50 Best Cover Songs of All Time (BBC)

Resistance is futile: Pet Shop Boys are always on your mind

From BBC:

The Pet Shop Boys' Always On My Mind has been voted the top cover version of all time in a BBC Music vote. The song, written by John Christopher, Mark James and Wayne Carson, was first made famous by Brenda Lee and Elvis Presley in 1972. (...) The public voted for their favourites from a top 50 compiled by BBC producers and DJs including Fearne Cotton Trevor Nelson, Simon Mayo and Steve Lamacq.

Ok the Pet Shop Boys, but what about the rest of the chart? Here it comes in shiny Spotify version, with Johnny Cash, Jeff Buckley, Muse, Marvin Gaye, Aretha Franklin, Led Zeppelin, The Fugees (one time), Jimi Hendrix (two times) and many more.

Enjoy!

Previously on the covers side of Spotirama:

50 Worst Cover Songs of All Time (Complex, 2012)

The Beatles Covers Project

Radiohead's OK Computer Reimagined

50 BEST COVER SONGS OF ALL TIME

(BBC, from #1 to #50, subscribe)

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Full list

Strikethrough song (1/50) is not available on Spotify. Some songs may be not available in all countries.

1. Pet Shop Boys - Always On My Mind
2. Johnny Cash - Hurt
3. The Stranglers - Walk On By
4. Jimi Hendrix - All Along The Watchtower
5. Jeff Buckley - Hallelujah
6. Soft Cell - Tainted Love
7. Joe Cocker - With A Little Help From My Friends
8. Sinead O’Connor - Nothing Compares 2 U
9. Muse - Feeling Good
10. Whitney Houston - I Will Always Love You
11. Marvin Gaye - I Heard It Through The Grapevine
12. Adele - Make You Feel My Love
13. This Mortal Coil - Song To The Siren
14. The Clash - I Fought The Law
15. China Drum - Wuthering Heights
16. Nirvana - The Man Who Sold The World
17. Aretha Franklin - Respect
18. Eva Cassidy - Songbird
19. Leona Lewis - Run
20. Led Zeppelin - When The Levee Breaks
21. Righteous Brothers - Unchained Melody
22. Florence + the Machine - You’ve Got The Love
23. Mark Ronson - Valerie (feat. Amy Winehouse)
24. Jimi Hendrix - Hey Joe
25. The Fall - Lost In Music
26. Gary Jules - Mad World (feat. Michael Andrews)
27. Bryan Ferry - A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall
28. The Specials - A Message To You Rudy
29. Birdy - Skinny Love
30. Fugees - Killing Me Softly With His Song
31. The Pogues - Dirty Old Town
32. Elvis Costello & The Attractions - Good Year For The Roses
33. José González - Heartbeats
34. The Isley Brothers - Summer Breeze
35. Thin Lizzy - Rosalie
36. Talking Heads - Take Me To The River
37. David Bowie - China Girl
38. Urge Overkill - Girl, You’ll Be A Woman Soon
39. Ryan Adams - Wonderwall
40. Nina Simone - Mr. Bojangles
41. Hüsker Dü - Eight Miles High
42. José Feliciano - Light My Fire
43. Earth, Wind & Fire - Got To Get You Into My Life
44. Santana - Oye Como Va
45. James Blake - Limit To Your Love
46. Billy Paul - Your Song
47. Richie Havens - Going Back To My Roots
48. Labrinth - Express Yourself
49. Prince Fatty - Shimmy Shimmy Ya (feat. Horseman)
50. D’Angelo – Cruisin

The 50 Worst Cover Songs of All Time (Complex, 2012)

From Complex:

All “worst music ever” lists are a lie, and “worst cover versions ever” lists are even more so. Chances are the real most horrible stuff ever came from talentless no-name bar bands and coffee-shop strummers from nowhere who deservedly went nowhere—and of course, lots of those performers are full-time cover bands (or reality show contestants), too unmotivated to write their own songs in the first place.

Even karaoke counts as covers, right? Which means every night of the year, in whatever town you live in, there are probably cover versions just as wretched as the ones below. But all those human-jukebox unknowns have every right to be awful, and hence don’t deserve our grief anyway. 

Nope, a list like this only makes sense if it sticks to artists who’ve achieved some degree of success or notoriety. In other words, artists who should really know better—which is to say, ones who a listener is perfectly justified in getting pissed off at.

Here you find the Spotify playlist of it.

Enjoy.

Previously on the (not worst) cover songs side of Spotirama:

The Beatles Covers Project on Spotify (all albums covered, track by track)

Killing Queen (a Spotify cover tribute to Freddy Mercury and his famous band)

Radiohead's OK Computer Reimagined

THE 50 WORST COVER SONGS OF AL TIME

(Comples, 2012, from #1 to #50)

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Full list

Strikethrough songs (6/50) are not available on Spotify. Some songs may be not available in all countries.

