Top 10 Cover Songs That Are Better Than the Original

My made up criteria for this list:

1) The cover song is more well-known/memorable than the original,
2) The average music fan thinks that the cover is the original...if that makes sense,
3) The cover is "better" than the original (this is obviously completely subjective, but I'd say generally people would think that the cover is superior),
OR
4) The artist(s) who covers the song are more famous than the original artist(s).

and I guess that's all I can think of for now. Also, I obviously haven't heard EVERY cover song ever, so excuse me if I leave out some that you like. Either way, I feel like a did a good job of including some of the most famous ones. Without further ado and in NO particular order...

Jimi Hendrix-All Along the Watchtower



Hendrix's version of Bob Dylan's song is instantly more recognizable and is infinitely more impactful than the original. While Dylan's has the requisite folky, acoustic, barebones sound coupled with the singer's earthy, droning voice, Hendrix completely reinvents the song with his signature electric guitar solos and noticeable changes in the melody of the lyrics themselves. This is especially apparent when he sings, "Two riders were approaching, and the wind begin to howl," followed by rapid strumming that complements the chaotic tone of the song. Not to mention it's one of the defining songs in "Forrest Gump" during the Vietnam War scenes!

Here is the original version by Bob Dylan (all I could find was a Guitar Hero clip on YouTube...deal with it):


U2-Everlasting Love



U2's rendition strips away the funky bombast of the original by Carl Carlton (1974), down to a mere acoustic guitar and vocals. Perhaps the best way to judge a song is by how it ages or dates itself. In this case, U2 wins in a landslide. Their version (from 1987, and appearing on their Best of 1980-1990 B-Sides Collection), doesn't sound dated at all. In fact, I've heard it a few times on contemporary radio and if you didn't know who it was or when it was written, it sounds totally fresh. U2 are not known as a cover band and the handful of times they've actually tried others' songs, they're usually okay at best (See; Paint it Black, Fortunate Son, et. al). However, this tune (as well as Unchained Melody from the same collection, which, I must say, does a great job in reinventing the song like Hendrix did) excels and is an instant toe-tapper. lol.

Here's the original by Carlton:


U2-Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)



Hey, it's me, so why not another U2 song? In all honesty and resisting bias, this is a classic case of "better than the original" status. This was put on "A Very Special Christmas" compilation back in 1987 (hey, same time as Everlasting Love and Unchained Melody. Hmm...), which was a bunch of covers by popular artists of the time to benefit the special olympics. Needless to say, U2's song became the most well-known and is a staple on the radio during Christmastime. Once again, the original suffers from sounding extremely dated (although it does have that "old time" charm). To me, though, it just sounds to forced or something...it insists upon itself, as Peter Griffin would say. U2's version is more fun and "whimsical," which is especially apparent when Bono chuckles through almost an entire verse. I wonder what got him laughing in the studio during that one...


Here's the original by Darlene Love:

Jeff Buckley-Hallelujah



This is legit such an awesome cover, I don't even know how to review it. (P.S. Note how I've gone from snobby music reviewer in the first video to regular ol' fanboy in this. Whatever.) First of all, Leonard Cohen (the original performer) has to be given HUGE amounts of props for writing the song in the first place. He is truly one of the best lyricists ever and this song only exemplifies that. That being said, Jeff Buckley is miles ahead in his composition of the song. Cohen accompanied his rendition with a chorus of voices in the background during the "hallelujah" choruses, which to me made it almost too pompous for its own good. He also made the song go...so....slowly. That's only made worse by a single snare drum being hit once every few seconds. On the other hands, Buckley's stripped down version fits the content of the song perfectly. It's such an individual experience that is being "sung" about that the lone voice and simple guitar strings are all that it needs. Also, although I love Cohen's completely unique voice (It's DEEP as anything, if you've never heard him. In one of his songs, "Tower of Song," he sings: "I was born like this, I had no choice/ I was born with the gift of a golden voice"--the way he sings it is great.), Buckley adeptly goes from normal to falsetto, which complements the movement of the guitar as well. Overall, it's a heart-wrenching song that Buckley totally captures with his stripped down, painfully melodic rendition.

Here's the original by Leonard Cohen:


Israel Kamakawiwo'ole-Somewhere Over the Rainbow / What a Wonderful World



Yeah, I just went there. Okay, so it might not be more "well-known" than the original(s), but it gives them a breath of fresh air. First of all, Google this guy. He was a MASSIVE Hawaiian dude. Awesome. Anyway, he died a while back, and this was he one big hit (It was the big song in Meet Joe Black with Brad Pitt. Solid movie.). He blends these two classics seamlessly. Once again, his version is stripped down from the originals--just his voice and a ukelele. It's such a calming song and his singing and simple strumming really does evoke the message of the songs. Don't know what else to say, I just really like it.


PART TWO COMING SOON...