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On Halloween night, Monsters of Folk surprised a packed crowd at the Louisville Palace by wearing full KISS regalia and performing Detroit Rock City and Rock and Roll All Nite during the second set of their show..jpg)
The proof is below in the form of a poor resolution camera-phone photo hastily taken before Palace security strolled by.
While they may the first band to ever don authentic KISS suits and make up, they aren't the first band to play cover songs in concert. And even more artists have included cover songs on their own releases. To present a comprehensive list of the best cover songs ever would be exhaustive and even audacious. So, the following list highlights some very good cover songs - nothing more, nothing less.
On this list you won't find Ozzy Osbourne's version of Stayin' Alive, The Pogues cover of Honky Tony Women, Tom Jones turn at Black Betty, or The Ramones take on the theme from Spider Man. I like all of them, and they are undeniably fun in their own right, though, but they aren't particularly great. And rest assured Celine Dion's bombastic roar of Eric Carmen's All By Myself is not on the list. It was so over the top, it makes Whitney Houston's vocal stylings seem subdued.
Hallelujah - Jeff Buckley: There is nothing wrong with Leonard Cohen's original, but it's also fair to say that Cohen can't breathe the same vocal life into the venerable song as Buckley did on the Grace LP. kd lang also did a very competent version of the song, but Buckley's is particularly moving.
Hurt - Johnny Cash: Cash turned this Nine Inch Nails song from creepy to haunting. As many good songwriters can do, Cash was always a good interpreter as well, making other people's songs sound like his own. The accompanying music video is equally effective and powerful and shows some majesty coupled with fragility that Trent Reznor may have never even envisioned.
After the Goldrush - Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris, and Linda Ronstadt: These three ladies could probably sing the phone book and make it sound good, but add their harmonies this timeless Neil Young melody, and you've got a wonderful record. This links takes you to a version Parton did with Alison Krauss and Suzanne Cox, which is also very good.
And Your Bird Can Sing - The Jam: The Jam were never too brash to celebrate their influences and did some excellent covers like The Chi-Lites' (Stoned Out of My Mind, The Small Faces' Get Yourself Together, The Who's So Sad About Us, and Curtis Mayfield's Move On Up , which, by the way, sounds like it was covered by the Latin American band Los Fabulosos Cadillacs instead of Mayfield's original. But it is this sped up, crunching Beatles' cover that adds a faster and more rocking sound than the original owned.
Roll Over Beethoven - Electric Light Orchestra: Suffice to say that Chuck Berry never imagined this eight-minute opus that combined Berry's original with the Beethoven's Fifth Symphony. It's one of those combinations that sound like a really bad idea (think Speed 2: Cruise Control) but turns out wonderfully unique and successful (don't think Speed 2: Cruise Control.)
Atlantic City - Ed Harcourt: There are many Springsteen covers out there. That's what happens when you have been one of the country's best songwriters for thirty-five years. There's something special about this cover, though. It is piano-based, and Harcourt sings with passion without overdoing it. The Band's cover is also worth checking out.
The End of the World - John Mellencamp: In 1963, Skeeter Davis had a huge hit with this song. It seems like an odd choice for Mellencamp's excellent Trouble No More collection of blues covers, but it works to great effect. The violin, the rugged voice - it all spells a successful and folksy cover.
Me and My Arrow - Nada Surf: Perhaps it is the version Harry Nilson would have done had he recorded the song decades later. Nothing fancy about it, and it's true to the original, but it's got a fresh sound, crisp production, and a little more beat than the original from The Point,
Wonderful Christmastime - Jars of Clay: This is a true Christmas miracle. Paul McCartney is a legend and a wonderfully gifted musician, but you really can't sugarcoat the fact that the original is horrid. Yet somehow Jars of Clay made this song palpable so much that it actually sounds like a welcomed Christmas carol.
In Your Eyes - Nancy Wilson: Half of Heart does a simple and powerful version of the Peter Gabriel classic. The stripped down version makes you re-realize just how great of a song it is. Add to all of this the fact that In Your Eyes was the musical centerpiece of her husband Cameron Crowe's film Say Anything, and it all spells a special recording.
Troubled Times - Dar Williams: A wonderfully evocative lyricist in her own right, she has fared well with Pink Floyd's Comfortably Numb, Neil Young's Everybody Knows This is Nowhere, and The Kinks' Better Days, but this Fountains of Wayne song really sounds like it could have been a Williams original. The tune was just fine to begin with, but she adds a peppy and new energy to the song.
Supernaut - Adam West: This is not the actor. (And that is a shame because I am a big fan, and my autographed 8x10 glossy is proof of that.) This is a Washington D.C. hard rock band band that rips through this Black Sabbath chestnut with similar fire as the original.
Lovers in a Dangerous Time - Barenaked Ladies: Although BNL shares their Canadian heritage with the song's writer Bruce Coburn, their version sounds nothing like his original. Speed it up a little, add a stand up bass, and give it a homespun flavor, and this is what you get.
Grow Old With Me - Mary Chapin Carpenter: She is another fine storyteller who can sing someone else's songs with equal conviction. This version fully realizes the John Lennon demo. Although it has a string arrangement, it is subdued and the song's simplicity remains.
Born In Time - Eric Clapton: The original Bob Dylan song was from 1990's Under The Red Sky, and it is decent. But Clapton's version is mesmerizing. The guitar playing is wonderful; I know that's a real revelation coming from Clapton. Still, the strings interplay with Clapton's hushed vocal makes this the centerpiece of Clapton's underrated Pilgrim album. Sebastian Cabot's 1967 recitation of It Ain't Me, Babe, while strangely glorious, isn't quite as good a Dylan cover.
Two noteworthy local artists with standout covers are the Todd Hildreth Trio's version of The Beatles' Don't Let Me Down and fellow Java Man Craig Wagner's solo version of Yes' Roundabout which would even make Steve Howe jealous. I suppose the highest praise for a cover song is when the cover becomes the version that is covered and not the original, which has been the case with Bruce Springsteen's Santa Claus Is Coming To Town.
As much as I wanted to include the sheer genius that is Leonard Nimoy's The Ballad of Bilbo Baggins, I couldn't because it's the most embarrassing song you've ever heard. Seriously, you will feel embarrassed just for listening to it. Anyway, although it was composed by Charles Randolph Grean, this tale of The Hobbit really wasn't a cover. William Shatner's interpretation of Elton John's Rocket Man at the 1978 Science Fiction Awards, was a cover. While Bernie Taupin may feel differently, it is better than I could ever possibly explain. You have to check out the footage yourself. Seriously, it is one of the most magical moments in television history and a cover like none other.
Monsters of Folk photo courtesy of H. Beardo.
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