x4ro
Thanks for sharing! Absolutely amazing!
Wow! Thank you!!
Thanks for providing something actually original and useful in a thoroughly disappointing thread that gives me reddit PTSD.
No cover has stopped me in my tracks quite like Jeff Buckley’s interpretation of “Hallelujah.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8AWFf7EAc4
My mum is an absolutely massive Leonard Cohen fan, but I’ve always said he’s a phenomenal songwriter and a terrible performer. All his song sound so dreary when he performs them himself, and they’re transformed when someone else does
This describes Bob Dylan as well, for better or worse. There have been many iconic covers of his songs.
I personally think Leonard Cohen was a great showman. His voice wasn't to everyone's liking but I love it (and it evolved a LOT over time) and his writing is phenomenal.
Dylan on the other hand i just can't get with. As someone who wasn't around for his heyday I haven't even really been able to appreciate his well received latter day albums. I've seen him live twice; and both performances were some of the worst live musical performances I've ever seen.
I almost added that, totally agree! Such a boring performer and such a brilliant songwriter
For me it's Jeff Buckley's cover of Lilac Wine:
https://youtu.be/5PC68rEfF-o
Nina Simone's version (amazing but the JB hits different):
https://youtu.be/LT38CIgRse4
I love this duet version from Tim Minchin and Geraldine Quinn, too.
https://youtu.be/OSFCDhLhuB8
I'm not good at labelling genres but all these are reimagined pretty heavily:
Disturbed's cover of Sound of Silence and Simon & Garfunkel's Sound of Silence
Seether's Careless Whisper and George Michael's Careless Whisper
Sturgill Simpson's In Bloom and Nirvana's In Bloom
Edit: thought of a few more.
Bad Wolves' Zombie vs Cranberries Zombie
Five Finger Death Punch have a bunch but Blue on Black is the best IMO. Smith & Myers have an excellent version too.
Speaking of Smith & Myers, they also have a ton of great ones like Sledgehammer. Originally Peter Gabriel's Sledgehammer
If you want more of a diversion from a cover of Land of Confusion, Kyle Kallgren of Brows Held High did a very manic industrial cover that changes the song into less of a call to action and more of a cry for help. I didn't want to give it a top level, because he's not really a professional singer, and more of a Breadtuber by trade, but I like it.
IIRC, wasn't one of the band members also part of Genesis?
Great choices, these are creatively done! I do wish Seether did change up the lyrics a little, as I have a hard time imagining the singer ever steps foot on any dance floor, but they absolutely nailed the sax solo with the electric guitar.
Oh, I don't know. Sometimes the mood just strikes you and you have to dance!
Seether did okay, but my gods that scene in The Watchmen show using Nataly Dawn’s version still haunts me, and then someone showed me the Eagles of Death Metal version and now that’s my favorite.
But then again I’ll always have a special place in my liver for any version of a song from Richard Cheese.
I Will Survive - Cake
The Original
Cake's version of War Pigs by Black Sabbath is great too.
It does jam, but based on the little previous exposure I have to Cake, I'm not sure if this was made ironically or not.
Here are a few:
Fast car by Tracy Chapman. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AIOAlaACuv4
Fast car by Luke Combs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQFW87XwrVc
Ghost of Tom Joad Bruce Springsteen https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fkv9UpDZPXk
Ghost of Tom Joad Rage Against the Machine https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VypaE6kKJ8
My personal favorite is the one by Pink, but here are a few versions of Me and Bobbie McGee
Janis Joplin https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Cg-j0X09Ag
Kris Kristofferson https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOoMREvsV9E
Pink https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHPZMLYNx7E
Am I missing something? Both versions of Fast Car sound pretty much the same to me, apart from Combs' country twang. The Me and Bobbie McGee versions also all kinda fit into the same wheelhouse, although both covers were more acoustic.
Rage's rework is awesome though, that's the kind of thing I meant.
Could be a generational thing? I was very much an adult when rap appeared on the scene and folk vs rock vs country sound/feel different to me. I happen to know about the Rage Against the Machine cover thanks to YouTube and I found it very moving. I don't however look to experience either rap or metal music very frequently.
That's possible, but it could also just be me. I know enough to broadly distinguish folk, rock, indie, and many of the guitar-focused genres but I lose my way when it comes to subgenres, so some things may just bleed into each other in my mind. I used to try using a music map but things got confusing very quickly.
You will notice that I didn't distinguish metal into any subtypes although I am aware that there are many lol.
I'm glad you liked the Ghost of Tom Joad pairing.
