The theme for today: Alternative. These are alternative rock bands who have covered songs who's original authors span a wide range of other genres. If you like at least one cover/original combo (although it's pretty much impossible not to enjoy all 20), then I've served you well.
(#20) "Major Tom (Coming Home) (Peter Schilling Cover)" by Shiny Toy Guns
My introduction to Shiny Toy Guns was the song "Le Disko." It was the perfect union of Britney-dance and Marilyn-shock and it defined how electronica I would ever get. But when vocalist Sisely Treasure left and was replaced by Carah Faye Charnow in 2008, the band lost a lot of its edge and credibility. Case in point: "Major Tom." The band does an alright job of recreating Peter Schilling's one-hit wonder (you know, that one 80's proto-eurotrance song that everyone knows), but it's just so seeped in commercialism. The song was recorded for a Lincoln luxury car advertisment, and that selling-out-ness is made apparent in their live performance below.
Listen to the original here.
Grupo Bronco is a Mexican banda group who takes a more pop-oriented approach to music as opposed to the traditional Norteño style of sound. They have even composed theme songs for a number of novelas (Spanish soap operas). In 2007, a group of modern Mexican pop-punk artists got together to record a tribute album for Grupo Bronco. "Amigo Bronco" is the opening song and it features the vocals of the frontmen of Goldstar, Jumbo and Panda.
Listen to the original here.
(#18) "Under the Milky Way (The Church Cover)" by Kill Hannah
Reluctantly, I present this cover. True, Kill Hannah doesn't do much to kill this song with their experimental/glam take, but they don't do much of anything else either. It's just that The Church nailed it back in 1988 and there's not much anyone else can do to make it better. Hands down, "Under the Milky Way" is on my top-three list of all-time best songs ever. I thank Kill Hannah for introducing me to it, but that's kinda all I can do.
Listen to the original (studio) here.
Listen to the original (unplugged) here.
Listen to the original (alternate acoustic) here.
(#17) "The Trooper (Iron Maiden Cover)" by Coheed and Cambria
Both controversial and influential, Iron Maiden charged on the front lines of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal back in the late-70's. In 2008, Kerrang! magazine invited 15 acts to cover their favorite Maiden track and include it in the Maiden Heaven tribute album. Coheed and Cambria have been blasting new prog since 2002, and if "Welcome Home" didn't teach you that they can shread a mean dual-solo, then prepare for some face-melting.
Listen to the original here.
(#16) "Little Boxes (Malivina Reynolds Cover)" by Rise Against
Back in the 60's, a political activist was the thing to be. In the sway of the times, folk singer-songwriter Malivina Reynolds wrote "Little Boxes" as a satire against suburban and middle-class society. Her friend Pete Seeger recorded a version which became an international hit. Currently, the Showtime series Weeds uses the song as its theme. After the first season, covers by different artists were used in the opening credits. Supposedly, this version by the melodic hardcore band Rise Against was one of them.
Listen to the original (by Pete Seeger) here.
Listen to the original (by Malivina Reynolds) here.
(#15) "Kids in America (Kim Wilde Cover)" by The Muffs
If you were born in the 80's, you probably think that "Kids in America" was composed by the New Wave Brit singer Kim Wilde. If you were born in the 90's (or were otherwise forced to watch Clueless), you probably think that the American punk rockers The Muffs wrote the song. Let's just say I was born in the 90's...
Listen to the original here.
(#14) "Precision Auto (Superchuck Cover)" by Jimmy Eat World
When Jimmy Eat World write songs, they get to the core, to things we don't want to admit about ourselves, to things we didn't know could be so poetically articulated. When Jimmy Eat World cover songs, they basically overdub Jim Adkins's vocals onto the original tune. There's no Big Bang in JEW's take on the opening track to Superchunk's third album On the Mouth, but it still keeps that "I-wrote-this-song-with-my-friends-after-watching-Full-House-in-the-basement-of-my-parents'-house-on-the-couch-that-reeks-of-the-LSD-they-did-in-the-80's" East Coast grunge feel.
