Less famous covers that you knew before the more famous originals

Pet Shop Boys - you are always on my mind

Jeff Buckley: "Hallelujah" (not familiar with the Cohen one until later)

I'd argue Buckley's is the more famous version these days.

Primal Scream and Kate Moss - "Some Velvet Morning"

^ heard Slowdive's version before the original as well. Not really that good a song...?

I was surprised a couple years ago to learn that "Blue Monday" by Orgy was a cover of a very highly regarded song by a very highly regarded oldies act called New Order. as crappy a cover as it was, they really made it their own.

other depressing ones:

Limp Bizkit - Faith (George Michael)
311 - Love Song (The Cure)
Foo Fighters - Darling Nikki (Prince)
Limp Bizkit - Behind Blue Eyes (The Who)
Big Yellow Taxi - Counting Crows + Vanessa Carlton (Joni Mitchell)
The Ataris - Boys of Summer (Don Henley)

the early '00s was a dark time for alt-rock bands covering baby boomer chestnuts, although in fairness couple of these songs are just inherently awful, particularly "Big Yellow Taxi".

Always thought it was bizarre Frederick Durst could have such a wholesome upbringing in musical preferences and release stuff that contradicts everything perceived to be of quality or merits in an artist with the aforementioned.

The Raincoats' "Lola"

And yes I mean I'd *heard it* before but as far as rly becoming acquainted with/paying attention to:

Bjork & PJ Harvey - "Satisfaction"

The Scientists - It Came Out of the Sky

Always thought it was bizarre Frederick Durst could have such a wholesome upbringing in musical preferences and release stuff that contradicts everything perceived to be of quality or merits in an artist with the aforementioned.

I doubt Freddie really appreciates those songs/artists as a fan or even as a scholar. in the case of "Faith", I can imagine him writing off George Michael's version as wibbling faggotry and wanting to put his stamp on it partly for shock value but mostly to convince himself that, like a '90s buttrock Midas, his touch turns everything into pure testosteronic BADASS.

in the case of "Behind Blue Eyes", he identifies with the lyrics because they validate his sense of self-pity and gave him a chance to respond to his haters in their own language, but I doubt he has any great appreciation for The Who except insofar as they're considered one of the greatest rock bands ever... and so are Limp Bizkit.

when Fred Durst records a cover song, his aim is not to pay tribute to the original artist (and whatever qualities or merits they embody), but to pay tribute to Fred Durst and Limp Bizkit.

I had no idea "Faith" was a cover at first either. All I could think at the time was how bizarre it was for someone to write a song that was half really catchy pop funk and the other half dumb screamo shit. It makes a lot more sense now.

I'm still convinced The Sea and Cake's 'Sound and Vision' is better than the original Bowie song (which I didn't hear until much later). Barely anyone agreed with me, I made a poll on this.

I don't really agree either, IMO Prekop's voice is way too light and airy while Bowie's vocal gives it the small amount of power that the tune deserves. But otherwise, yeah. I heard TSAC's version first and was floored to find out that it was a cover of something that came out over 25 years before, and that it was actually a pretty damn faithful cover besides.

Anyway, here's mine:
Devo - "Satisfaction". Blame it on my parents having two copies of Devo's greatest hits around the house. I woke up to the radio at 11 and the Stones were playing, I could only think, "Who is this band and why are they covering Devo??" *slaps forehead*

Sting - "A Day in the Life". It's on the Demolition Man EP, yeah I know I know, but again I was like 11-12 and somehow hadn't heard the original. At first I just thought, "wow, this is one of his best songs ever, why didn't he release this???" Then I saw the credit "Lennon/McCartney"

Alien Ant Farm - "Smooth Criminal". They definitely did a good job with it since I never suspected that MJ did the original. In hindsight I don't know how I missed it...it's all anyone ever talked about with this song.

ELP - "Hoedown". AKA "Rodeo" by Copland or "Where's the beef?" Again, I was pretty young, I knew the melody was famous, somehow I thought that ELP made it that way.

Cake - "Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps". Recognized the Willie Nelson cover and "I Will Survive", of course. This one just floored me when I found out because it sounded so much like a Cake song.

Polysics - "The Great Brain". Okay, so P-Model's version isn't really famous, but I never ever would have guessed it was a cover. It fits so well into Polysics style that they could have almost put the ORIGINAL onto the album and it wouldn't seem out of place.

LCD Soundsystem - "Jump Into the Fire". My wife, who is a fan of LCD (but doesn't know all the songs), heard the Nilsson original while we were driving and asked if it was them. I mean pretty much the entire LCD Soundsystem sound comes from this song. So yeah, I was pretty surprised to find out it was a cover.

Pomplamoose, "Single Ladies"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4gicHqWzv4

The Bangles' "September Gurls"...pretty sure.

