Rock covers of foreign pop music. Heavy covers of pop hits

A topic that constantly comes up at drinking parties: it seems like you want to dance, but it’s somehow awkward to listen to frank pop music. For such cases, there is a special genre: heavy cover versions of dance hits. IN musical history There are countless of them: from thematic collections like “tribute to that ABBA” to thematic projects a la NORTHERN KINGS, TEN MASKED MEN - or . Not bad, although not close complete collection similar covers are presented on last.fm (start studying closer to next weekend), but today I will publish my top 13. Heavy versions that I think breathe new life into classic rock and pop themes.

1. "Oops I Did It Again"(Britney Spears cover)
An excellent humorous and very driving parody.

(for those who don’t understand, the video is also humor)

2. "Whiskey In The Jar". The group rethought the Irish folk theme so well that many already think that this was the way it was in the original.

3. IN EXTREMO "Herr Mannelig". Another one folk thing- a medieval Swedish ballad that was played by many, including HAGGARD, GARMARNA, SATARIAL, HEDNIGARNA, the group CHUR, LITVINTROLL, etc. But for some reason I like the performance of IN EXTREMO the most.

4. "Spaceman"(BABYLON ZOO cover). Animatronic 99 became the first experimental and last hit album in the history of the Norwegians...

5. "Roads"(PORTISHEAD cover). Sad, incredibly sad and poignant thing. Both in the original and performed by the doomy Englishmen. Not for dancing, but a must listen (and not just this song, but the entire split with ANATHEMA on which it was released).

(the video, of course, is attached just like that).

6. GRAVEWORM “Losing My Religion” (R.E.M. cover). Italian blacks have changed many songs, but for some reason I like this one the most. Heartfelt.

7. "Wicked Game"(cover by Chris Isaak). Also a kind of pop, but the execution and presentation are simply magnificent.

8. TO/DIE/FOR “(I Just) Died in Your Arms”(CUTTING CREW cover). The Finnish guys also reinterpreted U2, Sandra, and PET SHOP BOYS... and also, by the way, not bad.

9. PAIN "Eleanor Rigby"(THE BEATLES cover). Peter is so talented that he is not able to spoil even the Beatles with his touch. An original reading of a great thing. Beauty.

10. MARILYN MANSON “Sweet Dreams”(EURYTHMICS cover). Probably one of best covers in the history of music. There is nothing more to add.

11. RAMMSTEIN "Stripped"(DEPECHE MODE cover). Rockers and metallers often replayed “Depeshei” - and often successfully. But, perhaps, only RAMMSTEIN managed to include “Stripped” in the list of their greatest hits.

12. THE TRACEELORDS “Daddy Cool”(BONEY M cover). Especially for crazy parties...

13. DISTURBED “Land Of Confusion”(GENESIS cover). Cool - and fresh - rendition of a cool song. No worse than the original, honestly.

Pain- Eleanor Rigby (Beatles cover)

Vocalist/guitarist Peter Tagtgren comments:

Under my contract with Universal, I owed them one more album. And I thought, “Why not make it a covers album?” (which, by the way, never came out - approx. VaGrius) Actually, that’s how it all turned out. In fact, I play covers of bands that I love. And as for Beatles songs“Eleanor Rigby”, I chose this song because it is different from everything else they did... I really like the original, and it was a pleasure to cover this composition.

Diablo- Dancing Queen (ABBA cover)

great rhythm section and special gloomy atmosphere

Helia- Alejandro (Lady Gaga cover)

killer cover))

Rammstein- Das Model (Kraftwerk cover)

A music video was made for this song, but it was not officially released because Kraftwerk did not like it. "Das Modell" was performed live only once, on October 23, 1998 in St. Louis, USA, during the Family Values ​​Tour.
one of my favorite songs from the legendary electronic musicians

HIM- Wicked Game (Chris Isaac Cover)

Wicked Game is a song by Chris Isaac from the album Heart Shaped World (1989). Although the song was released in 1989, it became a hit much later, after David Lynch used it in the film Wild at Heart. Lee Chesnut, a radio station director in Atlanta and a fan of Lynch's films, put the song in rotation, after which it became a worldwide hit in January 1991, and in the United States reached number six on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Gamma Ray- Its A Sin (Pet Shop Boys)

"It's a Sin" is a song by the British pop group Pet Shop Boys, released as a single in the summer of 1987. Is one of the " business cards"by the duo, is performed at almost all concerts. According to Tennant, "It's a Sin" was written in 1982 in a studio in Camden: Lowe played several chords that seemed "too religious" to Tennant, who studied at a Catholic school.

