Too many damned musicians make money from other people's songs. Sadly, music abuse of this nature happens more often than you'd think and, in most instances, it goes unpunished. But every once in a while, a shining cowboy rides into Musicville on a horse of gold and delivers the people a good, old-fashioned rump-kicking of a cover, a reinterpretation so good that it leaves the townsfolk bursting with glee and skipping with euphoria. The following covers are straight out the Old West, where artistic quality was lassoed and hogtied by these shiny artists:
Jeff Buckley - "Hallelujah"
Perhaps one of the more chilling covers out there, Jeff Buckley's eerily beautiful adaptation of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" takes the folk song to epic proportions. Buckley's soulful voice, in conjunction with echoing guitars, serve to stretch the limits of what a man and a guitar can conjure. - CD
Cake - "I Will Survive"
Cake, in many ways, plays this song the way it is supposed to be played. Not only should it have a guitar in it, but the song was originally written "I should have changed that f---in' lock" and that is the way Cake voices it. The Gloria Gaynor version was cleaned up for radio. Also, Cake is just so much cooler than disco. - DJM
Eric Clapton - "I Shot the Sheriff"
Clapton's version is only here because his version hit No. 1 and got the song played in America. While he tries to reggae up his version, you can't out-reggae Bob Marley. Bob and the gang gave this song the proper treatment - maybe it's because they wrote it. You need proof? Why does Clapton omit the line "if I am guilty, I will pay"? Because no one can touch the way Marley sings it. - DJM
Cornershop - "Norwegian Wood"
The final track on Cornershop's acclaimed 1997 album, When I Was Born for the 7th Time, is a cover of The Beatles' ballad "Norwegian Wood" performed entirely in Hindi, complete with an orchestra of sitars. For this alone, Cornershop's version stands out, if anything, as one of the more interesting Beatles covers. - CD
Bob Dylan - "You Belong to Me"
Originally popularized by Nashville diva Patsy Cline, Dylan's down-temp folk rendition of "You Belong to Me" was featured on the "Natural Born Killers" soundtrack in 1994, alongside songs by Dr. Dre, Nine Inch Nails, Cowboy Junkies and Patti Smith. Dylan's cover of the classic brings a certain neurotic melancholy to the originally endearing love song, as he simplifies the song to simple guitar pickings and intimate, if not depressing, vocals. "You Belong to Me" stands out not only as a cover, but as one of Dylan's best performances. - CD
Dynamite Hack - "Boyz N The Hood"
This is easily the best rock band cover of a rap song ever (punk covers just aren't that good). Hearing a white boy sing the phrase "she said something that I couldn't believe, so I grabbed the stupid bitch by her nappy-ass weave" is hilarious for two reasons. One: He's white. Two: Easy-E mainly just talks the song; he doesn't even really rap it. Oh yeah, and Dynamite Hack throw the Beatles' "Blackbird" in there at the end, sealing the deal. - DJM
Harvey Danger - "Save it for Later"
The band best known for their 1997 hit "Flagpole Sitta" unfortunately ended up being a one-hit wonder. But before they disappeared, the quartet churned out a superb cover of The English Beat's ska-punk '80s hit "Save it for Later" for the "200 Cigarettes" movie soundtrack. Harvey Danger managed to make the song sound more '80s than the original, incorporating synths and airy-pop vocals to give the tune even more warmth and charm than the original songwriters were able to. - CD
Jimi Hendrix - "All Along the Watchtower"
You won't find many Dylan songs on this list because, frankly, he plays the songs the way they are meant to be played. But Hendrix is an exception; he electrified "Watchtower" with more than just a guitar. It was like taking "All Along the Watchtower" and making it "All Along the F---in' Watchtower." Guitars blazing from the beginning, the most important instrument is actually the tambourine. Funny, the Tambourine Man himself didn't even think of that one. - DJM
The Lemonheads - "Mrs. Robinson"
The Lemonheads take Simon and Garfunkel's version and beat it over the head with something heavy. All the words are thicker and goofier, climaxing with "put it in you pantry with your cupcakes." The only thing Evan Dando and even Simon and Garfunkel can't touch is the "coo-coo ca choo" part. That will always belong to the Beatles. - DJM
Marilyn Manson - "Sweet Dreams"
The greatest cover of all time. Not only were both songs huge hits, they both defined the careers of their singers. Manson took the Eurythmics' song and not only covered it, he transformed it into a completely different entity. Some people who heard both songs didn't actually know they were the same. "Sweet Dreams" has become one of the biggest songs of two respective decades. - DJM
Metallica - "Turn the Page"
Metallica took a good Bob Seger song and simply improved every facet of it. The guitars are richer, their version is packed with energy and the vocals hold everything together. Seger laid the groundwork, then Metallica paved the road. - DJM
Nirvana - "Plateau," "Oh Me" and "Lake of Fire"
The true gems on Nirvana's Unplugged album are the three Meat Puppets songs performed by the band towards the end of the set. Most of us would never have heard of the Meat Puppets if not for Nirvana's renditions, which fail to match the quirky quality brought by the originals. Nonetheless, Nirvana's sedated versions perfected one of the best unplugged albums to date. - CD
The Presidents of the United States of America - "Video Killed the Radio Star"
Who cares if The Buggles' version was the first song played on MTV? It still isn't better. Maybe it was. What kind of name is The Buggles, anyway? The Presidents rock it out. If video killed the radio star, then the Presidents killed the Buggles. Put all the blame on VCR. - DJM
Rage Against the Machine - "The Ghost of Tom Joad"
If you think it's eerie when Springsteen whispers "highway patrol copters comin' up over the ridge," it gets downright frightening when the whirling blades of a helicopter itself, played on a guitar, open the Rage version. Zach De La Rocha's interpretation of the refrain sounds equally haunting. Hard to believe, but Rage actually took The Boss to school on this one. - DJM
Red Hot Chili Peppers - "Love Rollercoaster"
The Ohio Players didn't scream "awww s---!" in the beginning of their version, so the Peppers took a few liberties with this one. Anthony Keidis singing in a falsetto declares the Peppers version the winner. Just think, if it weren't for Beavis and Butt-Head, the world would have never truly heard the phrase "your love is like a roller coaster I wanna ride" properly. - DJM
Smashing Pumpkins - "Landslide"
Pisces Iscariot, the Pumpkins' post-Siamese Dream B-side album, featured a quiet cover of Stevie Nicks' "Landslide," in which Billy Corgan strums and croons his way through the classic tune. Though not very experimental or amazingly adaptive, Corgan's version is interesting just for the novelty of it coming from of a whiney grunge-aholic. - CD
Patti Smith - "G.L.O.R.I.A."
Taking Van Morrison's folk attack, "Gloria," and mixing it with disgruntled, half-awake vocals and a dab of punk rock, Patti Smith made a jolty anthem for punks with neckties and anyone with dancing shoes. - CD
ZZ Top - "Viva Las Vegas"
Yes, Elvis' version kicks ass. But can you head-bang to the King? The answer is no. ZZ Top is the only one even cool enough to be allowed to touch a Presley song. - DJM
But how can you forget tools cover of no quarter by led zepplin, again very tough to choose