Rock ânâ roll has had shock value from the start. While few people still find Elvisâ shaking hips offensive, rock retains its reputation for breaking the rules of decency and acceptability again and again. Sometimes, rock has even parodied itself. As such, here are the top 10 strangest rock ânâ roll covers of all time.
10. Sinead OâConnor – Nothing Compares 2 U [Wikipedia]
In the age of shaved pop stars/negligent mothers, how many people still find Sinead OâConnor to have much of an edge anymore? Her music wasnât all too particularly angry despite how it seemed back when it was released, and her hair, or lack thereof, has taken on completely new meaning. But no matter how desensitized we become, there is little quite as gut-punishing as seeing a pop star cover a Prince standard and follow it by ripping up a picture of the Pope.
9. Mick Jagger & David Bowie – Dancing In The Street [Wikipedia]
The subject of considerable criticism since it was released in 1985, the Jagger-Bowie version of âDancing In The Streetâ was at least well intentioned. The duo wanted to perform the song for the Live Aid charity concert, however, since both men were not performing at the same location, this was determined to be impossible. So a studio version of the song was recorded and a video produced before the concerts. The video is more responsible for the criticism than the song itself, as both men completely shed their âcoolâ image in favor of Zuba Pants.
8. Chris Cornell – Billie Jean [Wikipedia]
When you take a singer whoâs most famous exploits are fronting metallic grunge band Soundgarden and teaming with the power trio from Rage Against The Machine, youâd expect nothing but heavy. However, the singer who wrote âBig Dumb Sexâ also covered Michael Jacksonâs âBillie Jean.â The song is stripped down from itâs original form, and is actually quite good. Cornell strips the song of much of itâs camp, and creates an aura of desperation with the vocal. How this could happen is a head scratcher for sure.
7. The Sex Pistols – Substitute [Wikipedia]
The Who was one of the Pistols chief influences, however, to hear Johnny Rotten tear through one of Pete Townshendâs songs is something of both amazement and terror. Perhaps nobody taught Rotten how to be subtle, but then again, that was Rottenâs main appeal. The rest of the band just thrashes away at the chords in a manner that truly defines the word âpunk.â
6. Johnny Cash – Hurt [Wikipedia]
Itâs rare that you see a country star that started his career in the fifties cover a track by an industrial rock band in the 2000s, but that was just the case with the venerable Johnny Cash. Cash kept the arrangement of the song the same, only replacing a curse word with thorns. However, the song is strange because no one saw it coming. Stranger still, Cashâs version is now more popular than the Nine Inch Nails original, much to the displeasure of Nine Inch Nailâs leader Trent Reznor.
5. Mike Flowers Pops – Wonderwall [Wikipedia]
Few things are as reprehensible as the Mike Flowers Pops cover of Oasisâ super hit, âWonderwall.â Everything that gave the original song itâs charm, itâs cozy chord progression, itâs subdued vocal, has been completely removed in favor of Mike Flowers signature kitsch lounge-pop. Whatâs really astonishing about the cover is not just the ridiculousness of the sound, but the fact it performed just as well as the original on the charts.
4. Pearl Jam – Last Kiss [Wikipedia]
The grunge revolution had long subsided by 1998, when Pearl Jam released their most famous cover as nothing more than a Christmas fan club single. The song blew up, and soon was made available to the general public. It seems ridiculous when you think about it that a band made famous by classic songs âEven Flow,â âAlive,â âJeremy,â âSpin The Black Circle,â and âWorld Wide Suicideâ have had a #2 hit on the Billboard charts with a sung as mellow as âLast Kiss.â Eddie Vedder tries his best to make the song hard with his wailing near the end of the song, but the song is still more mellow than anything else the band has ever released.
3. Guns Nâ Roses – Knockinâ On Heavenâs Door [Wikipedia]
Guns Nâ Roses are hated for many reasons, but many critics wonât forgive them for their rendition of âKnockinâ On Heavenâs Door.â The band delivers it without any of the subtlety of Dylanâs original (or any of the other famous covers) and actually turns it into a borderline threat. âKnockinââ was one of the covers on the Use Your Illusion albums after âLive And Let Live.â All of this is likely lost on Axl who took this idea to the extreme, a Guns Nâ Roses trademark, by releasing an album full of covers of classic songs just a few years later.