Seether- Careless Whisper (George Michael Cover)

“Careless Whisper” (Russian: Careless Whisper) is the first solo hit of British singer George Michael, member of the pop duo Wham! (in the USA the performer was called Wham! featuring George Michael) The single became best song 1985 in the USA and topped the charts in 25 countries with a total circulation of about 6 million copies. By according to The Official Charts Company for 2012 it is George Michael's most commercially successful single in the UK

Disturbed- Shout 2000 (Tears For Fears cover)

Vocalist David Draiman comments:

I think it's just a masterpiece. We needed a song with a sound completely opposite to ours, combining elements different styles, but at the same time with lyrics similar to those written by Disturbed. The song “Shout” was perfect. It's about the voice of your indignation that comes out screaming when you just can't sit back and endure it. But if you remember, this English pop song was written in the 80s, at a time when easier-to-understand things were in vogue. It seems to me that it fits perfectly into our repertoire, we play it at almost every concert, and our listeners really enjoy it.

It Dies Today- Come Undone (Duran Duran cover)

This relatively young American formation knows a lot about covers - they gutted Alice In Chains (“Them Bones”), then Depeche Mode (“Enjoy The Silence”), or they took on the British pop rockers Duran Duran with their famous track “Come Undone", which was released on the album "Lividity" (2009). It turned out very hard and branded

All Ends- Apologize (OneRepublic cover)

Jeff Scott Soto- Frozen (Madonna Cover)

"Frozen" is an electronic ballad. The song shows a radical change for Madonna. The dark electronic undertones, Middle Eastern drums and her new vocal range were previously unexplored territories for the singer. However, the song was a huge success and fans rated it as one of best songs Madonnas. "Frozen" received a lot positive feedback from the majority music critics. According to the singer, the song's lyrics are about "an emotionally frozen person." The song is primarily composed of notes in the key of F minor.

Embellish- Falling is an awesome dark song For fans of the TV series Twin Peaks

The entire soundtrack for the series was created by avant-garde jazz composer Angelo Badalamenti, who wrote music for many of David Lynch's films (their collaboration began with the film Blue Velvet). In January 2012, NBC announced that work was underway to create a sequel for the series.

Twilight Guardians- La Isla Bonita (Madonna)

La Isla Bonita (translated from Spanish- “beautiful island”) - song American singer Madonna's Latin pop music, released in studio album True Blue February 25, 1987

The song was co-written by Patrick Leonard and Bruce Gatesch in 1986, and was offered to Michael Jackson, who, according to Gatesch, turned down the song. Having received the offer, Madonna partially redid the words and melody of the song, which turned out to be the first for her to feature Spanish motifs.

Lacuna Coil- Enjoy The Silence (Depeche Mode cover)

Many of us have repeatedly reveled in the loud hits of our favorite bands, not even suspecting that our parents, and often even our grandparents, sang along to these songs. True, times were different then, and the songs sounded differently, and they were performed by completely different musicians. We invite you to plunge into a short excursion into the history of rock music and identify the top ten famous compositions, which became known to a wide audience thanks to publications on them different time rock covers.

1. Muse - Feeling good, 2001

Original: Anthony Newley and Leslie Bricusse, 1964

2. Elvis Presley - Tutti Frutti, 1956

Original: Little Richard, 1955

A genius of rock and roll, who no less brilliantly performed the compositions of other kings of the rock and roll scene of the mid-50s. Before he had time to release his first big hit in 1955 - the song Tutti Frutti - already in 1956 the track was successfully “tested” by Elvis. Undoubtedly, the original song performed by Little Richard is very fiery. However, Elvis's version (performed at an accelerated tempo and in a lower key), for our humble taste, more than covers the original. That is why Elvis's version of Tutti Frutti is heard from radio speakers much more often than the original composition.