Not to force you to watch a twenty minute video but YouTuber Todd in the Shadows did a review of Fast Car and pointed out how little was changed - for better and for worse.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8X4TwZ5oiA&pp=ygUTdG9kZCBpbiB0aGUgc2hhZG93cw%3D%3D
I would agree with you that stylistically there's no major difference and it doesn't really fit the bill of this question.
If you want an actually different cover of Fast Car you should try Jim O'Rourke's where he turns it into a 35 minute drone ambient piece
https://youtu.be/xJWxkYu8WgU
+1 for Devo's 'Satisfaction'. It was an amazing musical explanation of what this very quirky new band were all about, and is wildly different from the original Rolling Stones version. I had heard a few Devo tracks before I heard this, but suddenly it all clicked into place upon hearing this cover, and I WAS HOOKED.
easter egg: Their producer, the famous Brian Eno, does the cool little vocal section where 'baby' quickly repeats in 1/8 note rhythm a bazillion times, because Mark Mothersbaugh couldn't perform the (fairly challenging) part in the studio. Eno had done plenty of similar vocal tricks on his own albums, so he stepped in to perform it. Once you know about this, it's really obvious that it's Eno singing that part, in a cool way.
Devo also have a cover of Head Like a Hole by NIN. In traditional Devo fashion, it's fantastic.
Grace Jones has a great version of ring of fire.
Orville Peck's excellent country cover of Lady Gaga's Born This Way definitely gives it a rather different vibe, while still remaining true to the original message.
Ghost do some excellent covers which often have a different tone when you take into account their (in-universe) satanism. Shakespeare's Sister's Stay and Genesis's Jesus he Knows Me currently standing out for me.
I fucking love Orville Peck.
I want to add Orville Peck's cover of "Fancy"
Lana Del Rey's cover of Doin' Time takes Sublime's song and puts it more into Lana's world, imo. I really love the cover a lot: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6UazdAlqhs
Miley Cyrus's cover of Jolene is what I point to when people need to be taught about Miley's talent as a singer. It retains a lot of the original country style, but Miley's rasp and voice change it just slightly enough for me to say that it covers this promt: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wOwblaKmyVw
I also enjoy Miles Cyrus' cover, but my favorite is the White Stripes cover. The emotion he puts into the music is just beyond anything else for me.
https://youtu.be/w5sYS0HJt5s
Mikey Cyrus's cover of Jolene made me a fan.
She also did this cover of Lana Del Ray's Summertime Sadness, which is a fave of mine:
https://youtu.be/93CZ6oFR8Q0
Miley's voice is just kinda incredible tbh!
Speaking of Mikey Cyrus, I love this cover (it's better than the original to me).
Wrecking Ball (the original):
https://youtu.be/My2FRPA3Gf8
And the cover by London Grammar:
https://youtu.be/UcUERyHeNSY
I think I personally still like the original, but I think this deserves a comment of it's own too! definitely fits the thread :)
Someone else on this thread mentioned what a treasure trove BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge is for covers. They sure do a lot of Miley Cyrus. Here's Bastille covering another of her songs (with a little Billy Ray):
https://youtu.be/8pZi7CXE2ac
similarly, Like A Version by triple j (i think they're based in australia?) do similar things:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msgimk3mV6g
one of my favorite covers is from here!
You should check out this version by Mindy Smith. It was on a tribute to Dolly album. YouTube
While we're on the subject of Jolene covers, Radical Face did an excellent cover of it-- I love the change in perspective of the song being sung by a gay man, it takes on a whole new meaning.
Three in particular I consistently play.
Placebo's cover of Kate Bush's Running up That Hill
Portishead's cover of ABBA's S.O.S
Cat Power's sendup of Frank Ocean's Bad Religion
I love the darker vibe on the first two, and the more whistful lamentation on the latter.
Flim by Aphex Twin and Flim by The Bad Plus is a wonder.
Not In Love by Platinum Blonde and Not In Love by Crystal Castles featuring Robert Smith
Enjoy the Silence by Depeche Mode and Enjoy the Silence by Swift
In Your Eyes by Peter Gabriel and In Your Eyes by Mouth of the Architect
SOS by ABBA and SOS by Portishead
Maybe not enough of a genre shift:
A Case of You by Joni Mitchell and A Case of You by James Blake
The Promise by When In Rome and The Promise by Mint Julep
Definitely doesn't qualify as a genre shift, but I'm sharing it anyway (at least it's not No Diggity):
You're My Best Friend by Queen and Best Friend by Melvins
Last addition, I promise, but it's a "must" in my opinion: The Advantage (formerly Minibosses, I think) was a band who exclusively covered songs from video games. Here's their second album. My personal favorite is the Mike Tyson's Punchout cover.
