This little topic was spawned into existence after I got my grubby little hands on a copy of Powerman 5000's new Copies, Clones & Replicants album which is nothing but cover songs.
For those of you who don't know what a cover is, it is when an artist takes an existing song and makes their own version of it.
Personally, I can be extremely picky with covers. Most of the time, I find that they lack the passion and energy of the original but every once in a while, I find a gem that keeps my faith in the art of the cover song alive.
I am most pleased when a cover of a song I don't even like makes me fall in love with the song as was the case with this:
I really hate the original because it's so monotone. A love song needs passion and I believe Ra delivers it well.
So, Mene, I'm wondering how you feel about cover songs. Do you love them? Do you hate them? What makes a good cover as opposed to a bad one? Do you have any favorites that you'd like to share?
I don't usually enjoy covers of songs as much as the originals, but I can respect them and appreciate them. They're one artist's way of tipping the metaphorical hat to another.
That being said, there are some covers of songs that I really, REALLY like.
Sara Bareilles took Beyonce's "Single Ladies" and shook it up into a song with a completely different tone to it. It sounds more sweet than sassy when she sings it.
Sia took Madonna's "Oh Father" and made it feel even more morose and emotional than the original, I think. It tugs at my heart strings. I can't find the video on youtube because fsking copyrights, though. >:T
Thennn, there's Ingrid Michaelson's cover of "Can't Help Falling In Love With You." I love Elvis, and this cover does the song so much justice in my opinion. I love how timid she sounds when she sings it, like it's a secret she doesn't want to share with anyone.
I will definitely have to give those a listen when I'm somewhere with a decent internet connection. The Single Ladies cover sounds especially interesting. I like the original but it gets on my nerves quickly. I'm curious about this slowed down version.
I hate most, but there are a few that are at least one of these:
1. Pretty good, Being as good or maybe a little worse than the original
2. Completely different and amazing
3. Better than the original.
This little topic was spawned into existence after I got my grubby little hands on a copy of Powerman 5000's new Copies, Clones & Replicants album which is nothing but cover songs.
The fact that this album exists is the best news I've heard this week! Thank you for that. :)
Landslide is a song that managed to spawn some good covers, a few of which were number one on several charts.. but maybe that's because the original is just too good to screw up.
I love covers, they're always really interesting. Relient K recently released a cover album (Relient K is for Karaoke) and I like some of the songs on that. Mostly though, I hear a lot of covers by obsessively watching Glee.
Oh God, I can't stand Glee. I hate their covers the most.
Haha, when I first made my post in this thread I had to REFRAIN from going on an endless tirade about how much I hate Glee. But then I had to remember that people will always like things that I don't like.
