Subscribe to Listverse
Cover songs are often used by bands that may not have the talent to produce their own material – or by bands wanting to get a start with music familiar to the listeners. But occasionally a cover band comes along that produces some amazing covers that are extremely unique. This list will hopefully introduce you to some bands you may not be familiar with or at least bring back some nice memories.
If the Ramones had been from Sweden, they might have vandalized Abba’s rehearsal studio, stolen all of their songs and cranked out a little something like this…
Formed in 1995 Me First and the Gimme Gimmes specializes in punk covers of 60’s and 70’s light rock and folk tunes. They also like to dress in costumes to match the theme of the music at each show.
A French band that does bossa-nova style covers of New Wave songs. The various female singers performing with the group only play songs they have not heard so each will have an original quality about it. [JFrater: This is one of my all time favorite bands and I couldn't recommend their music enough!]
A German band which does Gregorian chants of popular songs, often covering songs that have religiously-themed lyrics.
The lounge act all of our favorite rock and metal stars will be doing someday in Vegas. Available now for your listening (dis)pleasure.
Ever wonder what Black Sabbath would sound like if they had formed during the 14th century? Well, Rondellus wondered exactly that, and the result was “Sabbatum”, a tribute album that offers an new (old) take on many of Sabbath’s classic tunes. Unfortunately there are no youtube clips for the band, but you can hear some music at their myspace page.
An artist that has more original materials than cover songs, but his 1997 album “In a Metal Mood: No More Mr. Nice Guy” must be included here for it’s campy take on several hard rock and heavy metal classics.
Not strictly a cover band, Canadian alt-country band Luther Wright and the Wrongs are most widely known for their country-bluegrass remake of the Pink Floyd epic “The Wall” in 2001 titled “Rebuild the Wall”. Their take on “The Wall” is very difficult to find online, so there is a different song above – a cover of a Cash song.
Originally started as a bluegrass AC/DC cover band in 2001, Hayseed Dixie has branched out to cover many other bands and styles.
Tortelvis & Co. mix up reggae-flavored Zeppelin covers with a flair only the King (or a good impersonator) could pull off. Led Zeppelin vocalist Robert Plant has said that Dread Zeppelin is his favorite Led Zeppelin cover band.
Contributor: BishopWhitet
December 13th, 2008 at 2:51 am
Very Entertaining.
December 13th, 2008 at 2:53 am
Awesome
December 13th, 2008 at 2:54 am
Nice list, my favourite cover band is an AC/DC tribute band from British Columbia called AC/BC.Enjoy your site a lot….Happy Holidays from Victoria b.c!
December 13th, 2008 at 3:00 am
No Beatallica?
December 13th, 2008 at 3:30 am
#s 9 and 6 are like opposites of each other
December 13th, 2008 at 3:45 am
can’t believe the gimmie gimmies were only nine! totally awesome band
December 13th, 2008 at 3:46 am
Nice, happy to find Hayseed Dixies, but what happend to Weird Al Yankovic? He’s been around for a while …
December 13th, 2008 at 4:43 am
What about Lezzeppelin ? The lesbian zeppelin coverband
December 13th, 2008 at 5:46 am
Sorry, all of these cheesy lounge acts make me want to yawn out loud. I went to see a band named “Buddhist Priest” last year. You can doubtless guess who they sought to emulate, but wow, they were torturous. There should be some kind of law limiting cover bands to weddings and bar-mitzvahs.
December 13th, 2008 at 6:30 am
I love a good cover band, especially when they don’t try to emulate the sound of the original. I’m sure that there are thousands of songs, which go on to become classics, that are covers, and no one would ever know.
December 13th, 2008 at 6:36 am
Cool list. I quite like the Eazy Star All-stars. They’ve done reggae/ska versions of Dark Side of the Moon “Dub Side of the Moon” and Radiohead’s OK Computer “Radiodread”. Brilliant!
December 13th, 2008 at 6:42 am
Apocalyptica is pretty sweet if you like Metallica done with cellos. Some of their songs sound like they could have been written back in the days of Mozart.
December 13th, 2008 at 7:21 am
how on earth was weird al not on this list?
