Cover me in adulation

There has always been a pretty big argument in music about the merits of singing , or performing someone else's song. This has gone on since the dawn of Rock n Roll. Elvis didn't ever write a song. Every song by Elvis is someone else actually speaking. On a less revered note, same thing for The Monkees. In fact throughout music history I would estimate that more than half of the music you hear is actually written by someone other than the person, people you hear performing it.

This is strange no? People have devout followings which is based on their work, but some of it isn't their work. This was not a big thing in the 50s and 60s. It was accepted. Well , up until the age of the hippies and flower power and sticking it to the man, then it became seriously uncool to cover other peoples music. This is perhaps a reflection of the desire to appear real, and authentic. No matter that you were doing this through massive corporations, but that is perhaps a matter for another time.

There is the case though when a cover song takes over from the original. It takes the words and the music and makes it something quite different. Does this mean that it then becomes the message of the person performing it?

I came across a music download which is called, The 500 Greatest cover tracks of all time, which was published by Rolling Stone magazine. Now, whether or not Rolling Stone are even qualified to publish this is perhaps a discussion for a different day. Seriously, who reads this magazine and thinks, hey , that band U2, they're great apparently . . .As I said, perhaps this rant is for another day.

There are some seriously great songs on the list. For example there is this. The most covered song of all time and as I have said on many occasions, such as here, the best version of it.

It did get me to thinking what is it that blurs the lines between an artist or band singing someone else's song and what makes it a song that the performer(s) then make their own version? To make my point I thought about this version of Nothing compares to you, written by Prince, made famous by Sinead O'Conner and sung here by the Stereophonics

To me that is the Stereophonics covering a Sinead O'Conner track because she made the song her own. The reality of course is that it is the Sterophonics covering a Prince tune that was also done by Sinead O'Conner. Is it because it was originally made famous, i.e. sold more copies, in the SOC (got tired of writing the whole thing) version? is it because that is the version that I heard first? or is it as simple as the fact that SOC version is the best version?

I must admit to having a sneaky love of cover tracks, which is perhaps why I have written about it before.

i like the idea of someone whose original music I like taking another track and doing it in their own style. For example here is the Cowboy Junkies version of Sweet Jane, by the Velvet Underground originally.

I like that version more than I like the original. Actually whilst we are sort of on the topic, The Velvet Underground. Where do we stand? I have the box set of the three albums. it is a good box set I have to say. Lots of cool photos and the like. The music though. There are some extremely good songs there. But they are horribly inconsistent. i guess though that the point of the band was to be different than the music of the time. Something they achieved with amazing success. Are they the beginning of punk? or No Wave? Discuss in 250 words or less please.

Back the post. Cover versions. it is clear that some of the covers supercede and replace the original in our psyche. Take for example, Hurt by Johnny Cash. Everyone remembers that version and remembers that it is the cover of the Nine Inch Nails track. But how many people then sit through the NIN track? Not a lot I think. It is a different audience.

That is the point. It is not about The Flaming Lips covering Radiohead, this is more a mutual appreciation society. It is about people like Heather Nova covering a Neil Young song, like this.

It brings a great song to a new audience and there can not be much better than that. I am often asked how I come by so much music. Where I go to find it. Well, apart from talking to the likes of you, it is through this. I look up the song I like and either see that it is an original, and then explore the band. Or I find that it is a cover and go back to try to find the original. Then explore some of the music that that person produced. As you will remember I think that it is all new music if you haven't heard it before.

Anyway, there isn't really an overriding point to this. Just that it is worth listening to cover tracks as much as others because sometimes you undercover a real gem.

Like this