1. Duran Duran – 911 Is A Joke (Public Enemy)
2. Pat Boone – Long Tall Sally (Little Richard)
3. Aerosmith – Come Together (The Beatles)
4. Phish – Gettin' Jiggy Wit It (Will Smith)
5. William Shatner – Mr. Tambourine Man (Bob Dylan)
6. Bruce Willis – Respect Yourself (The Staple Singers)
7. Limp Bizkit – Faith (George Michael)
8. Cat Power – (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction (The Rolling Stones)
9. Cyndi Lauper – What's Going On (feat. Chuck D) (Marvin Gaye)
10. Glee Cast – Don't Stop Believin' (Journey)
11. The Cure – Purple Haze (Jimi Hendrix)
12. Insane Clown Posse – Let's Go All The Way (Sly Fox)
13. Guns N' Roses – Sympathy For The Devil (The Rolling Stones)
14. R.E.M. – Toys In The Attic (Aerosmith)
15. Dynamite Hack – Boyz-N-The Hood (Eazy-E)
16. Marilyn Manson – Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This) (Eurythmics)
17. Doveman – Footloose (Kenny Loggins)
18. Travis - … Baby One More Time (Britney Spears)
19. The Blues Brothers – Soul Man (Sam and Dave)
20. B-52's – Meet the Flintstones (Hoyt Curtin')
21. Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band – War (live) (Edwin Starr)
22. Attack Attack! – I Kissed A Girl (Katy Perry)
23. Cher – The Shoop Shoop Song (It's In His Kiss) (Betty Everett)
24. Mötley Crüe – Smokin' In The Boys Room (Brownsville Station)
25. Electric Light Orchestra – Roll Over Beethoven (Chuck Berry)
26. Megadeth – Anarchy In The U.K. (Sex Pistols)
27. Michael Bolton – When a Man Loves a Woman (Percy Sledge)
28. The Ataris – The Boys Of Summer (Don Henley)
29. H-Town – A Thin Line Between Love & Hate (The Persuaders)
30. Big Mountain – Baby, I Love Your Way (Peter Frampton)
31. Cowboy Junkies – Sweet Jane (Velvet Underground)
32. Alan Jackson – Summertime Blues (Eddie Cochran)
33. James Taylor – Handy Man (Jimmy Jones)
34. Fine Young Cannibals – Ever Fallen In Love (Buzzcocks)
35. Mrs. Miller – Downtown (Petula Clark)
36. David Bowie – Dancing In The Street (Martha & The Vandellas)
37. Counting Crows – Big Yellow Taxi (Joni Mitchell)
38. Rockwell – Taxman (The Beatles)
39. Orgy – Blue Monday (New Order)
40. The Power Station – Get It On (Bang A Gong) (T. Rex)
41. Robert John – The Lion Sleeps Tonite (The Tokens)
42. UB40 – The Way You Do The Things You Do (The Temptations)
43. Love And Rockets – Ball Of Confusion (The Temptations)
44. Big & Rich – You Shook Me All Night Long (AC/DC)
45. Pseudo Echo – Funkytown (Lipps Inc.)
46. Ugly Kid Joe – Cats In The Cradle (Harry Chapin)
47. Susan Boyle – Wild Horses (The Rolling Stones)
48. Artists for Haiti – We Are the World (USA For Africa)
49. U2 – Fortunate Son (Creedence Clearwater Revival)
50. Christina Aguilera – Lady Marmalade (Labelle)

Paste The 24 Best David Bowie Songs (and their cover versions)

David Bowie is 67: happy birthday! Exactly one year ago we celebrated this glorious day in the most surprising way: with a new song (Where are we now?) and the news of a new album to come (The Next Day). This year it seems we are not going to get a similar chance. So let's dance in a different way: with two playlists. First one is the Spotify version of Top 24 David Bowie Songs published last march by Paste. A good list to be heard & questioned. Second one collects the same songs in cover versions. Possibly bizarre: with Portuguese & German lyrics, taken from animation movies (Shrek 2) or sung by actors (John C. Reilly), unexpected (Paul Young? Frankie Goes To Hollywood?) and definitely classic (Nirvana's The Man Who Sold The World, Bauhaus' Ziggy Stardust). Hint: pay particular attention to Ragazzo solo, ragazza sola ("Lonely boy, lonely girl"). It's pure Major Tom... singing in Italian! 

Enjoy.

Previously on Spotirama:
Raw Bowie - A simple, chronological, unmessed and undeluxed David Bowie discography on Spotify
Bob Dylan's 70th dream - A covers' tribute to the dear ol' Bob
The Beatles Covers Project on Spotify

PASTE THE 24 BEST DAVID BOWIE SONGS

(from #1 to #24, original versions)

(from #1 to #24, cover versions)

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Full List

In brackets: cover versions.