December 13th, 2008 at 7:49 am
ummmm weird al, anyone????
December 13th, 2008 at 8:24 am
I actually own some Hayseed Dixie. They’re popular among our faculty.
What a fun list for a Saturday morning.
December 13th, 2008 at 8:25 am
Weird Al Yankovic is not a “cover band”. He’s a parody singer, and he happens to do a polka once in a while consisting of many cover songs (so his polkas could be considered “cover medleys”), but most of his work is song parodies, not covers.
December 13th, 2008 at 8:29 am
I think Fantômas would deserve a honorable mention with their “Directors Cut” album that is avant-garde metal versions of famous movie scores(like Rosemary’s Baby and The Godfather). The best thing is that it has more than curiosity value, it is actually a damn fine album.
December 13th, 2008 at 8:29 am
Hayseed Dixie is great !!! Truly original…
December 13th, 2008 at 8:30 am
What I really came here to say is that I’ve heard all of Richard Cheese’s songs, and they’re HI-LARIOUS! He takes some of the most aggressive rock songs and mellows them down, and the result is lol-inducing. I highly recommend it!
Oh and cool list!
December 13th, 2008 at 8:39 am
The Fingers are pretty good too, and Rasputina has also done a few good covers, I would recomment them too ^_^ The Fingers do jazzy covers and Rasputina errm… is a bit darker and play a cello
I love Richard Cheese! haha
December 13th, 2008 at 8:45 am
As I was reading this list I was mentally composing my complaint about how could you possibly forget Dread Zeppelin, and then I saw them at number 1. Great choice and thank you for a cool list.
December 13th, 2008 at 9:32 am
“Original Coverband” Kind of an oxy-moron isn’t it?
December 13th, 2008 at 9:34 am
Can’t like them all, to be honest
but we get it, you don’t like the list, no one cares
I liked it
December 13th, 2008 at 9:45 am
I nominate John Pizzarelli “Meets the Beatles.” Although not a cover band, this album of Beatles covers is fantastic.
December 13th, 2008 at 9:46 am
the only band i know on this list is Nouvelle Vague, which is one of my favorite bands. their covers are amazing. nice to see them on the list.
December 13th, 2008 at 9:53 am
What about mini kiss.The whole band are little people.Saw them on halloween a few years back.Was a good show.
December 13th, 2008 at 10:18 am
Nouvelle Vague sounds gorgeous
December 13th, 2008 at 10:31 am
How about Ten Masked Men? they do Death Metal covers of many pop songs. They have lots of videos on Youtube.
December 13th, 2008 at 10:31 am
You missed the best cover band of all, Notorious. Notorious was a S.F. cover band, able to reproduce just about any sound called for: http://www.notoriousrocks.com/NotoriousWeb/mainvideo.html
see for yourself.
December 13th, 2008 at 10:31 am
…Australian Pink Floyd anyone…?
December 13th, 2008 at 11:07 am
I meant the Lost Fingers… yikes, going to be late and waking up early…. ^_^;;
December 13th, 2008 at 11:11 am
I was lucky enough to see Dread Zeppelin live.
I was front row. I will never forget when Charlie Hodge stepped from stage left with a towel to wipe Tortelvis’ sweaty brow. It was at that moment I was fortunate enough to touch the hem of the King’s white bell bottoms as he towered from the stage, like some glistening god.
Tortelvis’ big ol’ gold belt shone with the radiance of a thousand suns, as if the very king of rock and roll was a doorway to some other place where all was green and good.
It was the most joyous few seconds of my life..
December 13th, 2008 at 11:15 am
Thanks BishopWhitet (and Jfrater for the edit under the Nouvelle Vague post), I’m really liking Nouvelle Vague, interesting takes on the originals. Kind of reminds me of Mazzy Star in a way.
December 13th, 2008 at 11:30 am
I would add “Rain: The Beatles Experience” — An excellent cover band of the best band ever, The Beatles. Check them out sometime: http://www.raintribute.com
December 13th, 2008 at 11:35 am
has anyone ever heard of The Dan Band?