Small correction: In your eyes was done solo by Peter Gabriel well after his split with Genesis and not done by fellow Genesis alum Phil Collins.
Nice catch! Corrected.
Man, I didn't even think about video game music when I posted. Half of OC ReMix would qualify, and you can find some genuinely great arrangements on there.
Failure - Enjoy the Silence is my favorite version.
Israel "IZ" Kamakawiwoʻole's "Somewhere Over the Rainbow". It completely changed the song.
I only recently heard this somehow, but:
Come On, Eileen - Dexys Midnight Runners
The original
Come On, Eileen - Save Ferris
Puts a ska spin on it, and I really like the change-up when the chorus hits.
Oh, and also:
Africa by Toto
I suspect many people are familiar with this original version.
Perpetuum Jazzile's a capella version
The rainstorm sound effects at the beginning really make the whole thing.
Leo Moracchioli's heavy metal rendition
Leap Frog Studios does a bunch of great metal covers, but I picked this one to contrast against the a capella one.
They Might Be Giants - Ana Ng
A classic TMBG song.
Starfucking Hipsters - Ana Ng
Another ska rendition. (As @thatnimrod said, ska bands like their covers!)
I'd like this version a lot more if they didn't pronounce "Ng" as "enj" and mess up the lyrics about the storm-tangled wires.
On that note, the ska covers Reel Big Fish did always compelled me to get up and dance
I’m sure everyone from that era remembers their version of Take On Me
But did you know they also did Hungry Like The Wolf? And Brown Eyed Girl?
There’s probably a dozen more, ska bands really like their covers.
I love this thread! I started a Spotify playlist with the recommendations that caught my eye. Here:
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/475vflUWUMU7mDEpCs7Yzq?si=ud4cTYERT7GD2wao-0bnBQ&pt=88dc00d057288497f19b5570394d762c
Enjoy & feel free to add to it!
The best example of a well executed cover that re-imagines the style of the song would be Heart Shaped Box by Ruby and the Vines.
A fantastic soul/funk reimagining of Nirvana’s grunge classic.
YouTube:
https://youtube.com/watch?v=Rmx_97lR36k&feature=sharec
Thank you!!!
Most welcome
Two that come to mind for me are:
Man, I love the GUNSHIP version conceptually, but I feel like I didn't get enough. I need the verse to come in harder after that killer intro, and it's begging for an extended version instead of ending so abruptly.
The Jamie Cullum cover... musically it's super solid, but "I just came here to party, now we're rockin' on the dance floor getting naughty" simply does not hit right over a soft jazz piano lol. Not quite Chet Faker territory, but it is distractingly incongruous.
I'd add Ray Charles' cover of Eleanor Rigby to the mix. Not as much of a departure as the GUNSHIP cover (which is really cool, by the way), but it still feels different to me than the original.
A whole 'lotta pomplamoose could be in here, but in terms of transformation, i'd go with their cover of Billie Jean.
I am not sure if mashups count as covers. But here is a link.
Can't Stop Feeling Billie Jean's Face
Personally I like it.
Unlike Blur, Oasis and Suede, I don't think Pulp's slightly disco take on Britpop garnered much international success; maybe their focus on the seedy underbelly of British culture maybe didn't translate well? Jarvis Cocker sang the end credits for Asteroid City though, so I may be wrong.
One of their bigger hits, Common People did attract the attention of one William Shatner though... It's such a great cover and transposes Cocker's mostly dry sarcastic presentation to palpable rage and spite. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ainyK6fXku0
Probably a good thing someone else sang the chorus... I suspect this punkier version would sit better with American audiences too.
The chorus is sung by Joe Jackson, an excellent (and very versatile) musician. I love this version of "Common People".
Thank you for this!! William Shatner punk! So crazy and so good
Finnish band Steve'n'Seagulls does bluegrass covers of classic rock and heavy metal songs. a few of my favorites:
The Trooper (original by Iron Maiden)
Nothing Else Matters (original by Metallica)
November Rain (original by Guns n' Roses)
How could you mention Steve'n'Seagulls and not mention their Thunderstruck cover?!
some of my favorites:
Gin and Juice (original by Snoop Dogg)
Gangnam Style (original by Psy)
People Equal Shit (original by Slipknot)
WAP (original by Cardi B)
I think Hot For Teacher is worth mentioning, as it really lends itself to lounge style. How Soon Is Now and Tighten Up are also ones that pop to mind as really fantastic in their own right and go far beyond tongue in cheek novelty act.
