The Beatles, need I say more? I mean, this probably wouldn’t
be a very interesting blog post if I didn’t, so yeah I probably should. They
were a band that ruled the world in their time, and for good reason. With every
new invention of themselves, they were more and more brilliant, and their music
has influenced quite possibly everything about modern pop music. One of my
favorite things about the Beatles is, as strange as it may sound, something
that has nothing to do with the four guys themselves, at least at that moment.
In the 20 years I’ve been listening to music (I’m 20 years old, math so easy
even a liberal arts major such as myself can do it) I’ve probably heard Beatles
covers done in just about every genre you can imagine. Seriously, everything
from classical to techno to reggae to country, it really shows how many people
these four dudes from Liverpool have touched with their music. I’ve seen
websites that have lists up to Top 50 Beatles covers, and there are many more
than that. In fact, “Yesterday” is I believe that Guinness World Record holder
for most covered song. However, I’ve
narrowed my list down to my eight favorites. Now, before you get your panties
in a bunch, I do realize that my list isn’t super diverse, in fact its quite
the opposite. Two of them were done at Woodstock, and two of them are from
Beatles related movies that a lot of people don’t like. If I talked about every
awesome Beatles cover I’ve ever heard, I’d take up all the space on the
internet (that’s right, all of it). Hell, the list of “honorable mentions”
outside my top 8 could probably be its own separate post. That being said, here
are my top 8 favorite Beatles Covers.
8. Johnny Cash- In My Life
It is rarely debated that Johnny Cash is probably one of the
coolest dudes to ever walk planet earth, and that didn’t slow down one bit with
age. Up until his death in 2003, the man made some incredible music. Though his
cover of “Hurt” by Nine Inch Nails is definitely his most notable work of his
late career (even Trent Reznor admitted that song now belongs to Cash) he did
some really amazing covers in his last few years. His cover of “In My Life”
definitely ranks among the top rung of those covers. To me, it really captures
what I feel the song is about. When the Beatles did it, though they had a lot
of life experience from being the biggest freakin band in the world, they were
still pretty young. As far as they knew at the time, they still had many happy
years ahead of them. On the other hand, Johnny is singing this song as a 70
year old man, a man who knows he’s in the twilight of his life, looking back on
everything he’s done. Theres a bittersweetness in his voice that just tugs at
your heartstrings. It’s the kind of stuff that makes me miss Mr. Cash, but also
makes me so happy the world had the chance to know him as long as we did.
7. Greensky Bluegrass- A Day in the Life
I’m going to go out on a limb here and guess most of you
haven’t heard this cover before, unless of course you’re a massive bluegrass
fan. The reason for that is because this band is probably the least known band
on my list. Greensky Bluegrass is a band from Kalamazoo Michigan that has
gained regional and even some national notoriety in the bluegrass community for
the last decade or so. I first heard this cover during my first year of
college, a hippie by the name of Tom used to come through out campus a few
times a year and sell stuff to the students. Ya know, hippie stuff like
hoodies, t-shirts, flags, etc. Anyway, he turned me on to some good bluegrass
and started with this cover. I’ve been in love ever since. The things that find
so interesting about this cover is the fact that, despite the fact that they’re
playing bluegrass instruments, they stay impressively true to the original. The
arrangement is about the same, the singer sings in what sounds like the same
key, and the twang is, while of course present, surprisingly minimal. That plus
the fact that they’re an entirely different genre of music provides a cover that’s
not insulting to the original tune while still being interesting enough to make
it worthwhile. So good job guys, you hit the nail right on the head! (Also, readers, you can buy the full verion on itunes, I realize this video doesn't start until about halfway through the first verse)
6. Come together- Aerosmith
I would just like to start by saying that the Bee Gee’s “Sgt.
Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band” is without a doubt one of the most horrible
movies I’ve ever seen in my life. The acting is abysmal, the attempt at a “quirky”
story just ends up making no sense, and most of the covers in this movies are
absolutely gut wrenching. However, it is also worth noting that two of those
covers stand high above the rest. One of them is Earth Wind and Fire’s cover of
“I Gotta Get You Into My Life” which would probably have been my ninth song had
a chosen to go that far (unfortunately I couldn’t find a number 10 that looked
good enough to balance out my list so I left it off) and the second is of
course Aerosmith’s legendary cover of “Come Together.” Thanks to a great amount
of influence from my dad, Aerosmith was my favorite band most of the time I was
in grade school and well into high school. The fact that I always felt their “shtick”
was nothing more than just writing really really good rock and roll songs
always appealed to me. And Steven Tyler is still one of the greatest front men
to ever live, period. So of course this cover is everything one would expect it
to be. A true blue tribute to the original with an edge that only Aerosmith
could provide. They’re not trying to be the Beatles, and I mean why should they
be, there was only one Beatles, but theres only one Aerosmith too, and no one
could have paid homage to the greatest band of all time quite like one of the
other greatest bands of all time.