December 13th, 2008 at 11:59 am
THats so funny i work with a canadian guy who is good friends with “Luther Wright and the Wrongs” i can remember him making us listen their music when he was training us.
December 13th, 2008 at 1:40 pm
I think you need to watch this:
Very interesting list.
December 13th, 2008 at 1:48 pm
38. psychosurfer: when I tried the link, I got a notice that it was no longer available.
December 13th, 2008 at 2:00 pm
No Rockapella????
That is a SIN! A capella versions of supremely popular songs? How can you NOT like that?
December 13th, 2008 at 2:08 pm
That´s strange, it works when I click it, try this one:
Hope you like it
December 13th, 2008 at 2:19 pm
In some cases, Gregorian’s covers are much better than the original song.
December 13th, 2008 at 2:21 pm
let’s not forget the spot on zany sound of The Rutles. More of a parody band than covers, they channel the vocal chords and the mind set of the Fab Four to a very educational “T”. When you hear the Rutles sing “Cheese and Onions” or “Piggy in the middle”, you can observe the workings of John Lennon’s mind a6 its most psychedelic, I’m-all-right-Jackness.
One of the creators and guiding lights of The Rutles was Eric Idle (This would have been about the time Holy Grail was in theatres.)
Check ‘em out; they will entertain you and maybe even educate you a little.
December 13th, 2008 at 3:09 pm
Yay Richard Cheese! He’s possibly the only cover artist that gets hate-mail from the fans of the bands he covers. (You can imagine that fans of Papa Roach might not like lounge jazz that much.)
December 13th, 2008 at 3:11 pm
Pat Boone’s cover of Holy Diver – Kickass
December 13th, 2008 at 4:08 pm
You forgot to list Elvis Presley! He was the greatest cover musician of all time.
December 13th, 2008 at 4:38 pm
I want to go out and buy gregorian now.
December 13th, 2008 at 4:59 pm
Oh my God! What a GREAT list! I was down in the dumps today, and this brought me right out of it. I can’t believe anyone else has heard of Hayseed/Dixie – I saw them at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival, and they blew everybody away! Me First and the Gimme Gimmies and Lounge Against the Machine are AWESOME! I definitely liked some of the other bands that I hadn’t heard of yet… More CDs to buy!
The only one I can think of to add to the list is Joe Jackson – he and his band did a one-time cover album of old 40’s tunes called Jumpin’ Jive. It is excellent.
Thanks, Bishop Whitet, great job!
December 13th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
I like the band Boss Hoss from Germany.
I was waiting with bated breath for Dread Zepplin. That is even the exact song I have on a cd in my car.
December 13th, 2008 at 6:27 pm
41. psychosurfer:That´s strange, it works when I click it, try this one:
Hope you like it
****
It worked! I love it! I love the upright bass player jumping up and down. I love the addition of the accordion. Adding accordion to anything automatically makes it funnier.
Thank you for going to the trouble of finding a link that worked for me. That was so nice, and something you really didn’t have to do. I’m very, very glad you did though!
December 13th, 2008 at 6:36 pm
43. evacreek: let’s not forget the spot on zany sound of The Rutles.
****
Absolutely! They are hilarious, even if cartoonish.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ePaHG6g7uFw
Every Beatles fan simply has to make sure they are familiar with the Rutles!
December 13th, 2008 at 8:04 pm
I love Me First and Gimmie Gimmies…Their cover of I believe I can fly is actually one of the ringtones on my phone.
December 13th, 2008 at 9:12 pm
Not exactly a cover artist per-se,but you should check out Ben Harper and the innocent Criminals’cover of “Sexual Healing” drom the “Live From Mars” album. WOW!!!
December 13th, 2008 at 9:30 pm
Great list!
They don’t really qualify for this list, but if anyone is intersted, The Bad Plus is an amazing acoustic piano trio that does some amazing jazz/rock, both original and covered.
December 13th, 2008 at 10:05 pm
apocalyptica are an amazing cover band but seriously, what about the Ten Masked Men, they do death metal covers of pop songs, they kick total arse, check out their version of Justin timberlakes ‘Cry Me A River’
December 13th, 2008 at 10:37 pm
aline ant farm has a couple of covers and audio slave has done some covers of radio head
December 13th, 2008 at 11:14 pm
Check out the Easy Star All-Stars.
