Less famous covers that you knew before the more famous originals

What audience does TATU cater to (actual question)?

― to party with our demons (Sund4r)

Compared to The Smiths? I’d say rockist vs popist. Nowadays the lines are blurred but it didn’t feel that way in the early 00s.

As I said, I suspected The Smiths original was the most popular version but in my experience I don’t know many Smiths or TATU fans, I’m just going by the reaction whenever that song is played. Usually friends born 88-onwards know it by the cover.

I don’t care about that song in particular, but I do get frustrated when I play “Running up that hill” in a social gathering and I hear someone telling me “oh good one! The Placebo song!”

Interesting. The Smiths song was even used in car commercials here in the early 00s. The only TATU song I've heard (and the only one that charted in Canada, based on Wikipedia) is "All The Things She Said". If I expected people to know a cover of "How Soon Is Now", it would probably the one that was used for Charmed (Love Spit Love?).

However, the first version of "How Soon Is Now" that I heard was the Meatmen's, which is definitely a candidate for this thread.

Anyhoo to expand on the TATU vs The Smiths audience: I think people who were listening to TATU were very most likely not into indie/jangle rock from the 80’s or even aware of who The Smiths were.

Maybe in England the experience was different, maybe the Smiths were still a popular band in the teenage demographic in the early 00s.

I thought they were big in Mexico?

They are, but they’re actually more popular in the mexican communities in California, not in Mexico per se. Also not for my particular demographic. Everyone I’ve spoken to born after 1990 don’t seem to be aware or have a strong opinion on them.

Yeah, they're not a band I find cross over that great with younger people here either ime. I've never known a non-ilxor who listens to TATU, though.

Again, this is pretty much my isolated experience so take it with a grain of salt. In the late 90s/early 00s internet was pretty much a luxury in Mexico and there wasn’t much outsider influence. Older, legacy bands were only shared either by older siblings and friends or via MTV or VH1 and I don’t think I ever watched a The Smiths video on either. I think I became aware of The Smiths until my mid 20’s and it was via internet. It wasn’t until my late 20’s that I actually overheard them in a social context - via “This Charming Man” - and it was actually in Spain not in Mexico.

Yeah, they're not a band I find cross over that great with younger people here either ime. I've never known a non-ilxor who listens to TATU, though.

― to party with our demons (Sund4r)

I don’t know anyone who still listens to TATU but “all the things she said” and “how is soon is now?” were extremely popular in my demographic when they came out. Nowadays they’re more of a “hey remember this band?” sort of thing.

I can see “all the things she said” was pretty much a top 10 hit everywhere except the US: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_the_Things_She_Said

The cover of “How soon is now” was only a top 10 hit in Chile, Mexico, Sweden, Russia and Greece. Might explain why I perceive it as a more popular song than what it actually was.

The Residents, "Good Lovin'" / The Rascals, "Good Lovin'".

There's bound to be other Residents' tracks because they often covered songs that were 60s US hits but did nothing in the UK.

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

Great, didn't look at th evideo playing since it started with a record label picture.
Oh well .
mainly posted because it would be teh opposite of the thread.
Covers of odd choices by artists well known for other stuff
THihk this should be sharable
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QV8KN9fDaE.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfnOaLQHKh8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U-QT3AWtcjI