Mock Me Amadeus

Cover Songs...we know them...sometimes hate them...but often love them. If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then creating your own sonic tribute to your favorite song is something that artists have been doing for a long time. Some cover songs were done so well, in fact, that the original is forgotten. Here are my pick for TOP TEN COVER SONGS...

1. Jimi Hendrix, “All Along the Watchtower” (Bob Dylan)

2. Aretha Franklin, “Respect” (Otis Redding)

3. Israel Kamakawiwo'ole, "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" (Judy Garland)

4. Ike & Tina Turner, “Proud Mary” (Creedence Clearwater Revival)

5. Joe Cocker "With A Little Help From My Friends" (The Beatles)

6. Patti Smith, “Gloria” (Van Morrison and Them)

7. Two Tons of Steel, “I Want to Be Sedated” (Ramones)

8. Pixies, "Head On" (Jesus and Mary Chain)

9. The Gourds, “Gin and Juice” (Snoop Dogg)

10. Johnny Cash, “Hurt” (Nine Inch Nails)

Some other favorites that could have made the Top Ten are:

The Gipsy Kings, “Hotel California” (The Eagles)
Pet Shop Boys, "You Were Always On My Mind" (Elvis Presley)
Travis, “Hit Me Baby, One More Time” (Britney Spears)
Deodato "Also Sprach Zarathustra" (Richard Strauss)
Uncle Tupelo "Effigy" (Creedence Clearwater Revival)

Think about which ones you love or hate. There are some really bad ones out there...you know what they are, I don't have to tell you.

What is the thought process that goes into making a great COVER SONG, I wonder? Do some artists just love the song so much that they want to create a VERBATIM version, as true to the original as humanly possible. That rarely is effective, in my opinion. A striking exception to that is the album "Faithful" by Todd Rundren, in which he delivers dead-on perfect replicas of Beatles, Beach Boys, Hendrix songs, etc, and it is fantastic. Reworking a song is a very GREEN thing to do...Reuse...Recycle...and Reclaim the glory of the original. When an artist strives to create a NEW VERSION of someone else's work, it often raises the song into another stratum or higher energy level. U2 has done that many times for songs like "Everlasting Love" and "Helter Skelter".

Some songs are so good they can be COVERED by artists from other genres of music. Example: "Summertime Blues" (Eddie Cochran) which worked as a bombastic rock song by the Who and a twangy country song by Alan Jackson. Come to think of it, country artists did a down-home, yee-haw version of AC/DC's "You Shook Me All Night Long" that was a hoot, but was still quite unique and enjoyable.

What put me in the mood to blog about COVER SONGS today was the new version of Van Morrison's "Into the Mystic" by the Zac Brown Band on their "Live at Bonnaroo" EP. They nailed it perfectly. In fact, it is the absolute best version of "Into the Mystic" that I have heard anyone attempt other than Van himself. Listen to it today...hurry!