Sometimes you wince, sometimes you get goosebumps at a bad or good cover.

Just heard Lana Del Rey’s take on Chelsea Hotel No.2 and I can’t decide if it’s really good or really bad:

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jj_myXdOLV0[/video]

Johnny Cash’s Hurt is better than NIN’s, Limp Bizkit’s Behind Blue Eye’s made me physically sick.

What’s your faves?

EDIT: No mentions of Nouvelle Vague, please 🙂

usually most covers ruin a good song… the exceptions that come to mind for me are:
GNR – live and let die
Foo Fighters (well Grohl) – Band on the Run

weird that the two are mcartney songs. hey ho.

Johnny Cash’s Hurt is better than NIN’s,

The American Recordings are full of tracks better than the original.

GNR Live and Let Die, and Johnny Cash’s Hurt are on my list as well.

ZZ Top’s take on Jailhouse Rock is pretty darned good, too.

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxygqSTO1lQ[/video]

Behind Blue Eyes is the gold standard Shit Cover isn’t it. OTOH their Faith was ace to leap around too.

I love Frank Turner’s version of The District Sleeps Tonight (can’t stand the original!), and Therapy? doing Isolation, but generally I prefer the off-the-wall ones. China Drum’s version of Wuthering Heights, or the Apples doing Killing In The Name… Some are genius, some are funny.

Darius doing ‘Hit Me Baby One More Time’………. (Was going to put Darius doing Britney Spears but it did not sound right!).

ZZ Top’s take on Jailhouse Rock is pretty darned good, too.

Speaking of which, ZZ Top’s Tramp from Mescalero is better even that Otis’ original IMO.

Thea Gilmore covering Sweet Child of Mine

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oorEQF7UZNo[/video]

and this is inspired..

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6cjfjhG_LRc[/video]

This comes to mind…

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ainyK6fXku0[/video]

GNR – live and let die

Good shout, that.

Also liked the Lemonheads’ Mrs Robinson.

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mluCZBGtjW8[/video]
[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Lv5fwvGmZU[/video]
[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHhVydgvuAc[/video]
[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g0GWH1rMOAA[/video]
[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fwtFSEovro[/video]

Anything by The Shire Horses is on the list to start with

Living Colour have done some good ones – Should I Stay Or Should I go, Memories Can’t Wait among them

Propellerheads version of On Her Majesy’s Secret Service

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YcF0bexWsos[/video]

Tricky cover of Black Steel by Public Enemy

Quite like this too…

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBviQXfuu3c[/video]

[video]http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=IAkLTDOQJ8Q&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DIAkLTDOQJ8Q[/video]

I like the original, but think the cover is better.

Covers? Easy. Anything by Me First and the Gimme Gimmes:

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K27N1C_qR1g[/video]

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3RayTF82Uw[/video]

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vbfgVote5wY[/video]

😆 😆 😆

I quite like Muse’s Feelin Good and as above GNR’s Live & Let Die and Johnny Cash’s Hurt are good. Can’t see all the youtube vids as they are blocked at work.

And another…

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGf-dtewwNs[/video]

GNR LnLD is my favourite but these are close:

Hard to Handle – Black Crowes (which I saw them playing superbly last night)

Remember tomorrow – Metallica

Love Potion No. 9 – The Coasters

Light my Fire – Shirley Bassey (yes, it’s great!)

Sunshine of Your Love – Jimi Hendrix

It’s my Life – Paul Anka (from the superb cover album “Rock Swings”)

And I second the Living Colour shout they did some great covers.

Chili Peppers – Higher Ground
UK Subs – She’s Not There
Jimi Hendrix – All Along the Watchtower
Anything by The Dickies,esp Silent Night & Eve of Destruction

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z2WXlaWv2u0[/video]
[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W9wwsxiLGbg[/video]

The whole of Thea Gilmore’s re-recording of ‘John Wesley Harding’ is an improvement on the original.

Also Paul Anka’s take on ‘Smells like Teen Spirit’. Amazing version.

You’re all completely wrong about GnR’s ‘Live & Let Die’ though, it’s cuffin’ awful. However their version of ‘Down on the Farm’ is great.

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TssrHvd48hE[/video]

And how can we not have any Richard Cheese in this list already ffs?

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HHXB9LxT1x8[/video]

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jjiO4DcGMY[/video]

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHzxXYz3QV4[/video]

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vAuXkh_cG5w[/video]

CAUTION – some NSFW lyrical content 😆

Just for Johnny’s moaning 🙂

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5sFz-Cb8gEs[/video]

I wouldn’t say it’s better than T Rex, but I loved Bauhaus, so loved their cover
[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FZYoeFNoOrM[/video]

Gonna have to think of something less than 30 years old!

Saw her play in Malta in December. She’s the real deal. Skills on the guitar too.

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4h-XTyGFC_A&list=LLNwwrC0iO7EF1OLpNjrl4NA[/video]

Here’s one… (shame the video is a bit boring 😉 )

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HTJteb5g_EE[/video]

This:
[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yuiJlRvN4_8[/video]

Or pretty much anything be Hayseed Dixie:
[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XHRZASJLn9I[/video]
or
[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xxh492o2aM[/video]
or
[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jj-LQpwSqCg[/video]
or
[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htlT8zj0wcg[/video]

The Damneds version of Help by the Beatles

Rage Against the Machine Renegades

Recorded:
The Slits – Marvin Gaye’s ‘Heard it Through the Grapevine’
The Band -Little Richard’s ‘Slippin’ and Slidin”
Dakar and Grinser – The Stooges’ ‘I Wanna be your Dog’

Live:
Mercury Rev -Peter Gabriel’s ‘Solsbury Hill’
Beck -Velvet Underground’s ‘Sunday Morning’
John Cale -Johnathan Richman’s ‘Pablo Picasso’

Machine Head doing Message In A Bottle….

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dV4NcnhktHY[/video]

Fear Factory – Cars

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSoKp6dRUH0[/video]

Oh, and of course….

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3gK7vPuJCg[/video]

[video]http://youtu.be/YU12FrWWVqA[/video]
This really tells Duffy where to get off.

!!! can’t do wrong for me
[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVU5UwLyDXw[/video]

is a cover of this
[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmtZ-cG9YPg[/video]

Not forgetting

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yw_U6UfKVeM[/video]

Edit: Just noticed that somebody else posted the vastly inferior HM/HB version. This one’s far more shouty and therefore wins.

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4KEEXyRL0qE[/video]

Placebo – Running up that hill.

[video]http://http://youtu.be/YU12FrWWVqA[/video]

[video]http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=YU12FrWWVqA[/video]
Mercy by 3rd Degree