2. The White Stripes – Jolene [Wikipedia]
White Stripesâ frontman Jack White is a unique breed. He loves his early blues just as much as he loves neo-pop and country. His band famously incorporates all of these influences and more into their sound, with absolutely mesmerizing results. None have been more mesmerizing than their cover of Dolly Partonâs âJolene,â a b-side on the âHello Operatorâ single. Like the Raincoats cover of âLola,â Jack White doesnât change the lyrics to reflect the gender difference between him and the original singer. Thereâs few things as funny as Jack White singing, âIâm begginâ of you, please donât take my man!â with a straight face. Another version of this cover is available on Under Blackpool Lights DVD, which features White doing his best Robert Plant impression.
1. The Raincoats – Lola [Wikipedia]
âLola,â already one of the strangest songs in rockâs musical cannon (the song is about a man picking up another man who is dressed as a girl) was made even stranger when covered in 1979 by seminal grunge influencers the Raincoatsâ debut album. The songâs arrangement is giving a new personality with the minimalist approach of the band. While the original song was sung by a man (Ray Davies), Raincoats singer Ana da Silva decides not to change the words to reflect her gender. A great and certainly weird choice.
Contributor: Jason Hirschhorn
Technorati Tags: music, rock and roll
Johnny Cash – Hurt: What Crap!!! And I’ll have words with anyone who thinks other wise. There is a reason I have the Title tattooed on my chest. “I wear this crown of thorns.” Wait, Wait, Did he just compare himself TO JESUS??? Hello, Pagan. And I think that was egotistical and crude. Don’t ever compare yourself to a Devine Being that only undermines what Faith is. Jonny you were great, but not that great. Grew up with you man. but I stopped listening to you after that. God may forgive all, no one said I have too.
Then you’ll have words with me, pardner. Get a clue. Johnny Cash was one of the most spiritual people in the entertainment business. He was friends with Billy Graham, for cryin’ out loud! And by the way, speaking of egotistical – God can forgive, but you don’t have to? OK, buddy. By the way, I’m an atheist – not defending Johnny based on faith at all. That was just one of the most idiotic comments I’ve ever seen.
While I agree with CASH that this isn’t something worthy of attention, I’d like to point out he was just exchanging “*****” for “thorns,” probably just because he didn’t want to say the former and the latter is a recognized item. And who says he’s singing from first person? Perhaps for him he’s singing from the perspective of Jesus, although I’m not claiming this, merely suggesting it.
That Jesus *****ogy, I had never thought of that but that is quite an interesting view.
Gee – come on guys – let’s all be friends
What would Jesus do? (that was a joke incidentally – I despise that phrase).
Sorry, I just get a little cheesed off when people diss Johnny
for a while i thought that NIN covered Cash’s song…weird…but very good
CASH: that’s okay
Monteze: I just could not imagine that at all!
“Stranger still, Cashâs version is now more popular than the Nine Inch Nails original, much to the displeasure of Nine Inch Nailâs leader Trent Reznor.”
This statement is false, absolutely based on nothing. In actuality, Trent Reznor has stated in numerous interviews that loves the version of hurt performed by Cash.
c’mon dude. get yr facts straight.
That’s not what I’ve heard from him. I saw NIN live in 2006 and he made his displeasure known.
From wikipedia:
In an interview with Alternative Press, Reznor admitted that when Rubin first asked if Cash could cover his song, he was “flattered” but worried that “the idea sounded a bit gimmicky.” The power of Cash’s cover didn’t fully hit Reznor until he saw the video:
“I pop the video in, and wow… Tears welling, silence, goose-bumps… Wow. I just lost my girlfriend, because that song isn’t mine anymore… It really made me think about how powerful music is as a medium and art form. I wrote some words and music in my bedroom as a way of staying sane, about a bleak and desperate place I was in, totally isolated and alone. [Somehow] that winds up reinterpreted by a music legend from a radically different era/genre and still retains sincerity and meaningâdifferent, but every bit as pure.”
Reznor still occasionally refers to “Hurt” as “a song that isn’t mine anymore.”
From mtv.com’s obituary on Cash:
Cash garnered acclaim most recently from a new generation of music fans thanks to his cover of Nine Inch Nails’ “Hurt,” which appears on his latest album, American IV: The Man Comes Around.
“To hear that Johnny was interested in doing my song was a defining moment in my life’s work,” said NIN’s Trent Reznor. “To hear the result really reminded me how beautiful, touching and powerful music can be…”
yup, he sounds really displeased.
