A couple of weeks ago I played Led Zeppelin's Dyer Maker during a set. And a friend of mine who shall remain nameless said "I love this song who is singing this version?" And eventually we determined that she only really knew the Sheryl Crow version (which came out in the mid 90s on the Zep tribute album Encomium.)
We can debate the tragedy of that notion at another time. But that got me thinking about all the cover songs that people don't know are actually covers, either because the covering artist has done a much better version than the original or the public isn't made aware by radio.
And there are all sort of great examples of this. Hendrix's version of Dylan's All Along the Watchtower is probably the best known example of this phenomenon. And lets face it, it's light years better than Dylan's orginal. I'm willing to bet not a lot of people know the Red Hot Chili Peppers are covering Stevie Wonder on Higher Ground. Pearl Jam's version of Last Kiss has made everyone forget about Wayne Cochran and the CC Riders. Brian Setzer's version of Louis Prima's Jump, Jive and Wail was probably the high-water mark of the 90s Swing revival.
Let's hear from you dear readers (all three of you)-- What other cover songs are out there that where people may have forgotten the original?
No comments:
Post a Comment