x EvilErmine x:

HHammond:
*sigh*

*Raises flame shield*

I'm sorry. I'm so so sorry.

Fixed the Youtube embedding for you dude, and also good choice, maybe not better than the original but almost as good.

Thanks! My internet had decided it hated me yesterday.

+1 for Filter's One is the Loneliest Number.
...and if it I'm the first to mention that song then you all suck.

Normally I like Bowie, but I find that he just doesn't bring the solemnity needed for the song. Nirvana is pretty much perfect for it though.

It would have to be The Fratellis' cover of Red Headed Woman by Bruce Springsteen, they didn't cover it officially, they were recorded playing with toy instruments and sounds even better then the original

Philadelphia Grand Jury's cover of 99 Problems. I'm not sure if it is his cute white guy voice or the song that he is covering but it is so good!

lacktheknack:
Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah", as covered by - kd lang. Psyche!

It really is great. I was going to post kd lang's version of this too, but I was searching around for a good video of her singing it at the Vancouver Olympics.

Cradle of Filth's cover of Iron Maiden's "Hallowed Be Thy Name"

Time for some game music remixes! (Not exactly covers, I know, but close enough for me!)

Ralen-Sharr:

IMO way better than the original

Well you beat me to it, yeah I love that one.

Faith no more did poker face at download festival '09, and that was hilarious!

I am quite shocked at how awesome that Korn cover of "Another Brick in the Wall" turned out to be. Blasphemous it was not.

Anyway.

Those vocals... *sniff*

Johnny Cash's version of Hurt is a work of sublime beauty that needs to be heard by every single person in the entire world.

All Along the Watchtower is one for me. Hendrix's version is better than Dylan's, and I'm very sorry for saying it.

A lot of Aerosmith's covers off the Honking On Bobo album I think are, while maybe not 'better', certainly very very good versions of the original blues numbers.

The Black Crowes version of Hard to Handle I prefer to the original, Tom Petty's version of Oh Well.

Also, and this is the one people are likely to scoff at me for, I do prefer some of the songs that Glee does over the originals. Probably the most obvious one I can think of is Rolling in the Deep. Just better than Adele.

Pretty much any cover of a "big 4" song, as well as Demon Hunter's cover of Snap Your Fingers, Snap Your Neck, by Prog.

Capcha: piggyback (as in piggybacking of another band's success)

Heaven's Guardian:

Normally I like Bowie, but I find that he just doesn't bring the solemnity needed for the song. Nirvana is pretty much perfect for it though.

I don't like Nirvana very much, but it doesn't take a musical genius to see that David Bowie should have made "The Man Who Sold the World" more melancholy. It's brilliant.

I love Within Temptation's cover of Kate Bush's Running Up That Hill

I'm a Pixies fan, but I like the cover Yoav (feat. Emily Browning) did with Where Is My Mind?

For some reason, I've always preferred the bluegrass version of Gin and Juice. It's pretty rare for me to prefer country over hip-hop... I usually detest both.

Smoke Two Joints by the Toyes has been covered a few times, and most attribute the song to Sublime (ah, such lovely ignorance)... but my Favorite version of it is by Richard Cheese.

Now for a controversial one. Depeche Mode. I've always thought they had a great songwriter at the helm, but I absolutely cannot stand their lead singer's voice. It's probably an issue with me, but anything he sings comes out sounding like pretentious douchebaggery. So I prefer pretty much any cover of any Depeche Mode song.

Speaking of Between the Buried and Me's cover album...

CrazyCapnMorgan:

Time for some game music remixes!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

Wow, that was pretty fuckin' metal, actually. Never heard Terra's theme like that before.

There are also quite a few way back in the thread that I prefer... such as any punk song that Metallica turned into shock-metal on Garage, inc.

I prefer the disturbed cover of Shout by Tears for Fears, partly because I'm a metal fan but mostly because I really disliked the backing track of the original.

I know it's not very original but I love Jose Gonzalez's Heartbeats, damn you Bones for making me feel emotion again

Though the original is pretty damn awesome.

Oh shit, almost forgot.

I don't care what anyone says, this version rocks. Warning: turn up the quality to 480, it sounds shit on any lower.

I prefer Gun's version of Word Up more than Cameo's version.

letfireraindown:

Amazing how Shatner gives this song so much more emotion than the original.

See I disagree. While Shatner had a stroke of brilliance with his cover of that song, and it's equally as good as the original, I still think that Jarvis Cocker's vocals are far more affecting, and emotional than Shatner's version.

On-Topic.
Most of the songs I would mention are already here. (99 red balloons, Hurt) So I'll just say that Biffy Clyro's cover of Take Me Out by Frans Ferdinand is excellent.

Hammerfall's cover of Dio's "Man on the Silver Mountain" (but only just slightly. They both live in my "best songs" playlist)

Every cover on A Perfect Circle's eMOTIVe album except for "What's Going On". And personally, I prefer the original "Hurt" by NiN, though my reasoning may not be fair. Standing alone, I suppose Cash's version is better in some ways, but I think of the original in terms of the entire album, which I think is incredible. The Downward Spiral is one of the darkest and most well-produced albums I've heard in my entire life.

nikki191:
johnny cash's hurt is still one of the most amazing covers ever, trent from NIN actually said thats as far as hes concerned its a johnny cash song now

mad world by gary jules is better than the cures version

Mad World is a Tears for Fears song.

OT: I like Jeff Buckley's version of Hallelujah best, and I'm inclined to say that Bruce Springsteen's version of Jersey Girl manages to be even more evocative than Tom Waits' original.

Also, I don't think this is better than the original, but I definitely like it just as much...

OmniscientOstrich:

I just found the original of this to be increadibly tepid, while this version offers a heavier, more crushing instrumentation along with Hetfield's more sinister vocals does a much better job at conveying the tone the original was trying to impart. So well done Metallica (but I still think your cover of Whiskey in the Jar is just bland >.>).

I can't take it seriously because when he's saying 'Don't cry to me, oh baby' it has always sounded like 'no fried tomato baby' to me.

Colour-Scientist:
I can't take it seriously because when he's saying 'Don't cry to me, oh baby' it has always sounded like 'no fried tomato baby' to me.

Hmm, perhaps on a subconscious level I like the song for sharing my dispassion for grilled fruit? But yeah, I can't really take Machine Head's Imperium seriously for similar reasons after seeing one of those misheard lyrics videos.

Easy

VonKlaw:

Because who really likes Boney M?

Don't be dissin Boney M. They were fucking awesome.

Lessee...
Epica's cover of Replica by Fear Factory

Lacuna Coil's cover of Losing my Religion by REM

And who could possibly forget Children of Bodom's cover of Oops I did it Again by Britney Spears