Some Covers Are Better Than Others

Sure, these are rather subjective lists as one can't remember/know all the covers out there. Also, none include 'Hallelujah'. Enough is enough.

Some covers that should’ve never been done

1. Placebo – Five Years (David Bowie)

It’s just one pile of ‘no’. Molko’s voice is too high, it sounds like a one year-old is playing some random chords on an acoustic guitar . And there seems to be no feeling put into this song.

2. Adele – Last Night (The Strokes)

Remember why everyone loved The Strokes? Well, Adele takes it all away. That ‘I-don’t-give-a-damn’ vibe is gone. It’s like her piano and her soft voice took all the edge of the song away.

3. Leona Lewis – Run (Snow Patrol)

Really, why? Just…Why? It used to be one of Snow Patrol’s good songs. A good pop song. Now it’s a cheesy pop ballad.

4. Scarlet Johansson’s entire album.

So, you really hate Tom Waits, don’t you, Scarlet ?

5. Nouvelle Vague – God Save The Queen (Sex Pistols)

They do to this song what Adele does to ‘Last Night’: take away all the anger, edge…well, everything that essentially made it the anthem of a generation.

Some covers that would make the original artist proud

1. Placebo – Running Up That Hill (Kate Bush)

The original is a good piece of art. Placebo took the song, stripped it of any (unnecessary) artsy elements and enhanced the dreamy state of this song via keyboards. The (almost) simple instrumental makes the lyrics more poignant and the end result is bound to make your eyes tear at least a bit (that is, if you have any soul). The live version also leaves a hole in your stomach.

2. Manic Street Preachers – Vision Blured (The Horrors)

Sure, we don’t know the original, but who cares? This is no longer just a cover. It’s a kick in the head. It actually feels like this rendition is a song originally written for The Holy Bible. It’s like Killing Joke decided to cover The Shangri-Las. And, besides the dirty sound, Manics also helped everyone remember how catchy Faris Badwan’s lyrics actually are.

3. LCD Soundsystem/The Horrors – No Love Lost (Joy Division)

Joy Division’s song is somewhere between two worlds. On one hand, it’s a dark wave wonder. On the other, the chorus (especially the ‘I need it’ part) makes it a true anthem. Like many artists who cover Joy Division , LCD and The Horrors work on one element of the song (the one closer to their musical personas). James Murphy takes the idea of ‘anthem’ and turns it into a massive electro one. The song also does what Murphy's back catalogue has done before: it conveys a bittersweet feel that makes the song infectious. The Horrors take ‘No Love Lost’ deeper into the ‘darkness’: Faris Badwan’s deep voice, the distortion, everything enhances the edge of the original.

4. The Enemy – Hung Up (Madonna)

Sure, The Enemy are just another indie-by-numbers band. But, God, did they do a number with this cover. It’s acoustic and it has this big pounding heart. It makes even a Madonna hater sing along. Hats off to the guys for this.

5. The Black Keys – Have Love Will Travel (The Sonics)

There’s not much to say about this. It’s basically what The Black Keys do: a mix of garage punk and blues. But it’s so good, there is so much heart here, you actually forget this is a mere cover and not one of their own songs.

Worth mentioning:

Nicky Wire – Everything Fades’ ending

‘Everything Fades’ is the last track off Wire’s solo effort ‘I Killed The Zeitgeist’. Like the rest of the album, it’s a bittersweet, endearing, honest indie song. But what makes it all too hard to bear is the last minute or so of the song when Wire veers into a short Madonna moment. He doesn’t go further then ‘Like a prayer, I can hear you calling’, but his tone deaf drone voice, the electric acoustic guitar and, most important, the moment you realise how heartfelt that line can be (and that Madonna can be, at times, a brilliant lyricist) make one of the best moments in music history.