Well then we’ll just have to agree to disagree. Mind you, how he felt when the cover first came out isn’t necessarily how he feels now. Trent Reznor is notorious for turning his back on people (just ask Marilyn Manson).
Actually Manson was acting like a spoiled little jackazz…and they BOTH had a falling out. It doesn’t mean one or the other was “turning their back”. Man some people need to get the facts straight before they comment.
The debate aside as to whether the orignator liked or disliked the cover, especially since I haven’t a clue who you people are talking about, whenever I hear Cash’s version of ‘Hurt’ it makes me shiver.
His voice alone – broken and shaky compared to his younger days – is enough to make anyone cry, and when combined with the sheer agony of the words…amazing.
Wearshades: I doubt that Jesus was addicted to heroin. And Marilyn isn’t any better.
Cash: I grew up in the south. Jonny comes on and I don’t stop singing, to imply that I don’t understand him proves one thing. You don’t know me. The one thing I dreamed of when I was into That scene was seing Cash in Concert. I still wish he were around, I’d gladly pay for a fairwell tour. And I was far from dissing Him, I spoke my mind about A song that he didn’t even write. Jonny said worse than that in his time. That was nowhere near a diss.
crimanon:”Jonny you were great, but not that great. Grew up with you man. but I stopped listening to you after that.”
thats pretty much as much of a dis as can be made. no one ever said the “crown of thorns” is about Jesus, the fact that you think that is your own interpretation of the song. everyone has their own so just cause you hear that and think it having somthing to do with jesus doesnt mean that i do. personally i feel he may have interpreted as the hurt you feel when someone gos away and it hurts, everywhere including your hed, and whats worse than that, a crown of throns on your head. it’s exactly what you said, a song he didnt even write, so just because he changed one word with another doesnt change the meaning…the meaning is the same, pain hurts. oh and i didnt grow up in the south and have no relatives from the south yet i still grew up listening to him, elvis, jerry lee lewis, and did i mention im only 21. so where you live doesnt change the fact tat johnny cash was a legend and an amazing musician with a big heart. he was great and there a millions of people in the world that listen to his songs and feel a connection to him by listening to his songs, so dont diss one, because even if it is a cover, it’s still a part of him and a part of his fans
Sid Vicious’ cover of Sinatra’s “My Way” is hands down the strangest.
The covers to Adam Agains “Dig” and Daniel Amos’s “Vox Humana” are stranger covers then half of this list.
“Vox Humana” was a part of DA’s “The Alarma Chronicles” and features such songs as “Travelog”, “Dance Stop!” (an anti nuke punk song that gets stuck in my head and I love it) “Its the 80′s Now Wheres My Rocket Pack” and the ballid “William Blake” which can only be described a love song to the poet
The greatest cover of any song EVAR is Hurra Torpedo’s version of “Total Eclipse of The Heart.” It destroys Johnny Cash’s ***** and mows over Guns and Roses.
***** them.
***** them both.
Hurra Torpedo RAWKS.
Here’s a link, see for yourself:
http://blogs.newamericamedia.org/kitchen-sink/211/total-eclipse-of-the-heart
(From the wikipedia:
The band struck international fame when a television performance of the 1983 Bonnie Tyler power ballad âTotal Eclipse of the Heartâ, using kitchen appliances for percussion, spread as an internet meme. The clip, from a Norwegian Saturday Night Live type show called Lille lørdag (âLittle Saturdayâ), was filmed in 1995.
In the clip, the band, dressed in ill-fitting jogging suits, play on a stage surrounded by various kitchen appliances. Frontman Hegerberg plays guitar and sings in an off-key monotone, Schau âdrumsâ by hitting a stove with a stick and slamming the door of a freezer, while Guttormsgaard adds backing vocals, and at the climax smashes the top of an electrical stove with a large piece of metal on the beat of the song.)
GENIUS.