Nouvelle Vague does a lot of fun covers of 80s punk and alt rock.
My two favorites are their covers of Too Drunk to Fuck and A Forest.
How about Get up and boogie by Static-X vs the original by Silver Convention?
Or Ma Baker by Knornator vs Boney M.
There's also Hayseed Dixie's bluegrass covers of ACDC and more, and Me first and the gimme gimmes' punk versions of popular songs, though all are maybe more tongue in cheek than you're looking for.
This Youtube channel makes covers of songs in old languages.
My favorite is On Melancholy Hill in old Scottish
The original, by Gorillaz here.
How interesting! I will enjoy exploring these.
Sunday Bloody Sunday by Saul Williams was an excellent reinterpretation.
Good one, I was going to comment this song as well.
Austin Brown's Unchained Melody is an awesome listen. The man has the voice of an angel.
Also I adore the Dead South's rendition of You Are My Sunshine. It gives what I used to think was a light, airy tune into something entirely dark & threatening.
I also enjoy Disturbed's rendition of Sound of Silence. He really portrays the emotional range of the song.
The Dead South - You Are My Sunshine
I listed this in my comment as well. The Dead South totally changes the tenor & mood of the song.
It's amazing!
I think snowdragon was just LFTL (Link For The Lazy)-ing your comment to make it easier for people to listen to that song. Speaking of which:
Austin Brown - Unchained Melody
Disturbed - Sound of Silence (although I prefer the live version from Conan)
Many thanks. I didn't even think to make links LOL.
My personal favorite version is The Civil Wars - You Are My Sunshine (Live)
cc: @Ellecram
Thanks for the recommendation.
I'm not sure if every one of them is a "reimagining", but here is my "Better Covers" playlist in YouTube Music.
Some highlights:
Shrek 2 Fairy Godmother's cover of Holding out for a Hero
Peak cinema (not really but really).
If you are interested in cover songs, Brian Ibbot has posted nearly 1500 episodes since 2004 of his Podcast Coverville.
Good lord. I don't want them all, just the best ones!
Life On Mars (David Bowie) covered by Aurora
Definitely agree with the mention I see of Hurt (NIN) covered by Johnny Cash. Reznor himself said something akin to "it's not my song anymore"
Another good Bowie cover is "Oh You Pretty Things" by Lisa Hannigan. I like the original, but Hannigan's is such a different treatment that it feels like a totally different song.
Really highlights what a great melody the song has too.
Not to mention the version by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross for The Watchmen OST, which is kind of haunting knowing they were good friends and this was after his passing.
Ray Barretto - Pastime Paradise (invidous)
The beginning is similar to the original, but after those two+ minutes, the instrumental part kicks in and lifts it to a level all its own. Almost 3 times as long as the original, but never bores.
Original by Stevie Wonder (invidious), which was sampled for Coolio - Gangsta's Paradise (invidious)
Don't take this one too seriously:
Walter Murphy - A Fifth of Beethoven (invidious)
Turned Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 into a successful 1970's disco floor-filler.
Sampled later on by A+ and Robin Thicke for hits of their own.
Henri-Pierre Noel covered (inv) Murphy's version on the piano. If you like this, check out Noel's "Diskette".
I'll probably edit some others in later as I think of them.
Jolene by the Whites Stripes.
Original by Dolly Parton. I think TWS did a fantastic job here!
John Legend does an amazing cover of "Ex-Factor" by Lauryn Hill. Has me teary eyed every time I listen to it.
Bauhaus remade David Bowie's "Ziggy Stardust", and I like it far better than Bowie's version.
Oh! This reminds me of another of my favorites: Bauhaus's cover of Brian Eno's Third Uncle. It might not really belong in this thread because I'd say that the cover is still very much "in the spirit" of the original. Still, it really does it for me.
I really thought the cover of The Knife's "Heartbeats" by José González mellows out the original in a way that vastly improves it.
An interesting thing The Knife did is provide a new interpretation of this song live that is probably my favorite out all the versions.
aretha franklin did a great version of Youll Never Walk Alone, covering Jerry and the Pacemakers who got the song from the musical Carousel. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=5DM-jPM0XBw&pp=ygUoYXJldGhhIGZyYW5rbGluIHlvdSdsbCBuZXZlciB3YWxrIGFsb25lIA%3D%3D
also love johnny cash’s Wichita Lineman https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=oum_g4yKsz0
Wonder if they ever played it at the kop?!
