Saturday, June 26, 2021

The 20 Greatest Cover Songs of All Time

 

Mark Pukalo

Our latest project had us picking the top 20 cover songs of all time. Once again, there were a wide variety of picks from the 15 voters. Here's my try:

Best Cover Songs

Top 20


1. Ol' 55 - The Eagles (Tom Waits) - One of many great songs on their under-rated album "On the Border"

2. You've Got a Friend - James Taylor (Carole King) - JT released the No. 1 hit the same year (1971) as Carole put it on her standout album "Tapestry"

3. Nothing Compares 2 U - Sinead O'Connor (Prince, The Family) - One of the greatest vocal performances in the history of music

4. Don't Let Me be Misunderstood - Santa Esmeralda (Nina Simone, The Animals, The Kinks) - Nina was the first to release the song, but I loved the latin version that featured Leroy Gomez. It was used as intro and outro music for NBC sports and in the movie "Kill Bill"

5. Blinded by the Light - Manfred Mann's Earth Band (Bruce Springsteen) - Included on the Boss' first album "Greetings from Asbury Park"

6. Heat Wave - Linda Ronstadt (Martha and the Vandellas) - As with many, many of the songs Linda covered, she made this her own

7. You Can't Hurry Love - Phil Collins (The Supremes) - From Phil's best solo album "Hello, I Must Be Going"

8. Respect - Aretha Franklin (Otis Redding) - Never knew this was a cover until recently, but the Queen of Soul makes it one of the best R&B songs of all time

9. Twist and Shout - The Beatles (The Isley Brothers, The Top Notes) - The Top Notes were the first to record this tune in 1961, the Isley Brothers took it to No. 17 and the Beatles to No. 2 on the US Billboard chart

10. Always on my Mind - Willie Nelson (Brenda Lee) - As Will McAvoy said on "The Newsroom," "A hundred covers of this song and no one sings it like him"


11. I want you to want me - Letters to Cleo (Cheap Trick) - Kay Hanley and the band kill it at the end of the movie "10 Things I Hate About You" on the roof of a school

12. Return of the Grievous Angel - Counting Crows (Gram Parsons) - From "Underwater Sunshine," which has several great covers

13. Tumbling Dice - Linda Ronstadt (The Rolling Stones) - Apparently Mick said he and Keith wrote the song, but "Linda owned it"

14. You Really Got Me - Van Halen (The Kinks) - Eddie, David and the boys covered the song on their amazing debut album

15. For Once in my Life - Stevie Wonder (Frank Sinatra) - Stevie's upbeat version made it all the way to No. 2.

16. Girl, You'll be a Woman Soon - Urge Overkill (Neil Diamond) - Uma dances to it in "Pulp Fiction"

17. All Along the Watchtower - Jimi Hendrix (Bob Dylan) - Prince also covered the song in his sublime Super Bowl halftime show

18. Always Something There to Remind Me - Naked Eyes (Dionne Warwick) - The video was in full rotation on MTV

19. All Mixed Up - Red House Painters (The Cars) - Very unique version of the final song on The Cars' first album from the now-defunct San Francisco band

20. Wild World - Maxi Priest (Cat Stevens) - Love the song and really enjoyed the reggae version from Maxi


Joe Lunardi's first 12 out

(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding - Elvis Costello (Nick Lowe, Brinsley Schwarz)

Little Wing - Sting (Jimi Hendrix)

American Woman - Lenny Kravitz (The Guess Who)

Venus - Bananarama (The Shocking Blue)

It's my Life - No Doubt (Talk Talk)

Turning Japanese - Liz Phair (The Vapours)

Jolene - The White Stripes (Dolly Parton)

Tainted Love - Soft Cell (Gloria Jones)

Trapped - Bruce Springsteen (Jimmy Cliff)

I Love Rock'n Roll - Joan Jett (The Arrows)

Take Me to the River - Talking Heads (Al Green)

Get Ready - Rare Earth (The Temptations)






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