Not sure if you’ll agree, but I find this to be strange. The band “Guns N Roses” covered a song written by Charles Manson on the album “The spaghetti incident”. The name of the song is “Look at your game girl” you can have a listen here
An excellent example of a strange cover-version is Devo’s take on the Rolling Stones’ “Satisfaction”.
i don’t know if you can call nothing compares to you a cover. at the time prince had never released that song & i think he just sold it to her to record, kind of like manic monday (although people say he gave manic monday to the bangles because he wanted to sleep with suzanna hoffs) also she tore the popes pic up after doing a cover of bob marley’s war
Why is it that people like to give credit for Hurt to Cash? Why is it that people who think they know about quality contemporary music did not know that Hurt was written by Trent Reznor? Is it because Cash is more mainstreamed than Reznor? Or is it because Cash covered the song in the twilight of his career that people think itâs just a better version of the original. I dislike the fact that he changes a few of the lyrics of the song. What truly annoys me is when I have to try to prove to idiots out there that Cash did not write Hurt and in order to prove it, go grab on of my many copies of The Downward Spiral just to prove it to the knuckle draggers. Lets give credit to mind that created the song folks.
Or you can just let it go man. I knew people who said that John Lennon redid a song by A Perfect Circle (when they re-did Imagine). The Trent\Cash thing was more understandable if a person has never heard of Nine Inch Nails (by the way he did give credit to NIN in his album. I have both albums), but the Lennon APC one…good lord. I knew there was a time to fight (or set the record straight) but the moronic comment was too much to even justify a response. So I let it go. It is not gonna hurt me if someone is that dumb. Best to let the Darwin award winners go peacefully and meet their dumbs fates.
Sorry, Reznor is actually quite proud of the Cash cover. The author fails.
#
22. just.xTc – September 19th, 2007 at 1:18 pm
Sorry, Reznor is actually quite proud of the Cash cover. The author fails.
__________
Agreed. See link for more info:
Pheonix: That’s what I’ve been trying to say!!! Nothing is better than the original.
Sorry, but you missed the strangest cover of all time, which is Tori Amos doing a cover of Raining Blood by Slayer.
Here’s Tori’s version
and here’s the original
Apparently Slayer liked the new version.
You missed the strangest cover of all time, Tori Amos’s cover of Raining Blood by Slayer.
Here’s Tori’s version
And the original
Joe’s right “my way” by sid vicious is one of the strangests covers and one of the best
maby some of THE TOYDOLLS covers?
people, Cash was one of the greatest music players ever! So what about the ONE line about him being like jesus? its a song!
I have to agree with Sid Vicious covering “My Way.” That is one of the most bizarre things I have heard.
It doesn’t matter, but I’m a music nerd so I have to say it. I guess I’m just crazy, but it seems like it’s saying that nine inch nails is a band descendant of this decade when in actuality they started in the late 80′s. I’m sure I just read it wrong, but still.
Strange unlikely or strange bizarre? In a way, Cash’s covering Nine Inch Nails (and which composer wouldn’t be proud if it became ‘the’ version?) was in keeping with him covering Dylan or Kris Kristofferson back in the day. Agreed, it was kind of an unlikely pairing, but more importantly a wholly successful reinterpretation. Otherwise, how about:
1) The Residents – Hey Jude/Sympathy For The Devil (Beatles/Rolling Stones; ‘Third Reich’n'Roll’ album)
2) Age Of Chance – Kiss (Prince)
3) John Cale – Heartbreak Hotel (Elvis)
4) Ciccone Youth (basically Sonic Youth plus Minutemen) – Into The Groove (Madonna)
5) Brian Eno – The Lion Sleeps Tonight (Tokens)
6) Nico – The End (Either live or studio versions; The Doors)
7) Buzzcocks – I Love You, You Big Dummy (‘Time’s Up’ CD; Captain Beefheart)
8) Suicide – 96 Tears (? And The Mysterians)
9) Tricky – Black Steel (Public Enemy)
10) Troggs – Good Vibrations (Beach Boys)
As far as “Hurt” goes, I don’t have a favorite. They’re like two different songs to me. Sometimes I would like to hear the original, other times the Cash version. (but I agree with PhoenixAmazon about the lyric changes)
If I would (karaoke) sing “Hurt” I would sound more like Cash than Reznor. Well actually, it would be “Hurt” as sung by a guy who sounds a little like Gordon Lightfoot.
The winner – by a mile – has to be Pat Boone’s bizarre 1997 album titled : In A Metal Mood : No More Mr Nice Guy.
The ultra-conservative christian performer treats the listener to covers of such tunes as :
Smoke On The Water;
Panama;
Enter Sandman;
Paradise City;
Crazy Train; and
Stairway To Heaven.
…take your pick
Even the cover of the cd is a hoot.
