Does your band do a nifty cover version that sounds nothing like the original?

Ubersheist · #1 04-01-2009, 05:46 PM

So, I just thought I'd start up a thread. I love it when bands get creative with someone else's songs. I remember seeing a band called "Emily's Toy Box" while out in Key West while on vacation. They took a load of old songs and made 'em super fun - reggae versions of "Hotel California," and "Feel Like Makin' Love." http://www.emilystoybox.com/

I think we do a good version of "Sweet Leaf" by Black Sabbath - it's the 4th song our myspace page.

What do you guys (and girls) do? How do y'all change things up?

Any examples?

Absurdism · #2 04-01-2009, 10:48 PM

Very nice man
you guys remind of sublime in a good way vocally at least

bigntasty · #3 04-02-2009, 12:25 AM

Our now-defunct contemporary Christian band, Higher Than i, did an update on "They'll Know We Are Christians By Our Love". I thought it turned out pretty good, and it was our most downloaded song. Here's our band's MySpace link. It's #2 on the player, I believe.

http://www.myspace.com/higherthaninet

JQ1986 · #4 04-02-2009, 06:55 AM

My band in high school did Last Kiss and we did the first part in the traditional way, then right before the chorus we punked it out. We also extended Paranoid into a 7 or 8 min jam at the end.

D Rokk · #5 04-02-2009, 06:59 AM

i just listened to a punk cover of 99 red balloons thismorning. it was good..

Ubersheist · #6 04-02-2009, 10:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by D Rokk

i just listened to a punk cover of 99 red balloons thismorning. it was good..

I remember 7 Seconds doing that song. I'll bet it was that version that you heard.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Z3eAEtYkeQ

i haven't thought of that in a long while... brings back some pleasant memories from high school/college... Egads I'm getting old.

Ubersheist · #7 04-02-2009, 10:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigntasty

Our now-defunct contemporary Christian band, Higher Than i, did an update on "They'll Know We Are Christians By Our Love". I thought it turned out pretty good, and it was our most downloaded song. Here's our band's MySpace link. It's #2 on the player, I believe.

http://www.myspace.com/higherthaninet

That was really nice. I'm not very familiar with the genre, but it sounds like it's an old folk song or something. I don't know the history of the song, and a cursory search on Google didn't help.

I did find a version by Jars of Clay. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqa0dJhhmxk - I like your version better. No joke.

crayzee · #8 04-02-2009, 12:07 PM

My old band did a really rockin' version of "I think I love you" by The Partridge Family. I don't think we ever got it on tape but it was fun to play.

Philbiker · #9 04-02-2009, 12:21 PM

My band plays Joan Jett's "Hate Myself For Loving You" with a kind of country/southern rock vibe, male vocals. Lots and lots of fun.

Joey3313 · #10 04-02-2009, 12:25 PM

Not my band, but some of the best covers I've heard have been of a Jawbreaker song called "Kiss the Bottle".

One is done by Lucero, who turned from an upbeat punk song into a messed up country folky number.

Sparta then covered the same song, turning it into a slower, indie, creepy song.

Jawbreaker: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ZTvqUvgYCI
Lucero version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QvoGhi0DNj4

The Foo Fighters covered it too, but it sucked.

Ubersheist · #11 04-02-2009, 05:35 PM

There's a local band from Sacto that does a country version of TLC's "Waterfalls." Funny as hell in concept, but they pull it off and it sounds good.

I was reminded earlier today that when I was in college, I was in a punk rock band that did punk versions of the following songs:

"Angel from Montgomery" by John Prine
Theme songs for Beverly Hills 90120, Charles in Charge, and Dukes of Hazzard
"Sweet Leaf" by Black Sabbath (coincidence... when I joined this band, they already had it in their setlist)
"Fernando" by Abba
"Stairway to Heaven" - we played a goofy 2 minute version where we imagined how it would sound if Frank Sinatra sang it (the drummer did a great impression), and then we just yelled "Stairway to Heaven" over and over while punking up that last harder section of the song.

The "Stairway to Heaven" was fun 'cause almost everyone knew that song. However, about 1996 or 1997, we played at a high school party (which was a trip in and of itself), and no one had any idea who Led Zeppelin was, or had ever heard the song. Did not go over good at all... Oh, how the mighty have fallen...

BillyRay · #12 04-02-2009, 07:46 PM

Quote:

The "Stairway to Heaven" was fun 'cause almost everyone knew that song. However, about 1996 or 1997, we played at a high school party (which was a trip in and of itself), and no one had any idea who Led Zeppelin was, or had ever heard the song. Did not go over good at all... Oh, how the mighty have fallen...

Where was this, Uganda ? High Schoolers, even now, account for a large part of the Zep fanbase ! Funny story.

Ubersheist · #13 04-02-2009, 08:49 PM

I dunno... I remember directly watching this one girl at the party who went absolutely ape@&!# when we played The Dukes of Hazzard. When we finished playing the song, she had this absolutely blank look on her face. I said to her directly in the mic "So, that was an old Led Zeppelin song. You know Led Zeppelin, right?" Big 'no' came out from her. I was shocked. 'How could she not know about Zeppelin???' I thought. I then asked the crowd who there was a Zeppelin fan. I got one or two go "yeah!"out of 60 or more people. I was stunned. For whatever reasons (moons harmoniously vibrating the crystals, all the kids happened to be children from Amish households, who knows...), the kids didn't seem to, by enlarge, have any idea who Led Zeppelin was. I was blown away. :shrugs:

knarleybass · #14 04-02-2009, 08:50 PM

Yes,
I play in at band that plays Led Zeppelin songs in a Reggae style with and Elvis impersonator for a singer.

EBodious · #15 04-02-2009, 10:34 PM

in my blues band, we wanted to cover "big river." i started playing the bass line from "the beat goes on." it worked great. we do a very slow, swanky version. it has shades of "born on the bayou" on it. i love it. great to jam on.

Ubersheist · #16 04-02-2009, 11:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by knarleybass

Yes,
I play in at band that plays Led Zeppelin songs in a Reggae style with and Elvis impersonator for a singer.

Heh... I think I saw you guys about 8 years ago at a club (which I think is now gone) in Long Beach, CA. But just a few songs...

One of my idiot friends had a crapload of stickers for his start-up t-shirt screening business. He put stickers all over and got some of us to toss a few around, too. The management figured out who it was, and tossed us all out. Still, a great night, and you guys (if you were with them back then) sounded great, and had the crowd going from the moment you took the stage.