RFI: Cover songs that change the key from major to minor

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I was listening to the afghan whigs cover of the supreme's "come see about me" and noted the minor key in the verses rather than the upbeat major key of the original.

which others do you know of?

― gygax! (gygax!), Friday, 15 August 2003 14:56 (twenty-two years ago)

I used to do this with Christmas songs on the piano. Or maybe it was just "Jingle Bells." All the good Christmas songs are in minor keys already.

― jaymc (jaymc), Friday, 15 August 2003 15:01 (twenty-two years ago)

The Morales mix of Mariah Carey's "Dream Lover" does something like this. I'm not sure of the actual harmony change right now(I'm at work). Also, the Beach Boys' "You are my sunshine"

― Maxwell von Bismarck (maxwell von bismarck), Friday, 15 August 2003 15:18 (twenty-two years ago)

The Replicants' cover of the Cars' "Just What I Needed" didn't change to minor key per se, but one of the power chords was changed to a half-step lower, which makes it sound minor.

― King Kobra (King Kobra), Friday, 15 August 2003 15:24 (twenty-two years ago)

St.Etienne doing Neil Young's "Only love can break your heart"

― Keith Watson (kmw), Friday, 15 August 2003 15:29 (twenty-two years ago)

Original "Louie Louie" versus Paul Revere (and others) "Louie Louie"

but we have covered that example to death

― ddd (ddd), Friday, 15 August 2003 15:39 (twenty-two years ago)

Dean Roberts' version of "Cindy Tells Me", fucking up the changes completely (which convinced me that he actually can't play the guitar at all).

― nestmanso (nestmanso), Friday, 15 August 2003 15:54 (twenty-two years ago)

John Cale's cover of "Heartbreak Hotel" has perhaps his most gothic instrumental backing and one of his most gut-wrenching vocals -- the Elvis original, even though the lyrics are morose, is done in a major-key blues chord progression.

― Nom De Plume (Nom De Plume), Friday, 15 August 2003 16:32 (twenty-two years ago)

(this has the makings of a good CDR)

― gygax! (gygax!), Friday, 15 August 2003 16:42 (twenty-two years ago)

The new Neptunes mix of Sympathy For The Devil lays some minor-key acoustic guitar under the vocals towards the end, to decent effect. I do this all the time in my own bootleg-like stuff. What's better is taking stuff in minor-key arrangement and making it major. Come to think of it, that's what happens in A Stroke of Genie-us.

― Rufus King, Friday, 15 August 2003 16:44 (twenty-two years ago)

The Carpenters version of Ticket To Ride?

― retort pouch (retort pouch), Friday, 15 August 2003 17:33 (twenty-two years ago)

Nope, major, like the original. (Ha ha, actually "mixolydian"!)

― nestmanso (nestmanso), Friday, 15 August 2003 17:37 (twenty-two years ago)

"I Wanna Dance with Numbers (or Some Bono)"

― Burr (Burr), Friday, 15 August 2003 17:38 (twenty-two years ago)

Yeah, I wasn't sure. The key is the same, but the chord on the "he don't care" is changed from major to minor, yes?

― retort pouch (retort pouch), Friday, 15 August 2003 17:41 (twenty-two years ago)

"I used to do this with Christmas songs on the piano. Or maybe it was just "Jingle Bells." All the good Christmas songs are in minor keys already."

Brave Combo recorded "Jingle Bells" in a minor key.

― Burr (Burr), Friday, 15 August 2003 17:45 (twenty-two years ago)

the chord on the "he don't care" is changed from major to minor, yes?

Aargh, caught on the wrong foot. I heard it only once and I'd have to hear it again, but I don't think so. (They dwell a bit on the shift to the sub-variant on "ri-i-ide" alright, which gives it a somewhat minorish impact.)

― nestmanso (nestmanso), Friday, 15 August 2003 17:46 (twenty-two years ago)

"the chord on the "he don't care" is changed from major to minor, yes?

Aargh, caught on the wrong foot. I heard it only once and I'd have to hear it again, but I don't think so."

No, retort pouch is right about the one chord.

― Burr (Burr), Friday, 15 August 2003 18:35 (twenty-two years ago)

ashtray boy doing the go betweens "right here"

― electric sound of jim (electricsound), Saturday, 16 August 2003 03:00 (twenty-two years ago)

Aztec Camera covering Van Halen's Jump

(sounds like it to me anyway, but I don't know technically)

― Kim (Kim), Saturday, 16 August 2003 19:28 (twenty-two years ago)

Nirvana covering Leadbelly's "Where Did You Sleep Last Night?"

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Sunday, 17 August 2003 19:18 (twenty-two years ago)

Nirvana's cover of Leadbelly's "Where Did You Sleep Last Night?" ignores the major third in the root chord

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Sunday, 17 August 2003 19:20 (twenty-two years ago)

"Sweet Child o' Mine" uses an Ab minor chord in the verses but a Ab major one in the chorus. Sheryl Crow was apparently unable to figure this out.

― My name is Kenny (My name is Kenny), Sunday, 17 August 2003 19:33 (twenty-two years ago)

yo la tengo almost committed a similar error when recording their cover of the kinks' "big sky" (the intro in particular) but the recording engineer (?) pointed it out to ira.

― gygax! (gygax!), Monday, 18 August 2003 06:24 (twenty-two years ago)

I do a great upbeat major chord version of Alcoholic by Starsailor

"Don't you know you've got your daddys eyes, well your daddy was ane alcoholic 2, 3, 4.

― Jarlr'mai (jarlrmai), Monday, 18 August 2003 13:59 (twenty-two years ago)

twenty-two years pass...

Pixies - "Que Sera Sera"

― imperial frfr (Steve Shasta), Thursday, 21 May 2026 01:10 (three weeks ago)

Mahler interpolating the "Frère Jacques" melody into his first symphony, although apparently at the time it was not uncommon to sing it in a minor key.

― Halfway there but for you, Thursday, 21 May 2026 16:08 (three weeks ago)

As a teen I bought the "Tower Of Song" Leonard Cohen tribute CD for Tori's "Famous Blue Raincoat" cover, stayed for the Suzanne Vega version of "Song Of Isaac" (it's terrific). Bono covers "Hallelujah", which in 1995 was not-yet ubiquitous (pre-John Cale, Rufus Wainwright, Shrek etc.), it was my first time hearing the song. It's minor-key and spoken word

― yet I admit I'm still susceptible to ILX's allure (flamboyant goon tie included), Thursday, 21 May 2026 16:26 (three weeks ago)

I'm still haunted by a bad brass band version of "Minor Saints" I heard years ago, very cursed.

― Jordan s/t (Jordan), Thursday, 21 May 2026 16:44 (three weeks ago)

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