I’ve often said how much I like hearing familiar hit songs performed by artists other than their original recorders. Here’s a quick sampling and links to a few of my favorite cover songs.
R.E.M. “Dragging the Line”-For “The Spy Who Shagged Me” soundtrack,Michael Stipe and company take on the smooth roll-out of the old Tommy James and the Shondells pop hit.
The Who- “Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting”- Done for the “Two Rooms” Elton John / Bernie Taupin tribute record, the Who rock this one out with a splash of another E.J. song, “Take Me to the Pilot.”
Jayhawks- “Bad Time”, a mid-70’s semi hit for Grand Funk Railroad, the Jaybirds do this one with timely justice.
Linda Ronstadt- “Tumbling Dice”. From her ‘Simple Dreams” album, Linda sang the Rolling Stones classic to perfection. Keith Richards’ quote on this one was “I wrote Tumbling Dice but Linda owns it.” Well said Keith.
Deryl Dodd- “Sundown”- The Texan country singer has done well covering tracks like “That’s How I Got to Memphis” but his version of the Gordon Lightfoot hit beats the others. It has the same aura of a haunting warning that Lightfoot’s original version brought us.
Miley Cyrus- “Like a Prayer”- Billy Ray’s daughter has done many good covers of tunes by among others, Tom Petty, Dolly Parton and Pink Floyd. This live track, originally done by Madonna, is a stand-out for sure.
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