They did play it on bbc radio when John Peel died. It brought the house down as you’d imagine
I just thought of another, and I'm kicking myself for not thinking of it because it's been on repeat for me for a couple of years now:
CHVRCHES covers Love by Kendrick Lamar, absolutely beautiful: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msgimk3mV6g
Stevie Ray Vaughan did Voodoo Child better than Jimmy. You can't change my mind.
https://youtu.be/cFwTbsKkqxE
My favorite would be Firestarter - Torre Florim which gives a whole new feel to the song by far. I also really enjoy Love Lockdown - Glass Animals, plus it's better to not support the original artist on that one.
I'm also not sure if this counts, but I also really like this "interpretation" of Hey Ya - KAMAUU, it's the classic "the lyrics don't match the beat" song so it's very interesting to hear what the song sounds like if it did match. Plus I'm just a fan of beatboxing.
I’m glad you highlighted the Firestarter cover, I’m a huge fan of it too, and oh boy is it a stark difference to the version I knew first!
Charles Bradley - Changes by Black Sabbath - Original
Alarm Will Sound - 4 by Aphex Twin - Original
Jenna Bell, Ryan Lerman, Lee Pardini - Black Hole Sun by Soundgarden - Original
Bill Frisell & Thomas Morgan - Goldfinger - Original
Love Bradley's cover. RIP.
Have you checked out the Jazz Sabbath project from Sabbath's keyboardist? It's pretty great, and they made a great backstory for the whole thing, as well...
Haha, that's a great idea for the backstory!
Also a very nice and relaxed sound, thanks for sharing!
Children of Bodom's cover of Britney Spears' Oops... I Did It Again is an absolute banger.
A little less transformative but still very different is this haunting Brides of Lucifer (a 13 member female choir that cover metal classics) version of Fear of the Dark by Iron Maiden, quite dig it.
I really love their version of Slayers South of Heaven
https://piped.video/watch?v=tvtJPs8IDgU Counting Crows Big Yellow Taxi/ I dont know who the original was but they just made it so much better. For me at least.
Joni Mitchell's originally. Link
Ah thank you! Original Wasn't bad, I guess Counting Crows version is the one I just prefer.
I have to add The Cardigans' version of Sabbath Bloody Sabbath by Black Sabbath. The guitarist from Sabbath, Tony Iommy, even said at one point that it's his favorite Black Sabbath cover.
Boy do I have some links for you.
Dallas Green covering Alice in Chains - Rain when I die - he turns this into a haunting ballad it's phenomenal.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1x6IULst9r4
Ben howard covering Carly Rae Jepsen's Call me maybe. Transformed from bubblegum pop to a longing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPU8V-nvUEk
I always enjoyed Muse's cover of Feeling Good. Adds a bit of edge while still keeping some of the show tune/jazzy elements of the original. Nina Simone also did a great version with more of a bluesy / almost soul focus
I had no clue that song wasn't Nina's! Hard to say she doesn't own it now, honestly.
So, this isn't exactly a cover, but I think it still fits in here in the spirit of the question.
Highwomen by The Highwomen is a version of The Highwaymen, but from the perspective of incredible women. I like it more than the original myself.
Passenger by Iggy Pop as performed by Siouxie and the Banshees. Not a dramatic change genre wise, but what the original has in simplicity, the cover builds on excellently in its arrangement.
Siouxie and the Banshees have some great covers. I'm partial to "Dear Prudence".
Here are two of my favorites:
My pick is For Whom the Bell Tolls by Avi Vinocur. It's a much more somber take on the song, and doesn't feature any percussion.
The original is by Metallica. Special shoutout to Apocalyptica's version which is less moody but still incredible in it's own way.
Avi's take on it kind of gives me Pink Floyd vibes.
Also in the same vein: Enter Sandman cover by SHEL. The stripped down instruments and the vocalists' breathy voice give it a haunted feel.
Deftones cover of The Cures " if only tonight we could sleep " is a pretty amazing love cover
https://youtube.com/watch?v=RQptLhImcpw&feature=share9
They have a great album of covers out from years ago as well. I think one of the few things that a lot of nu-metal bands did well was cover versions(not that I'd consider Deftones nu-metal)
Valerie by Amy Winehouse and Mark Ronson is a cover of a Zutons song. The original is an indie rock song, while the cover is sort of old r&b/pop.