Listen to the original here.
(#13) "Time After Time (Cyndi Lauper Cover)" by Saosin
When I hear a Cyndi Lauper song, I can't help but fall in love with the person right next to me (which gets really awkward when I'm in the check-out line of a supermarket). When other artists do Lauper, it's 50-50. They can either ruin it (like when The Black Eyed Peas sampled this song in "Meet Me Halfway"), or they can bless it for a new generation. Although it's not necessarily their style, Saosin does a good job on this classic.
(FYI - If you like AOL Music, look up Like a Version, Peel Sessions, Abbey Road and MTV Unplugged).
Listen to the original here.
(#12) "Smooth Criminal (Michael Jackson Cover)" by Alien Ant Farm
If you're into Alien Ant Farm or alternative metal in general, then this is the song for you. If you're into Michael Jackson, then not so much. I would have preferred they did "Billie Jean" myself. In any case, the video is pretty sweet.
Listen to the original here.
(#11) "Love Rollercoaster (The Ohio Players Cover)" by Red Hot Chili Peppers
When MTV needs a theme song for anything, they don't play around. Who did they choose to promote Beavis and Butt-head Do America? None other than the Red Hot Chili Peppers. And what song did they funk up? None other than "Love Rollercoaster" by The Ohio Players. I first heard the original on The Bernie Mac Show and thought it was pretty ballin' (which it is). RHCP make it their objective to create a subliminal sexual undertone, whether it be audial or visual, but something between the Beastie Boys-rap and the STP-outro said that this song should be shelved alongside the VHS and the Yo-Yo Ball in our 90's closet.
Listen to the original (studio) here.
Listen to the original (from The Midnight Special) here.
(#10) "Bigmouth Strikes Again (The Smiths Cover)" by Placebo
This is just the way The Moz would have had it if The Smiths had this type of studio technology back in their day. Placebo delivers the right amount of simultaneous musical vantage points to portray the melancholy and apathy that the original deserves without being too gaudy in the process. This is the best cover from Covers, alongside "Where is My Mind" (by the Pixies... I might as well include the original for that, too).
Listen to the original here.
(#9) "Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want (The Smiths Cover)" by Muse
Another Smiths song, this time by Muse. The title of the song is so self-explanitory that you don't even really need to listen to the song (although I hope you do). This cover was one of the b-sides to the double single "Hyper Music/Feeling Good" (in which the latter is also a cover: see "Feeling Good" by Nina Simone). This was probably the cover that got me into The Smiths, so that's why it's a little bit ahead of Placebo (and Muse is just all-around cool, so they get bonus points for that, too).
Listen to the original here.
(#8) "Landslide (Fleetwood Mac Cover)" by The Smashing Pumpkins
Again, this is an example of a song so exceptional that it can't be reproduced. After making a god out of a man, Stevie Nicks just couldn't take it anymore and poured her soul into this one 3-minute song. The Dixie Chicks do a better job in their rendition of maintaining the atmosphere Fleetwood Mac created, but The Smashing Pumpkins capture the emotion. It seems that "Landslide" comes on the radio when I most need it, when I just have to say to myself, "I'm getting older, too." Sometimes I wish this song was mine, but, needless to say, Billy Corgan does a way better job than I could ever do singing this down the highway.
Listen to the original here.
(#7) "Istanbul (Not Constantinople) (The Four Lads Cover)" by They Might Be Giants
They Might Be Giants is an old band (I mean, a really old band). With an obsure take on alternative rock, they spent the 80's bouncing from one college rock radio station to another until landing a record deal and some mainstream success in the 90's. Before I go any further, TMBG won a Grammy for "Boss of Me," the theme song to Malcolm in the Middle (just so you know who I'm talking about). They're big on children and family-friendly music as well. Two of their songs are featured in Tiny Toon Adventures: "Istanbul" (originally by the 50's Canadian swing-pop quartet The Four Lads) and "Particle Man" (whose video is hard to get a hold of).
Listen to the original here.