Top of my mind:

Slade - if this world were mine
Heard it before the Gaye version and I think I actually like it better.

13th floor elevators - its all over now baby blue
Might be that it was my first but it's also my favorite version, love how loose it sounds.

Soft Cell's Hendrix Medley (Hey Joe/Purple Haze/Voodoo Child)

Portastatic cover of 'Boy from School' before Hot Chip original

pretty much every Motown song I knew the California RAisins version before I knew the original

^^ oh god, yes, same here. they only made 13 episodes of the cartoon, which seems almost incredible to me

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJyfpm_NyW8

Yeah there must be a fair few Motown ones - for starters:

Japan - Ain't That Peculiar
Kim Wilde - You Keep Me Hangin' On
Incognito - Don't You Worry 'Bout a Thing
The Jam - Heatwave

john cale - hallelujah
neko case - never turn your back on mother earth
van halen - (oh) pretty woman, etc
all burt bacharach songs

elliott smith - thirteen

Garbage - Thirteen

I didn't know Minor Threat's "12XU" was a Wire cover for many years until I finally picked up Pink Flag and played it.

Metallica introduced me as a teenager to Killing Joke via their version of "The Wait."
I think that's the only band/song that can be considered "famous" at least compared to the NWOBHM obscurities that they were doing at the time.

I guess this happens more when yr young.

Like for some time, I only knew "Too busy thinkin 'bout my Baby" by Mardi Gras.

toots & the maytals - country roads

The Bangles' "September Gurls"...pretty sure.

― clemenza, Tuesday, September 1, 2015 4:48 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

This is a more famous cover of a less famous original though, surely?

All the covers on Living Colour's Biscuits were this way for me -- Talkin' Loud and Sayin' Nothin, Burning of the Midnight Lamp, Love and Happiness, Memories Can't Wait

Stone Temple Pilots - "Dancing Days"

no wonder I thought that song was so much better than the rest of their output...

That's probably one of my least favorite Zep songs

jawbreaker - pack it up

an embarrassing amount, but one: tracey thorn's get around to it

Minor Threat - Stepping Stone

Phil Collins "You Can't Hurry Love"

Nirvana-The Man Who Sold The World

Oh huh, I always think of that as the more famous version, like it took what was for most people a real obscurity and put it on this mega-selling album and MTV special.

i had the young marble giants on in the stockroom at this one job and one of my coworkers asked me, 'who are this band covering hole'

The Blues Brothers, "Soul Man."

This abomination was played on Chicago radio at least twice an hour in 1979. Hearing the Sam & Dave original five years later was a monumental revelation.

Pretty sure I heard Alexei Sayle's "Play That Funky Music Jewish Boy" first. The original is definitely more famous.

xpost Christ, I'd never seen it until today. friends of a friend used to do this version at karaoke nights, dance choreography and stupid Aykroyd "Soul mahhhhn" vocal. I thought they were just clowning it up but nope. Aykroyd annoys me cos he appears to be making fun of the song with his performance, even though I know he has reverence for it.

Nancy & lee's version of Jackson. Dopn't think I knew it was a cover for several years after it. Still not sure how often I've heard teh Johnny Cash version.

Gun Club Run ThrouGH The Jungle think I heard a couple of years before the CCR.
& I probably picked up on Robert JOhnson after hearing their first lp, which in turn may have been picked up from Son House. Preachin The Blues that is.

THink it toook me years to finally hear Tiny bradshaw's Train Kept A rollin, loved the Johnny BUrnette version for a couple of decades before taht and probably first heard the song in garage punk versions or by the Yardbirds or Led Zeppelin. Garage punk versi8on may have been the Chosen Few.

First came across I'm MOvin On by the Rolling Stones on No Stone Unturned the lp that was supposed to be their bsides and I'm not sure stuck to that model. I later heard it by Ray Charles on a best of him and only after that heard the Hank Snow original.

I only know the Lydia Lunch version of Run Through the Jungle... it was years before I even knew it was a CCR song, which I've still never heard.

Original is on Cosmo's Factory and I think it may be about Vietnam.

Lydia version 8 Eyed Spy?

Yes, 8 Eyed Spy.

This is probably an opposite example, hearing the original after the more famous cover. Anyway, Dawn Penn's version is wonderful, but so is this
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZsJMfYDUNCE

Joy Division's version of Sister Ray - put the teenage me off wanting to hear the Velvet Underground for ages

I was very familiar with 1992's two rocked-out covers of "Pink Moon" (by Walt Mink and Sebadoh) long before I heard the original -- probably in that VW ad.

fIREHOSE's live totem pole ep introduced me to böc's 'the red and the black', wire's 'mannequin' and the butthole surfers' 'revolution (part 2)'

r.e.m. introduced me to wire's 'strange'