This is an attempt to get the debate away from the iTunes & Sunday Chart Predition threads... ;)

 

ISTM that people are far more likely to be OK with cover versions, if they don't know the originals - though being switched to a genre they prefer probably helps too.

 

e.g. I never heard Pink Floyd's 'Comfortably Numb' before the Scisser Sisters covered it, and TBH I prefer the latter. Other examples Joss Stone/White Stripes 'Fell In Love With a Boy (or Girl, depending on which artist), and Charlene Soraia/The Calling-WYWG

 

OTOH having heard the White Stripes '7 Nation Army' first, I much prefer it to Marcus Collins' version. Also I much prefer TFF's 'Mad World' to Michael Andrews (IMO) insipid one..

 

Waht do you you think, though?

Pretty much agreeing here. I find that If I've heard the cover first, then I just judge it in it's own right. Of course a terrible song never gets through my filter. :P However, if a cover is particularly lazy or boring compared to the original that I'm already familiar with, I tend to not like it at all, and even begrudge it for 'ruining' the original if I REALLY loved the original version. :o

Joss Stone completely butchers a brilliant song, can't agree there at all. With "Wherever You Will Go" my main grip with the original was the vocals so Charlene's version is just as listenable I suppose.

 

The classic debate between original and cover is which version of "Hurt" is better - Nine Inch Nails' original or Johnny Cash's cover. Anyone who says they prefer Leona's can gtfo.

Joss Stone completely butchers a brilliant song, can't agree there at all. With "Wherever You Will Go" my main grip with the original was the vocals so Charlene's version is just as listenable I suppose.

 

The classic debate between original and cover is which version of "Hurt" is better - Nine Inch Nails' original or Johnny Cash's cover. Anyone who says they prefer Leona's can gtfo.

 

What about Leona v Snow Patrol 'Run'?

 

Another one : Elton v Ellie 'Your Song'?

 

Maybe we could build a list of the most contentious ones, and put them in a poll?

Edited February 29, 201213 yr by vidcapper

What about Leona v Snow Patrol 'Run'?

 

Another one : Elton v Ellie 'Your Song'?

 

Maybe we could build a list of the most contentious ones, and put them in a poll?

 

Leona vs. Snow Patrol isn't really contentious from an artistic point of view, only a commercial one. Same with "Your Song" I suppose, I prefer Ellie's version but I'm nott going to say it's better than the original.

For me for a cover to be good an artist has to put their own take on it and make it sound completely different, it's why I buy the Live Lounge albums because there's always some good stuff on there, sometimes even acts I dislike covering songs I dislike (hello N-Dubz covering The Script)

 

2 of my 3 favourite cover versions of all time, are of originals I adore; Jose Gonzalez covering The Knife's 'Heartbeats' and The Futureheads version of 'Hounds of Love'

I heard Will Young's Light My Fire yesterday for the first time in years. It is terrible.

 

 

I agree with the opening statement from vidcapper.

 

My faves would be

 

Jose Gonzalles - Heartbeats

Gary Jules - Mad World

Erasure - SOS

Tori Amos - Carnival or Rattlesnakes (had never heard the originals)

The covers of "Heartbeats" and "Hounds of Love" are both great. Aside from those and the aforementioned "Hurt", my favourite covers would be:

 

Muse - Feeling Good (Cy Grant / Nina Simone)

Alien Ant Farm - Smooth Criminal (Michael Jackson)

The Blues Brothers - Everybody Needs Somebody To Love (Solomon Burke)

I actually quite like Leona Lewis' cover of Run. It's not as good as the original, but it's a nice take on it. Annoys me more when people think it is the original song!

 

I saw the debate about Where Is My Mind. The same can be said for Wherever You Will Go. These songs are just been stripped back for some of the middle-class people that have no idea about music. They're both great songs. I don't particularly like them being stripped back, but they're good songs being projected to a mass audience, and people are always likely to find out about the originals aswell, so can be a goos thing too.

I agree that generally if I hear a cover before the original and I really like it, its tough for the original to surpass it, however if I know and love the original, the standards are a bit higher - the cover had better be bloody good or they have ruined a great song imo, which just makes me angry (Charlene's cover of Wherever You Will Go for starters :puke: ), so it works both ways really

 

I also agree that to make a cover interesting, they need to make it their own and make it sound original - examples of this include Mad World (Michael Andrews), Hurt (Johnny Cash), Feeling Good (Muse) bring a totally new feel to the song and having listened to the original (afterwards admittedly), they just didn't compare. Re Leona's cover of 'Run' I'm always a bit skeptical to this as the original is one of my all time favourites and it feels too X-factory and I think she tries a tad too hard to show emotion unlike Gary who does it effortlessly, however, she definitely made it her own and its comfortably surpassed the original in terms of public acclaim as well as sales, so I respect it in that sense.

 

However, when covers are done badly, they are AWFUL, most if not all of the X Factor finalists/winners covers and indeed quite a few cash in covers from Westlife and other pop bands and of that ilk ( (Marcus Collins' version of Seven Nation Army comes mind) are an example of a carbon copy cover that says nothing other than that they wanted a quick buck, which renders them pointless (of course in Marcus's case it was a carbon copy of a quite innovative cover). However, Mariah Carey's I Want To Know What Love is, Alexandra Burke's Hallelujah & Leona Lewis' Hurt are examples of changing it and it BACKFIRING spectacularly, the respective songs just simply do not need that done to them and it just destroys all meaning, these are the worst musical crimes imo, so yes, covers are an odd thing, they can be amazing or just totally terrible

 

(that was a lot more waffly that I intended apols :lol: )

Edited February 29, 201213 yr by C.W