Cover songs

A great song will be enjoyed by all, but the greatest praise will come from fellow musicians, who are literally right on the pulse of the ever-evolving musical paradigm. And often times, they enjoy a song so much they're compelled to feel the notes emanating from their own fingertips.....so is born the cover song, and most local bands by default. Of course, it's typical that the cover version will essentially be identical to the original, with the only difference being the sound of the covering band's instruments, which again majorly applies to your garden variety local band. But, once in a while a top artist will cover a song so well that it naturally becomes part of their repertoire, and their fans will regularly demand to hear it, either live or on a studio version.

All that drivel being said, there are cover versions that really stand out in their own right, and need to included in the same conversation as the original. Be it the truly signature version of the song, a la Jimi Hendrix's "All Along the Watchtower" originally by Bob Dylan, or a strong re-tooling as demonstrated by Lenny Kravitz of The Guess Who's "American Woman," the cover song has become an integral part of music, with a truly immense list of quality artists behind them. Though it is most common to hear a cover song as part of a live show, which are my favorites, you'll hear a fair amount of studio covers, and in fact entire albums of covers from various artists, of various artists, which only adds to the complexity of the subject.

So really, the only thing I'm trying to achieve by starting this thread is to highlight some truly epic versions of many already epic songs, done by some epic bands. And that's about it....if you feel someone has done real justice to a great song, or perhaps shaped their rendition to the point of possible superiority, and maybe in a way the original artist couldn't quite capture, then post it here. I only ask you try not to include songs that simply sample the original, or you may tempt my ridicule......I love making fun of talentless moneygrubbing assholes.

I'll start it off with a favorite of Steelers fans everywhere, even though one of the band members was also in the original band, and pair it with one of my current favorite cover songs.

Damn Yankees (with Styx's Tommy Shaw) - Renegade


Toto - While My Guitar Gently Weeps

Joe Cocker's with a little help from my friends, unchain my heart, and don't let me be misunderstood are great

Wow, all of a sudden I have an hour or more music to listen to, thanks! I'll add a couple more too.

Chris Cornell - Billie Jean



Avenged Sevenfold - Walk



Living Colour - Seven Nation Army

that billie jean cover is bad ass

vasteeler wrote:

that billie jean cover is bad ass

Hell yeah, I couldn't believe how different and still awesome it was......maybe even more awesome?

obama looks like he did a few bong hits...he's jammin..

Master_Of_Puppets wrote:

obama looks like he did a few bong hits...he's jammin..

*Insert emoticon of me crapping my pants* Goddamn, what an epic version! So many celebrities, so many reactions! Plant looks stymied, while Page looks like the happiest man ever, and everyone else is stoked......just awesome.

Steel Peon wrote:

Master_Of_Puppets wrote:

obama looks like he did a few bong hits...he's jammin..

*Insert emoticon of me crapping my pants* Goddamn, what an epic version! So many celebrities, so many reactions! Plant looks stymied, while Page looks like the happiest man ever, and everyone else is stoked......just awesome.

no doubt..i know STH has been played to death , but it doesn't get any better than nancy's rendition.. plus that was john bohnams son on the drums.