(#6) "I Wanna Be On TV (Fang Cover)" by Green Day
Sometimes it's easy to forget that Green Day is punk, or at least influenced by punk. But a song like this by the underground Fang takes you back to the days of "Road to Acceptance" (or at least "Welcome to Paradise"). I'm lukewarm to Green Day's version of this song, but I have to give them my respect and credibility for taking on the task.
Listen to the original here.
(#5) "Darling Nikki (Prince Cover)" by Foo Fighters
Unlike "Love Rollercoaster" above, this song isn't about sex, it is sex. But it's from Prince, so you can't expect any more or any less. Foo Fighters just tear this song up, but Prince, being the music megalomaniac that he is, was on the brink of suing the band for copyright infringement. The score was eventually settled and Prince even covered "Best of You" in the Super Bowl XLI Halftime Show (and what a disgrace to an FF song that was...).
Listen to the original here.
(#4) "Mother (Danzig Cover)" by Anberlin
In 1983, Glenn Danzig left the pivotal horror-punk band The Misfits, of which he was the frontman, due to artistic animosity with the other members. He formed the psudo-supergroup Samhain, which delved into deathrock and gothic metal. This group gradually formed into the heavy metal act Danzig and released their self-titled debut in 1988 along with the single "Mother." It's hard to believe such an emotional piece against the PMRC came from a guy who used to write songs about zombies and Martians.
Anberlin is just a great band... no other way to put it. They have a vast array of influences, which is apparent in the complexity of their songs and in the diverse covers they perform. From Depeche Mode to When in Rome and even The Smiths, Anberlin not only gives credit where credit is due but does so in such an artistic and tasteful fashion. If Danzig ever did an unplugged version of "Mother," there's no doubt it would sound like this. It's nice to see the Billboard crowd getting some culture.
Listen to the original here.
(#3) "Romance (Traditional Song)" by My Chemical Romance
"Romance Anónimo" is a famous traditional Spanish guitar piece whose origin has been disputed for decades. Several recordings exist but there isn't an "original version" of the song, per se. My Chemical Romance begin their debut I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love with the intro to this song, showing the inherent intricacy of the influences and musical talents of the band (or at least those of Ray Toro).
Listen to the original here.
(#2) "Johnny B. Goode (Chuck Berry Cover)" by Marty McFly with the Starlighters
In 1958, Chuck Berry set the bar for all time. This is rock and roll. Period. This is the magnum opus of anything and everything pop. This is the track that all other tracks will forever be compared to. If this is not on the top of a "Greatest Songs" list, it just proves that the list is a popularity contest. Need more convincing? This song is one of the four included in the Voyager Golden Record as a sign to any extraterrestial life that this is the standard of humanity's musical accomplishments. Whether you believe in aliens or not, you have to admit that's pretty amazing.
OK... with all the indoctrination aside, Michael J. Fox covered this song as his character Marty McFly in the cinema classic Back to the Future. This scene has been parodied throughout the years (this one from Family Guy and this one from The Simpsons come to mind) because it truly captures the essence of the purpose of a cover: to make the song your own. Now, you may be asking, "It's a good cover, by why is it on an alternative rock list?" Well, I'd say it's alternative... for its time (Hey-Oh!).
Listen to the original here.
(#1) "Molly's Lips (The Vaselines Cover)" by Nirvana
For reasons I won't get into in a public domain, this is my favorite cover. No use trying to convince me otherwise. I will say that the day I covered this cover, a new stage of my life began. I'll leave it at that.
As for the song, it's just amazing how much Nirvana can accomplish with just two (G and C) power chords. It definitely became their song, because the acoustic guitars and the clown horns that The Vaselines were doing just wasn't cutting it. And if it wasn't for Nirvana, this simple masterpiece would have faded into Scottish indie obsurity and would not have reached your ears in 3... 2... 1...
Listen to the cover (studio) here.
Listen to the original (studio) here.
Listen to the live Nirvana/Vaseline version here.
Come on in and cover me,
Kelvin
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