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| "Hey Joe" has been covered numerous times |
This is ok.
And, actually, when you think about this in comparison to movie remakes, it's not very often that someone is going to like both the original movie and the remake. However, I find myself liking both the original and the cover of a song a lot of the time. For instance, if you made me choose between the original or Jeff Beck's cover of "Over the Rainbow" I wouldn't be able to make a choice. Why should I anyways? It's okay to like both equally.
Below, I talk about some of the few songs that I think that the cover was done better than the original. It doesn't mean that I don't like the original song. In fact, I find myself listening to both and liking both. I think that a lot of times, certain covers can appeal to us more because of our own musical preferences as far as genres, sounds, etc.
I Fought the Law by The Clash: Originally done by The Crickets
I think a lot of people prefer The Clash's version of this song to Bobby Fuller's version (which, to my surprise, found out just now that it is NOT the original). Of course, the two versions are drastically different. Bobby Fuller's is very stripped down old school 60s rock and roll whereas The Clash's version is old school punk. In my opinion, the late 70s punk sound suits the lyrical content of the song better than Fuller's. But, it's also pretty obvious that I prefer old school punk to a lot of other genres. I'm sure that there are a lot of people out there that prefer the Bobby Fuller version instead.
The original version of "I Fought the Law" was written by Sonny Curtis of The Crickets. It sounds a lot like the Bobby Fuller cover but slightly faster. I would give it a listen. It's good.
Also, The Dead Kennedy's version is an interesting take on the classic as well.
Oh, and I just remembered that Green Day did a tribute to The Clash's version of the song.
But The Clash's version is, without a doubt, my favorite version of this song.
Hey Joe by Jimi Hendrix: Originally done by many
The song "Hey Joe" has been done by a ton of artists. So many, in fact, that no one is entirely sure who originally wrote the song. I suppose I will talk about the two versions of the song that I know the best. I know Deep Purple's discography inside and out so I know that they did a "Hey Joe" cover in their early years (what I like to call the 'extra-psychedelic days'). It's pretty good. If you like The Doors, you'll probably like Deep Purple's cover of "Hey Joe".
I think I'll always like Jimi Hendrix's version the best though. It's very stripped down and blues based. I will always think of the song "Hey Joe" as best suited in that kind of style. Deep Purple's version just gets too grandiose to truly portray what I think the song is lyrically trying to say. However, I find myself listening to Deep Purple's version every now and then as an interesting alternative to most other versions.
Who do you Love? by Juicy Lucy: Originally done by Bo Diddly
Bo Diddly's version is very classic rock n' roll sounding. It's pretty awesome actually. But I also like George Thorogood a lot and I love the gritty performance he gives in his version. He really just puts the bad-ass vibe in the song that I love.
For a long time, George Thorogood's version was my favorite version of the song. But then, I discovered the Juicy Lucy version of the song being used as the main menu music for the video game Shellshock: Nam '67. I'll be honest, this version just kicks the ass out of any other version I've heard. It freaking rocks! You need to check out this poorly lip-synced video. Right now.
Shadowplay by the Killers: Originally done by Joy Division
Here's another case where I really like both versions. Joy Division is a pretty brilliant band that were composing pioneers for their time. The original version is very dark and a bit mysterious sounding. Both versions have interesting guitar and yet, both versions are very different from each other as far as the guitar's role in the song. In the original, the guitar is very avant garde. It plays basic rock riffs sometimes but then goes into these short solos that perfectly add to the mysterious mood of the song. The Killers' version remains mysterious and pop whenever it comes in. I really like this approach better as we don't have this two-faced kind of guitar happening that switches moods constantly. I also like the build up to and the solo section at the end of The Killer's version. I think that this is a nice touch to an already fantastic cover. Of course, The Killers being The Killers added synth to the song which Joy Division didn't originally have..
A great cover done by a great band of a great song written by a great band. If you haven't checked out more of Joy Division's stuff, I really encourage you to do so.
You Really Got Me Now by Van Halen: Originally done by The Kinks
I suppose that this one has kind of been an age old debate. Is the stripped-down, raw, original better or is Van Halen's voiced-up, high gain and distortion version better? Well, I'm a sucker for high gain and distortion. Also, Eddie adds some nice guitar licks in the cover.