They do dub/reggae covers of popular albums. The best being Dub Side of the Moon.
It’s amazing.
December 13th, 2008 at 11:16 pm
ASimmons, yes I have. also a good addition.
December 13th, 2008 at 11:30 pm
Julia Nunes does some pretty amazing covers. alot of her stuff can be found on her youtube page.
December 14th, 2008 at 1:13 am
love the cheese and ive heard about me first as for the rest no idea cool tho
December 14th, 2008 at 3:16 am
Try this group: Big Daddy. No better way to hear popular music than through the melodies of a 50’s doo-wop group. And they Pre-date all the others on this list.
Check the poster’s youtube page for more of their songs
December 14th, 2008 at 5:15 pm
The Vitamin string quartet are amazing. They’ve done classical string covers of pretty much everything, ranging from Led Zeppelin to 2pac. Check them out on youtube. My favourite is their version of System of a Down’s BYOB
December 14th, 2008 at 6:05 pm
I agree with T Cups. Definitely need Rockapella on the list.
December 14th, 2008 at 10:26 pm
I love Dread Zepplin. And the Australian Pink Floyd are the best EVER!!!! IMHO
December 15th, 2008 at 12:46 am
Samsung’s mention of the string quartet reminded me of the Rock-A-By Baby series of lullaby covers. Beatles, Bjork, Smashing Pumpkins…. very eclectic library.
December 15th, 2008 at 2:23 am
Interesting list! I just wish you had put the names of the songs/artists they were covering in the video on there…I’m kind of just guessing what they’re singing.
December 15th, 2008 at 5:30 am
I remember going to see a show (only a few years back) in a major London venue by an Elvis impersonator that I’m semi-sure was called ‘The King’. The schtick was that he only performed songs by other dead artists – Joy Division, Doors etc. – Elvis-style of course.
December 15th, 2008 at 7:42 am
I miss The Musical Box
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Musical_Box_(band)
December 15th, 2008 at 8:20 am
I love this list! Dread Zeppelin is great. Richard Cheese and Lounge Against the Machine was just funny!
I definitely needed this today. Thanks!!
December 15th, 2008 at 8:21 am
Richard Cheese is so awesome!! I love that guy!!
December 15th, 2008 at 9:13 am
If you want bluegrass Pink Floyd, check out the Austin Lounge Lizards’ version of “Dark Side of the Moon.”
Actually, bluegrass does wonders for a lot of songs. I saw a band do “Highway to Hell” (AC/DC) and “Hungry Heart” (Springsteen) that way, and I still think they sounded better than the originals.
December 15th, 2008 at 10:54 am
‘Dub Side of the Moon’ is an awesome reggae cover to Pink Floyds’ Dark side of the moon. Check it out.
December 15th, 2008 at 10:56 am
Whoever said Apocalyptica: they are not a cover band, retard.
December 15th, 2008 at 12:01 pm
this has nothing to do with cover bands but this cover is great. check out Turisas (Epic Battle Metal Band from finnland) cover of Rasputin origonilay played by some old disco band cant remeber there name but its the best cover ever!
December 15th, 2008 at 1:53 pm
#6 is very cool.#7 is wierd but kinda cool.Very nice list overall.
December 15th, 2008 at 2:46 pm
Another endorsement of the Easy Star All Stars, but I was more surprised that the Benzedrine Monks of Santo Domonica didn’t make the list.
December 15th, 2008 at 6:29 pm
Good list, especially numero uno. Dread Zep has been one of my favorite bands for years, and Robert Plant himself said that their cover of “Your Time is Gonna Come” was better than Led’s. And you can’t beat their cover of “Kashmir,” complete with Tortelvis getting abducted by aliens.
The omission of the Dan Band is egregious, however. There’s nothing better than a half-crazed karaoke master covering exclusively female pop songs. They’re definitely one of the best (i.e. most fun) live acts I’ve ever seen.
