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My top 5 favorite song covers

I can make some top 5 lists all day.

A cover is only as good as its source material. Or is it? Some of these covers I consider to be better than the originals.

#5 "Wagon Wheel" by Against Me!


Originally the chorus was written and recorded by Bob Dylan in 1973, and was called "Rock Me Mama," eventually verses were added by Ketch Secor of Old Crow Medicine Show in 2003, and "Wagon Wheel" was born. While the OCMS and Darius Rucker versions are good, I feel there's "too much" going on. In the Against Me! version, there's just a voice and a guitar, which really allows you to enjoy the lyrics and simplicity of the rhythm.

#4 "Whiskey In The Jar" by Metallica

This is actually an Irish folk song, believe it or not, about a highwayman who was executed in the mid-1600s. It sounds very "Wild West" but at the same time cowboys and banjos and fiddles and everything we associate with the deep south and "wild west" are pretty much Irish in origin. Does this count as a cover? Or is it just another rendition? I don't know. But it most closely resembles the Thin Lizzy version, but harder. Needless to say, Metallica are metal gods which definitely lets their cover shine a little brighter than other renditions of the song, even the original rock n' roll arrangement by Thin Lizzy.

#3 "Knockin' On Heaven's Door" by Guns N Roses


With several big name artists covering this song, it's hard to pick just one. But I think Clapton turned it a little too reggae. The song was originally recorded by Bob Dylan in '73, just like the song that became "Wagon Wheel." All in all, Guns N Roses did a great cover, alternating between coke-fueled 80s hair metal, gospel and southern rock.

#2 "Twist And Shout" by The Beatles

Everybody's had a piece of this song, originally recorded by The Top Notes in 1961: The Beatles, The Isley Brothers, Bruce Springsteen, The Who, Michael Buble, Tom Jones, The Mamas And The Papas, even Salt-N-Pepa. But the Beatles' version has to be my favorite version of all (not that I've listened to every version of this song). Lennon's cold and failing voice gave his vocals an amazing "raspy" quality, and the song was done in one take; after recording the song, Lennon's voice was gone. Knowing that, you can really hear how sick he sounds, but what it brings to the table can't be denied. A legendary cover by a legendary band.

#1 "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" by Tom Petty, George and Dhani Harrison, Steve Winwood, Jeff Lynne and Prince


This was George Harrison and Prince's induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2004... and what a ceremony it was. The performance literally brings a tear to my eye. Several in face. Not much needs to be said about why, as some of these amazing musicians are no longer with us today. Just a beautiful cover that no independent version of the song could ever touch, and will likely stay that way for the end of time.

Anyway, enjoy the tunes.

My top 5 favorite song covers
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