Close Calls:
Astro Zombies by My Chemical Romance: Originally done by The Misfits
I would be lying if I said I was a Misfits fan. I think my neutrality on the Misfits is more due to not listening to much of their music than just not caring. Thus far in my life, I've been too consumed with other punk bands to explore the Misfits more thoroughly yet. Don't worry, I'll get there.
Considering that My Chemical Romance is my favorite band, I'm going to be really inclined to enjoy the cover over the original. I think that both versions are really good but I prefer the more polished sound of My Chemical Romance on this particular song. If this was a darker song, I might prefer The Misfits. However, the song clearly has a brighter mood than a lot of other Misfits songs. Brighter songs, in general, I prefer the more polished, hi-fi, guitars than the dirty low end ones.
Pretty close call but a job well done by MCR on this cover.
You and I by Jimmy Eat World: Originally done by Wilco
First of all, these two versions sound almost exactly the same in most aspects. Probably the main difference is that the original has drums after the first verse. The Jimmy Eat World cover's guitar sounds slightly more full to me. It's particularly noticeable in the intro. The outros of the two versions are different but I can't really say that one is better than the other. And... the differences between the two end there. They're both beautifully performed. They both have the same male/female duet going on. The instrumentation is about the same (with the exception of drums which don't do a whole lot in this song anyways). I do like the sound of Jimmy Eat World's guitar more which is the deciding factor for me. Now all we're waiting for is to get these two bands together on a stage to perform the song together. Now THAT would be awesome!
Over the Rainbow by Jeff Beck: Originally by Judy Garland
Like I said, why should I choose one?
Well, I do love Jeff Beck's guitar playing; especially in this cover. So, I guess if I had to pick one, I would have to grudgingly decide on the cover.
The Original Version
Jeff Beck's Version
Though some guy playing the ukulele named Israel "IZ" Kamakawiwo'ole (yes, I copied and pasted that in) does a very good cover as well.
But I suppose on that note, I do make my point about covers. In general, we like covers. Does it matter if we like the cover more than the original version? You bet your ass it doesn't! If we like a song a lot, sometimes instead of listening to the original over and over, we like hearing a different spin on it, even if we like the original most. Hell man, I'll listen to all of the versions of "I Fought the Law" since all of the versions are fun to listen to.
On the other hand, what I did learn by going through all those YouTube videos for this post is that people can be very intolerant of covers. On one of the "Shadowplay" videos (I can't remember which one), someone commented that whoever thought that The Killer's cover was better than the original should die.
Sheesh. I don't really see the big deal. I think some people don't understand the complexities of musical preference. How people enjoy different sounds, different kinds of rhythms, different tonal harmonies, different keys and time signatures, etc. There's no such thing as "good" and "bad" music. There's just music that we like and music that we don't like; music that more people like and music that less people like. It's like there's some kind of human nature that says we need to lash out at things that we don't understand.
I'm even guilty of doing this every now and then. A good example is that my best friend really likes the main menu music in the N64 game Re-Volt. Quite frankly, not only do I think it's a lousy game, but the music also makes my ears bleed. But you know what, I'm not the only one who hates it and, more importantly, my friend is not the only one who likes it either. Music is like finding the right university to attend. You need to find what suits you best, but it doesn't mean that the other universities out there are all terrible. It also doesn't mean that you can't visit the other universities every now and then either. Or, maybe you'll decide to visit a new university every fifteen minutes. Who knows?
Sorry about that sidetrack, but it drives me nuts to see such near-sighted commentary on YouTube. But I guess that's why I installed a plugin on my last computer that stopped my browser from wasting its time with loading the YouTube comments.
But, in all relevance, I truly enjoy covers. There are many covers that I enjoy that I did not include in this post. These are just the ones I happened to enjoy more than the original, even if it was only by the slightest.
Also, I know I haven't written on here in awhile. I haven't really had much time to write lately as my free time has been relatively limited this winter break. When my next semester starts, I will have more time to write these posts I've been dying to write.
Until then.
Hey Joe Image: http://johannasvisions.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Jimi_Hendrix_Hey_Joe_1.jpg
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