A segment on BBC radio 1 called the Live Lounge used to invite artists in to play some of their live tracks and then reimagine one of someone else’s and cover it. Some brilliant covers on those albums that almost always strayed far from the original.
(Sorry I can’t link things on mobile!)
The Delays do a great cover of a-ha's The Sun Always Shines on TV
I really enjoy Father John Misty's rendition of "Suburbs" vs the original one sang by Arcade Fire. It has a more melancholic vibe, hits right in the feels.
I'm a fan of Panzerballett's jazz metal take on I've had the time of my life. The original is a bit trite by now and this is such an abrasive subversion of it.
I’m a sucker for Willie Nelson covers but his cover of ‘Time after Time’ just hit me in a different kind of way.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=KpPFIw-75GU
Bring the Pain - Mindless Self Indulgence
A cover of the original by the same name performed by Method Man.
I appreciate Kyle Lovett's version of Blue Skies:
https://youtu.be/FMrkKgiiSvo
The original was done for the musical Betsy in 1926 (hence no link to the true original). Usually it's performed as an upbeat song, whereas Lovett's is bluesy and melancholy sweet which I find lands more effectively with me.
One of my favorites (although I don't know if it counts as a cover since it's the songwriter, just doing it later), but I'm a Believer on Neil Diamond's 2010 album Dreams, compared to The Monkees' version from the 1960s. Diamond's version, stripped down to a ballad with minimal instrumentation and his older voice, just makes it more poignant and retrospective in a way that really speaks to me.
If I remember right, Neil Diamond wrote it as a ballad and then the Monkees recorded it up-tempo. I saw him in concert semi-recently, and he performed it both ways.
For a really interesting song (not sure if it counts as a cover) is Free Translator by The Books
From some secondary sources I've seen, the song was the lyrics of Bob Dylan's Subterranean Homesick Blues sent through a bunch of online free language translators into different languages and then back into English. Now, while these lyrics are seemingly nonsense, they're sung with such sincerity by one of the former members Nick Zammuto, that it's easy to imprint different thoughts or feelings an emotions on to them each time you listen to it depending on your own state of mind. I find a lot of music by The Books books is like that, and this is a really interesting case because it is sort of "a cover" of such a legendary musician.
I really like Kurt Cobains cover of And I Love Her by The Beatles. Completely changes the tone from happy to depressing
https://yt.artemislena.eu/watch?v=rBzA4shGmw8
Lollipop by Framing Hanley
Original by Lil Wayne
It would have been awesome if Lil Wayne had done a rock remix to the song with them, because they nail the musical arrangement... but seeing these guys yelling "Shorty want a thug" is really cringe to me.
In the early bizarre covid times when we were all stuck inside watching Tiger King, the Offspring made a cover of one of Joe Exotic's terrible songs: Here Kitty Kitty. It's so odd for them I love it and I frequently find it stuck in my head. Shame the original video was taken down. It's such a good representation of the early covid months.
Fiona Apple's cover of I Want You by Elvis Costello might be the most emotionally intense, exquisitely heartbreaking performance I've heard
Caught a Ghost - In the Pines Most people are probably familiar with the Nirvana cover from Unplugged and that's how I first heard it, which was great in its own way, but I found this other cover not too long ago and it's something special. Just the way the vocals come together in this version has a bit more of a haunting sound to it and for whatever reason I don't know that I had ever picked up on the murder ballad aspects of the song from Nirvana's cover the way I did on this version.
I really like Lera Lynn and Shovels & Rope's ethereal bluegrass-y version of TV on the Radio's Wolf Like Me
Norwegian comedian Egil Hegerberg's doom metal cover of Rihanna's "Umbrella": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DlwDAx3Iii4
A group that I enjoy has done remakes on a number of current songs. They add their own flair to it and their videos make it look like they are having fun doing it.
Canadian Group Walk Off The Earth (WOTE) became fairly mainstream in their remake of Goyte's Someone That I Used To Know by all playing parts on the same guitar.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9mybTArlsk
Scary Pockets, my favorite band, is a rotating list of LA studio musicians who cover songs in a funk style. They release weekly on Monday and some of the singers and musicians they bring in are beyond top tier.
Scary Pockets can be hit or miss (in my opinion) but sometimes they HIT. I really like their cover of Let Me Love You by Justin Bieber.
Antwaun Stanley is amazing!
https://youtu.be/dATGquiB05g
Two of my favourite covers that I haven't seen listed here yet are: 1) Zero by Vanna originally by The Smashing Pumpkins and 2) That Funny Feeling by Phoebe Bridgers(live) originally by Bo Burnham.