You can check it out here :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_a_Metal_Mood:_No_More_Mr._Nice_Guy
Travis covered “Hit Me Baby One More Time.” That is about as weird as it gets.
Crimanon : If the god of the bible is a divine being, then I’m glad to be a simeon ape-creature. I wouldn’t compare myself to the thing called god, because the thing called god is as nothing to me. Beyond that, this is an AWESOME song, and the cash cover is so haunting. But look on the bright side, I think wam is doing a reunion tour, soyou and your boyfriend can go on tour.
What about the Tori Amos cover of Nirvana’s “Smells like teen spirit.” That is pretty bizarre (and awesome.)
did someone say ‘strangest’?
http://youtube.com/watch?v=OEswnMQRsYU
Substitute is really not a strange cover for a 70s punk band when you consider how much of an influence The Who had on earlier punk. Besides the obvious influences everyone throws out of The Stooges and MC5, there’s a lot of Who, Stones and Berry.
Some mention should be made that the song “Last Kiss” was not an original Pearl Jam song, but was done originally by J. Frank Wilson and the Cavaliers, in…I believe the early 60′s. I prefer the original, but to each his own.
I think Children of Bodom’s cover of a Britney Spears song (Oops! I did it Again) deserves to be on this list.
Hurt and Jolene are amazing covers.
I had never seen the wonderwall one before, and I was laughing my ass off.
Was that for real?
Another strange ***** pistols cover is their version of Van Morrisons “Brown eyed girl”
Absolute class! lol
I like both versions of Hurt, but Cash’s just touches my soul deeper. When he sings it, you can feel the meaning of the words and it touches the heart. I don’t know why I feel that way, but just as a listener of music in general, the ones I can relate to are the ones I enjoy more. That just happens to be Cash’s version.
When it comes to strange covers, I think A Perfect Circle’s “Emotive” album is full of them. They cover people from Marvin Gaye to Lennon to Depeche Mode. Interesting to me, but still strange nonetheless.
I’ll tell you how far out of it I am. I thought this was going to be a list on the covers of the actual cds. And you’re right, kiwiboi #33 that is a bizarre cover.
Butthole Surfers – American Woman
How about Butthole Surfers’ acid-era rendition of American Woman?
Don’t know if it quite fits the list, but
hearing Pee Wee Herman sing “Surfin’ Bird”
was easily one of the most bizarre moments
in my life.
Re. No.5: I can’t help thinking the author of this article is rather missing the point where Mike Flowers’ cover of ‘Wonderwall’ is concerned. The artist had his tongue firmly in his cheek when he made this, so there’s really no sense in making comparisons to the original.
Fail. Nothing strange strange about them. Strange = Manson covers
Charlie Daniel did a country version of Layla that took a while to grow on me.
Guns n roses are awesome. This list sucks. And its “Live and Let Die.”
No Type O Negative? They have several covers that are AWESOME!
I love all the suggestions for bands that no one has ever heard of =D
Peter Frampton covering Chris Cornell’s “Black Hole Sun” is something to be heard! According to Frampton (I was at a concert when he sang it) Cornell didn’t want him to sing the lyrics so it’s completely acoustic besides the voice modulator on the chorus at the end of the song.
back to “Hurt”…the “crown of thorns” is a SYMBOL, people, he’s not saying he’s Jesus…get a clue!
Crown of thorns is symbolic. It is wearing your pain, your hurt for all to see, like a crown. You are defined by that pain, it becomes your crown and part of you. Why do people assume ***** is always religious. :/
skydog: What would you say it's symbolic of then?
Pain, you idiot.
it’s not strange that the white stripes covered dolly’s biggest hit, we already know that jack is a big country fan (van lear rose?)
how about dolly parton covering stairway though?
http://www.last.fm/music/Dolly+Parton/_/Stairway+to+heaven
crimanon (57):
my best guess is that the “crown of thorns” is a symbol for the pain and suffering (physical and/or mental) that he and those around him endured during his addiction. no intention to take sides, of course (seeing as i don’t much care for either version of the song). it’s merely my interpretation of the lyrics itself (:
A lot of these picks really aren't that strange at all. I would have concentrated on things like Pat Boone's heavy metal cover album, William Shatner doing "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds", virtually anything by Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, Paul Anka singing "Smells Like Teen Spirit", and Dolly Parton doing "Stairway to Heaven" … now those are some strange cover songs.