“Top Five” cover songs of all-time

Love them or hate them, cover songs have been around since the dawning of music. From the days of pre-classical music to traditional songs that were orally passed down from American immigrants for generations, from blues to modern rock, a different interpretation of someone’s music and lyrics can breathe fresh air and new life into an old classic. Here are five songs that have either taken such a fresh take on the original as to turn it into a new song, or in some cases, surpassed the original in quality.

devo – “(I Can’t get no)Satisfaction” (Rolling Stones)
The Rolling Stones classic has been covered by the likes of Paul Revere & The Raiders, Tom Jones, Cat Power and Britney Spears, but never with as much originality as Devo’s 1978 version. With its usual discordant and choppy style, Devo shakes and wobbles its way through a stripped-down and ultra-modern version that sounds almost like it was recorded on another planet by aliens who picked up a Stones record at an intergalactic yard sale.

Slowdive – “Some Velvet Morning” (Lee Hazlewood & Nancy Sinatra)
The original version of this song is amazing, and so is Lee Hazlewood, but Slowdive covers it in such a haunting fashion, it’s hard to imagine that with the right technology Hazlewood and Sinatra’s version wouldn’t be almost identical. The shoegazy shimmer of Slowdive’s version took advantage of synth-effects, guitar sounds and recording quality that wasn’t available in 1968. That being said, both versions will send shivers down the spines of listeners and are must-haves for music elitists and audiophiles.

Soft Cell – “Tainted Love” (Gloria Jones)
Many listeners are probably unaware that this is even a cover song since the Soft Cell version became such an ‘80s staple and still gets spun on dance floors around the world (not to mention on commercials). However, Gloria Jones, best known as a cast member in the 1969 play “Hair” and as the longtime lover of Marc Bolan of T. Rex fame, was the original performer of the Ed Cobb-penned tune in 1964.

Dead Kennedys – “Viva Las Vegas” (Elvis Presley)
The Dead Kennedys took Elvis’ ode to the glitz and nightlife of Vegas with tongue firmly planted-in-cheek in its own satirical way. With tin-pan sounding drums and a guitar that feels like it’s going to come unstrung at any moment, Jello Biafra and the gang blow through their version in a way that probably has the King rolling over in his grave every time it’s played. And let’s face it, it was a perfect soundtrack choice for “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.”

Manfred Mann’s Earth Band – “Blinded by the Light” (Bruce Springsteen)
Bruce Springsteen wrote this folky, funky song that, in the original version, sounded like it could be a Van Morrison song backed by The Doobie Brothers. But it was made famous by Manfred Mann’s Earth Band in its Moog-synth, organ and guitar rock version. Oddly enough, the Earth Band would hit No. 1 with “Blinded by the Light” on the pop charts in 1977, while Springsteen, with all of his success, has never released a No. 1 song.

Compiled by Jason Yurgartis.