I don't know if these have been posted. I love them both.
Dancing on my own by Robyn (the original):
https://youtu.be/CcNo07Xp8aQ
And by Kings of Leon (the cover):
https://youtu.be/aQ-vU28uPb0
ETA: Thanks for posting this question, OP. I've played the above songs now a few times in a row, as well as a lot of the songs on this thread and adding them to my Playlist. (I also sent me down a Robyn hole on YouTube. )
I’m a big fan of Jonathan Coulton’s version of Sir Mix-a-lot’s Baby Got Back.
Two that come to mind. First, Jimmy Eat World covered Firestarter by Prodigy. Completely different energy than the original.
Second would be Jimi Hendrix's cover of All Along the Watch Tower. Bob Dylan's version isn't bad but for my tastes, Hendrix's version is the one I like better.
I loved this dark, moody, epic rendition of "Don't Dream It's Over" by The Rescues for the soundtrack of Pantheon (such a great sci-fi animated show by the way!).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5QgHwgaVDD8
M Ward's cover of Let's Dance (Bowie).
Link:
https://youtu.be/mbxQ9bvdZgU?si=Npr8uXNJ32pwpJta
So I can’t speak to “best” but in the category of covers I have revisited that I prefer over the original:
These are all youtube links because I that’s where I do this kind of thing, I’m too lazy to “program” spotify. I’m not even sure these meet the criteria for the question, because I’m sure the video nature contributes to the “mood” of the performance and they might suffer with just audio (if it’s even available). Also I can’t really vouch for the links to the original because, well, I don’t listen to it. ;) It might be the original artist’s crappy version for all I know.
Christopher Bill’s horn enhanced version of Dua Lipa’s Levitating. This mix is overly horn heavy for most people probably, but I was asked.
Jared Halley’s acapella(ish) version of John Denver’s Country Roads.
The Glee cast version of Lady Gaga’s Born This Way.
The Pitch Perfect cast version of Beyonce’s Love On Top.
There’s a 41 second intro you have to skip, I’m too brain dead right now to make the time code work in the URL.
And with no specific recommendations for those that care to browse:
ScaryPockets in general.
8BitBigBand in general.
I greatly prefer the much more upbeat Now Here's My Plan version of Bonnie 'Prince' Billy's - 'I See A Darkness' over the sombre 1999 version (though the video I shared there is pretty weird!). I've always liked the 1999 version, but the new version is one of my favorite songs, whereas the older version is simply an excellent, well-known song from my favorite musician. The more upbeat one seems to embrace the joy that can be found even knowing that one will return to depression, whereas the older version is a more serious take on that darkness. The newer version feels like overcoming it, in a sort of ongoing way like how I might always have to, where the older version seems like the throes of exploring it, not knowing if I'll achieve. I know the latter well, but it's not a memory I love to dwell on.
There's also the Johnny Cash version. It's well done, but very similar to Bonnie 'Prince' Billy's 1999 version.
All three do give me the chills mentioned earlier, so I of course recommend them all.
Yo La Tengo's cover of Big Sky
Original by The Kinks
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Diana Krall's cover of A Case of You
Original by Joni Mitchell
I don't see it mentioned here, so I'll nominate "Don't Say a Word", though I think in this case "reinterpretation" is a bit strong of a word.
The original, by Sonata Arctica
The cover by Xandria
Probably my favorite changed-up cover: Geographer's version of Ready 2 Wear versus the Felix da Housecat original.
Sarah Bareilles' cover of Single Ladies is outrageous.
Trapeze Swinger by Iron & Wine (Original)
Trapeze Swinger by Gregory Alan Isakov (Cover)
Probably one of my all time favourite covers
I had to come back to say "anything covered by Laibach". But here's a specific example: Queen's "One Vision" and Laibach's "Geburt einer Nation".
If you're like me (and who isn't?!) and want more Laibach covers, there's the entire "Let It Be" album and, in a very different vein, "Laibachkunstderfuge", to name just a couple.
I would say Woodstock by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young (original by Joni Mitchell). The Mike Flowers Pops covers are always fun, especially the one of Light My Fire
Edit: America by Yes sounds way different than the original by Simon and Garfunkel.
I love how David Bowie "covered"/re-imagined his own song "The Man Who Sold the World" for some live performances the 1990s:
Original
1990s version
EDIT: a few others...