3. Elvis Presley - Blue Suede Shoes, 1956

Original: Carl Perkins, 1955

The original lyrics to the song about blue suede shoes were written on a potato chip bag in the middle of the night. Recorded at the end of 1955, the track became an almost instant hit. Around the same time, a cover version of the song was born - the composition “One For a Money” performed by Elvis Presley. However, out of friendly motives, Presley delayed the release of his cover single, giving Perkins the opportunity to promote the record. However, even the delay did not prevent Presley's more agile and memorable version from eclipsing the original in popularity.
P.S. For those especially interested, we have a whole about this track.

4. Scorpions - White Dove, 1994

Original: Omega - Gyöngyhajú lány (Girl with Pearl Hair), 1969

In fact, they only borrowed music from the famous Hungarian band Omega - the lyrics of the song (far from being originally romantic) were completely rewritten. However, it gave the composition a second life in the mid-90s - and became part of the golden classic of Scorpions hits.

5. Nazareth - Love Hurts, 1975

Original: The Everly Brothers, 1960

Despite the wild popularity of the duo of American brothers in their homeland, in the USA, in the pre-Beatles era, the composition Love Hurts, released in 1960, was not noticed by the public. The song was given a second birth by its adaptation, released 15 years after the original appeared. The Scottish rockers significantly reworked the Everly Brothers' composition, turning it into a calm and refined lyrical song into a poignant rock ballad about all-consuming love. It was in Nazareth's performance that the song achieved unprecedented success, and has since occupied place of honor on the list of the most recognizable and beloved rock ballads.

6. Placebo - Fuck you, 2009

Original: Archive, 2004

Frontman Brian Molko is always very careful when choosing songs for subsequent cover processing. Perhaps that is why they almost always turn out to be very piercing and so consistent with the spirit of the original Placebo that it is very difficult to guess about their “unoriginal” origin. The song Fuck you was originally recorded by English electro-progressive rockers Archive. IN original version the song sounds much more meditative and unemotional, and the music contains much more elements electronics than the later Placebo treatment. However, Molko’s version is many times more emotional and therefore, in our opinion, produces a more strong impression than the original Archive composition.

7. Johnny Cash - Hurt, 2002

Original: Nine Inch Nails, 1994

He also took a very careful approach to the release of cover versions, putting a piece of his spirit into each processed song. That is why the compositions he produces have a unique, truly “cash” spirit. The same thing happened with the song of the then young rockers. The song's author, NIN frontman Trent Raznor, was initially dubious about Cash's idea. However, later, according to Raznor himself, Johnny Cash's version eclipsed the original in the beauty of the music and the depth of the meaning expressed in the song. It even got to the point of embarrassment: numerous Cash fans, not always familiar with the work of the eccentric Raznor and his NIN, mistakenly attributed the authorship of the song to Johnny Cash. But you and I know the truth.

8. Platters - Twilight time, 1958

Original: Buck Ram (lyrics) and the Three suns (music), 1944

Once thunderous throughout America the team the Platters (now, in our opinion, completely undeservedly forgotten by the mass listener) released a loud hit in 1958, which rose to the top of the Billboard 100 chart. The original version (in instrumental and vocal performance) was recorded back in the mid-40s, but also in our days the most known variant execution lyrical ballad owned by Californians Platters. Those who were not yet familiar with this wonderful band are advised to get acquainted with them immediately (at least for the sake of the song Sixteen Tones, which managed to break through even iron curtain in USSR).

9. The Beatles - Long Tall Sally, 1964

Original: Little Richard, 1956

Another hit by the king of rock and roll, which was given a second wind by another successful cover version released. The Beatles' version can be considered one of the most famous variations of Little Richard's original composition (along with the cover version of the same name, but by Elvis Presley). However, in contrast to the catchy rock 'n' roll sound accompanied by the saxophone released by Little Richard, the Beatles' version has a more pronounced rhythm and blues sound, and the presentation itself surpasses even Little Richard's original in terms of aggressiveness of performance. However, in terms of temperament, both compositions are absolutely not inferior to each other - we recommend listening to both.

10. Metallica - Turn the page, 1998

Original: Bob Seger, 1973

Created back in the early 70s, the song Turn the Page has firmly entered the list of classic rock compositions. However, the version released in 1998 is probably more familiar to the general public. Unlike the original, performed in the spirit of classic rock, the Metallica version (as expected) has a much heavier sound, and the saxophone parts in it have been replaced with guitar solos. As a result, the golden rock classic under the leadership of the masters from Metallica turned into a loud metal hit that stayed at the top of Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock for 11 weeks, which was an absolute record for the famous metalists.