December 15th, 2008 at 7:09 pm
About Pat Boone, it is highly incorrect to say he does more original works than not. Any famous song he has had is a cover, he’s pretty much known in history for stealing the most songs.
December 15th, 2008 at 10:18 pm
i guess wierd al doesnt count?
December 15th, 2008 at 10:30 pm
Beatallica not included?
December 16th, 2008 at 12:07 am
Iron Horse, they do blue grass covers of Rock and metal songs, from bands like Metallica, Guns & Roses, Van Halen, led Zeppelin, and Ozzy. It is awsome
December 16th, 2008 at 3:52 am
I also loved that Aztec Camera cover of Van Halen’s ‘Jump’. Didn’t notice anyone else mention it here.
December 16th, 2008 at 10:11 am
Hurrah Torpedo should have been on this list; a Norwegian band that does covers of American pop songs, using appliances such as washing machines and dishwashers as percussion instruments.
December 16th, 2008 at 11:01 am
List needs Jonathan Coulton
December 16th, 2008 at 2:50 pm
dude i love the dan band
turn around…..every now and then i get a little bit terrified i see the fuckin look in you’re eyes lol
December 16th, 2008 at 3:51 pm
Thanks for all of the nice comments everyone. I haven’t had a chance to log onto the site for a few days, and was surprised to see my list published when I did.
fwiw, I never really thought of Weird Al as someone who does “covers” since his are parodies. I haven’t heard of a lot of the other cover bands mentioned, although a few that were mentioned, I would put in the “tribute” category as oppesed to an innovative cover band.
Thanks everybody!
December 16th, 2008 at 5:24 pm
Dsotm post 30
I agree. Australian pink floyd are awesome. So good that a member (cant remember which one) of the actual pink floyd had them play at a party he was throwing.
I go to see them every year in Belfast.
December 16th, 2008 at 8:24 pm
matty b (87) It was David Gilmour. He thought they were terrific.
December 19th, 2008 at 4:01 am
i’m friends with the girl in gabba! they are amazing! the guy who’s ‘joey ramone’ is like fourth tallest man in england or something…he’s like over 7 foot tall.
December 20th, 2008 at 10:34 pm
Richard Cheese is one of my favourite artists. I’m seeing him live in May. :]
December 22nd, 2008 at 1:17 pm
Thanks for introducing me to Nouvelle Vague…wow wow wow! Great list by the way!
December 31st, 2008 at 3:01 pm
No mention of Tributasaurus? Incredible cover band!
January 5th, 2009 at 9:32 pm
I remember am album my parents bought once in the late 60’s by a band called “Herb Tijuana and the Jewish Brass”. They thought it was an original Tijuana Brass album.
January 9th, 2009 at 8:38 am
i vote for Vitamin String Quartet!
their cover/tribute is sick, you know
ranging from slow-tempo Clocks(Coldplay) to an kickass Through Fire and Flames (Dragonforce)
imagine the sound of Herman Li’s guitar played on viola…
March 19th, 2009 at 7:40 pm
Actually, # 3 Is a song originally by Danzig (of Misfits fame) that Johnny Cash covered for his album… so essentially its a cover of a cover.
April 7th, 2009 at 2:13 pm
AC/DShe, A female AC/DC cover band Ive seen a couple of time in the San Fransisco Bay area, are great. I also love the name.
April 10th, 2009 at 9:35 am
Two of the best cover bands on the east coast?
Brad Delp’s (RIP, Brad) Beatlejuice http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2OiC7LaU8Cg
Mama Kicks (rock on Lisa!) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yk9P7C_ehgA
May 14th, 2009 at 12:05 pm
Ozzy pink floyd are definitely the best, the performance and pyro (including blow up animals) do amazing justice to the original PF, as well as the occasional kangaroos they slip in. I notice Jfrater is from NZ, any rivalry there?
June 26th, 2009 at 12:52 pm
do find very interesting’s & cool’s! would like beon beingreciving puton emails newsletters guestbook covers bands & would like see in person concert! here in WILMINGLON, NORTH CAROLINA COVERS BANDS!
December 19th, 2009 at 9:01 pm
I’d add Vitamin String Quartet to this list.