Ritual Cloak covering "Orange Crush" (by R.E.M.) - more downtempo/dreampop-ish
Grace Jones covering "Warm Leatherette" (by The Normal) - more upbeat/pop; great contrast between the music and lyrics!
...alison moshart and carla azar take tomorrow never knows to some remarkable places, with a particularly stunning bridge about two-thirds through turned 180° to face entirely new sonic territory...
Fountains of Wayne covering Baby One More Time. It comes across with less of the bubble-gum pop vibe, more of the earnestness behind the words
Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft by the Carpenters is a cover of Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft by Klaatu, with extra aliens.
Proud Mary by Tina Turner is a cover of Proud Mary by Creedence Clearwater Revival, with extra doot doot doot doot...
Classic Norwegian Black Metal works bizarrely well as 1960s Surf Rock, which is pretty hilarious. Quite the tone shift indeed.
https://youtu.be/5QLxdNqMXBM (cover of emperor I am the black wizards)
YouTube has a really thriving culture of people who cover songs. Notably, there's a sub-culture of the "live arrangement" where a band arranges a cover of one of more songs in studio. To be honest, I don't really know what qualifies the live part of live arrangement from a music production standpoint. But I do know that the medium allows musicians to show off their virtuosity much more than they would in a typical recording.
Strange Arrange is (was?) a hip-hop/R&B live-arrangement competition, and these are a couple songs produced by winners:
Danzig's Trouble is originally an Elvis Presley song.
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I just recently learned that Bananarama's Venus is a cover of the original by Dutch band Shocking Blue. I've gotta say, I'm now leaning heavily towards preferring the original. (Also, now I know what Claudia Wilkeman was doing in the late 60s, a few years before she was even born).
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Snake River Conspiracy covered The Smiths's How Soon Is Now. Where The Smiths version is soulful and contemplative, the SRC version is brash and keen-edged. I really enjoy both versions of the song, to listen to them.
However, in composing this comment I had to look up the videos on YouTube. On finding them, two thoughts came to mind:
Tomorrow Never Knows by 801. Bauhaus later covered their Third Uncle.
Filters cover of Happy Together by the Turtles completely changes the tone of the song, a happy love song turned into a heavy song from the perspective of a creep.
https://youtu.be/eAnBbgl2RrY
This cover of The Cranberries' Linger
I just discovered Peter Gabriel's cover of David Bowie's "Heroes" today and dang. It's good!
Covers by MIYAVI (the "guitar god" of Japan):
Somewhere Over The Rainbow
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PyBT1l_xwC0
Havana
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sDCUD-lii0M
Faithfully
Original - Journey
Faithfully by Journey
Cover - Clem Snide
Faithfully by Clem Snide
My favorite version done on AV Club's Undercover series - For AV Undercover
Sadly, AV Club took down their original videos from Youtube awhile back. Sometimes copies of those performances get reuploaded, but several I enjoyed are hard to find. Here's some background info on the AV Undercover series if interested - AV Undercover Archives
Jacqui Naylor, a jazz singer did a cover of R.E.M.'s "Losing My Religion" and it's fantastic:
https://youtu.be/ItNqPI-c99s?si=DiJCr1hMq39Tcano
I just ran into the Muppets cover of Bohemian Rhapsody. I love it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgbNymZ7vqY
patti smith’s cover of teen spirit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y4YF46B9e6c
An instrumental cover Robert Glasper https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WudaLBOCrBE
wow. fantastic. ❤️
Aretha Franklin Bridge Over Troubled Water https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9-yfeA2JZs
Simon and Garfunkel https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4G-YQA_bsOU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4G-YQA_bsOU
Eva Cassidy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHYW0drRwVg
Roberta Flack https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k49yMJE8jyg
Whitney Houston and Cece Winans https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lgCHuYgI-0c
In the latest episode of Fargo there is a pretty cool cover of Britney Spears' - Toxic.
Jeff Russo , Lisa Hannigan - Toxic https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5AUGWgBt_EM
The Cardigans did a super-chill cover of Black Sabbath's Iron Man, which really caught me off guard when the only thing I'd previously heard was Lovefool on pop radio. Tremendously underrated band.
Link: https://youtu.be/Zb7IpfOzon4?si=NuDwLRR3DNvOiVpx
I first heard Lorde's cover of "Everybody wants to rule the world" in the trailer for Assassin's Creed Unity (Start at ~00:38, if you want to skip some narrative-building). I don't know what it was, but Lorde's darker, slower version fit the story they were trying to tell in that three-minutes really well. Kudos to those who worked on that trailer, audibly and visually, it was quite a ride.