5. A Little Help From My Friends- Joe Cocker
I’m not going to waste too much time on this one. Joe Cocker
is one of the most underrated talents of his time and it’s a damn shame. I
would say this is one of those rare situations where the cover has become just
as popular and notable as original in the history of music. Sure, sometimes the
original is fairly unknown and the cover is the hit, but the idea that BOTH
songs were big in the same era and were equally respected? That’s one in a
million. And while some of us still get a kick out of his performance of it at Woodstock
(I mean come on, that was hilarious) very few of us would ever disrespect Mr.
Cocker or his brilliant rendition of a Fab Four classic.
4. Helter Skelter- Dana Fuchs
I know not everyone liked the film “Across the Universe,”
and I can certainly understand why. It was very odd, very contemporary in many
ways, and most of the songs were decent but not anywhere near comparable to the
originals. All of that aside, I really enjoyed this movie when it came out. I
thought it was interesting, fun, and did a good job tying songs from all over
the Beatle’s career into a pretty good story. Now, a can say with absolutely authority
that this is the only cover in the movie that would go anywhere NEAR this list,
but I must admit that this cover pumps me up like you wouldn’t believe every
time I hear it. Sadie, Dana’s character in the movie who is of course named
after a Beatles song like every other character, is the strong, independent,
intense but still very cool lead singer of a band. Obviously, her character is
supposed to emulate Janis Joplin, and if its not obvious enough from her attire
it sure as hell is the second she starts singing. Her raw passionate vocals
drive the songs from the minute it starts all the way through. Accompanied by a
great backing band, she takes this song and adds an edge only a killer female
vocalist could add. So to anyone out there who thinks girls can’t rock, give
this one a listen. If you still think that, you’re probably a sexist moron.
3. Richie Havens- Strawberry Fields Forever
You know a lot of those points I’ve made earlier in this
post? Well let me regurgitate a few. Richie Havens: Old, raw, passionate,
underrated, played at Woodstock, legendary, stays true to the original while
putting his own unique spin on things. I can’t quite put my finger on what
exactly it is I like so much about Richie. I’ve never had a huge love affair with
raspy singers though I do like some of them. Its hard to explain in any way
except saying that he’s just really, really cool. Every time I listen to this
cover, I find myself entranced, just getting lost in his dynamic guitar
strumming and strained yet soothing voice. Not to mention the man sounds almost
exactly the same live and recorded, and even by pre-auto tune standards that’s pretty
hard to do.
2.Eleanor Rigby- Aretha Franklin
There’s no other way to say it, I’m obsessed with Aretha
Franklin. She is, without a doubt, my favorite vocalist of all time. There’s
not a single imperfection in Aretha’s music, and that’s a fact Jack. I don’t
care that I’m a 20 year old white boy, I would marry that woman if given the
chance. Now, before I start getting too creepy (if its not already too late) lets
talk about this cover. From the second that loud, intense, soul-filled piano
comes in, you know the Queen of Soul ain’t here to mess around. She takes a
song that’s originally very rigid and classical-esque and adds a heavy dose of….
Well…. Not “blackness” exactly but……. Actually, yeah, that’s probably the best
way to describe it. She adds a little hot fudge to that vanilla ice cream and
its never tasted so sweet. Wow, that was a kind of a creepy and sexualized
metaphor….. I’ll quit while I’m ahead. This cover is amazing, dig it.
1.
Stevie Wonder- We Can Work It Out
Ladies and Gents, every once in a while, a cover comes along that’s so
good, it actually makes me angry. I get angry because I feel that perhaps the
higher beings have hoarded all the talent of the world and given it to a select
few people. Either that, or the person involved has to be some kind of super
being, or robot, or alien, because no normal person can be that talented.
Stevie Wonder is without a doubt that person. The first time I heard this
cover, I could only think one thing “dude,
you are the only person ON EARTH that can take a cover of THE BEATLES and make
it sounds like you wrote it.” Every bit of this cover is just jaw dropping. The
arrangements, the vocal delivery, that brilliantly placed harmonica solo near
the end, theres not a part of it that isn’t a picture of absolute musical
perfection. Stevie is one of those people that is simply not capable of disappointing
to this day, and that shines through tenfold in this song.
Well,
that’s about it for this post. I hope you enjoyed it, and I hope my opinions
haven’t offended you too much. But, more importantly, I’d like to hear from
anyone out there reading this, what are your favorite Beatles covers? Why? I’d
love to hear ones I haven’t heard before so by all means, share away!
P.S. Sorry for the weird spacing on number 1, I'm a technological caveman and don't know how to fix it.
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