1. Life On Mars? (alternate version: covered by Seu Jorge)
2. Space Oddity ("Ragazzo solo, ragazza sola", italian version sung by David Bowie)
3. Young Americans (The Braids)
4. "Heroes" ("Helden", German version by Apocalyptica)
5. Under Pressure (The Used / My Chemical Romance)
6. Ziggy Stardust (Bauhaus)
7. The Man Who Sold The World (Nirvana)
8. The Jean Genie (Paul Young)
9. Oh! You Pretty Things (Harvey Danger)
10. Golden Years (Loose Ends)
11. Queen Bitch (Green River)
12. Sound and Vision (The Sea and Cake)
13. Changes (Butterfly Boucher & David Bowie, from Shrek 2 Soundtrack)
14. Suffragette City (Frankie Goes To Hollywood)
15. TVC 15 (no cover version)
16. Ashes To Ashes (Tears For Fears)
17. Rock'n'Roll Suicide (OK Go & Bonerama)
18. Fashion (Glamma Kid)
19. Rebel Rebel (Rickie Lee Jones)
20. Starman (John C. Reilly)
21. I'm Afraid of Americans (Luder)
22. Cat People (Putting Out Fire) (Big Electric Cat)
23. Bring Me The Disco King (V2 D.Veen Remix)
24. Modern Love (Syme)

Radiohead's OK Computer Reimagined

from Hand Drawn Album Covers

Some days ago, tryin' to reorganize the messy catalogue of Spotirama playlists, I got into one of those several series I started with big enthusiasm and followed with not the same amount of persistence (and with even less global success). The series was horribly named Re-Record Club (inspired by Beck's Record Club) and basically made with cover versions of entire albums, track by track. 

Actually I just made three of them: one good (Bob Dylan's Blood on the Tracks, complete, with covers by Jeff Tweedy, Lloyd Cole, Cassandra Wilson, Jeff Buckley, Joan Baez and - new entry - Neko Case) and the other two very poor and partial (Inxs' Kick and Pink Floyd's The Wall, so poor that I don't dare to link them here). Bonus, something I'm rather proud of and I keep periodically linking: The Beatles Covers Project, a collection of covers of all albums (and singles, b-sides...) by Beatles. 

Lookin' at those juvenile efforts, and listenin' to Blood on the Tracks covers, I decided to add a new chapter to the unfortunate series. I changed the name: "reimagined". And I picked Radiohead's Ok Computer. A sentimental choice, because it's one of my all-time favourite albums. And a pragmatical one, because of the high number of covers available on Spotify. 

I'm not a pioneer, I know. Six years ago, Stereogum pushed some artists to really re-record the Radiohead album, resulting in the nice OKX: A Tribute to OK Computer. And on Spotify you can find a couple of complete tributes. Anyway, I'm quite satisfied with the result. The original idea was to look for VIP covers (made by well-known artists). In progress, listening to the many tracks available, the project gradually went underground. If you want some more infos about the making of, you can find them below the playlist.  

Enjoy!

P.S. Yes, Spotify and Thom Yorke are not close friends. Peacemaking mode on. 

The story of this playlist
(AKA why I sacrificed Amanda Palmer and Regina Spektor 
for an all-male a cappella group and trois hommes from Corse)

1. Airbag (Diagrams)

In my humble opinion, an extraordinary beginning. As falsely acoustic & dreamy as the original one was truly distorted & noisy, courtesy of Tunng's Sam Genders.








2. Paranoid Android (El Ten Eleven)

Paranoid Android got me problems. Many covers are available, but this is such a difficult and monumental song. Better deconstructing and encapsulating it in two postrocky minutes. As Los Angeles El Ten Eleven did.







3. Subterranean Homesick Alien (The Ooks of Hazzard)

I'm deeply sorry, folks, but this is the Internet. You cannot have a playlist without at least one ukulele song.






4. Exit Music (For A Film) (Garden Level)

That's the exact moment where underground swallowed overground. Originally I had picked Amanda Palmer's cover. Then, cleaning the "OK Computer Covers on Spotify" working playlist, I got trapped with this slow and dramatic rendition by "the University of Puget Sound's one and only all-male a cappella group". I really got trapped. It was like listening to a dark Greek chorus commenting the last scene of Baz Luhrmann's Romeo+Juliet. Amanda, I still love you.





5. Let Down (Mitchel Sigman)

Probably, this is my favourite song of Radiohead album. With Electioneering and Lucky, it's the less covered, too. But this Mitchel Sigman version (taken from an electronic tribute to Radiohead) works perfectly, like the sound of a (paranoid) android dreaming of electric sheep.







6. Karma Police (Flunk)

A lot of covers, mostly very resounding of the original. This one, recorded by a trio from Oslo, Norway, in the aptly titled album This Is What You Get, definitely it is not.









7. Fitter Happier (Vitamin String Quartet)

A little, simple, string interlude.










8. Electioneering (Easy Star All-Stars feat. Morgan Heritage)

The Lords of Reggae Tribute Albums, they could not miss from this collection. Jamaicaning the angular riffs of one of the most stinging tunes of Radiohead's opus.







9. Climbing Up the Walls (Kate Rogers)

One of the easiest choices, one of the songs I love the most, one of the reasons I'm writing all these boring lines. Do you remember the dogs of war desperately shouting in Radiohead song? Here they don't shout, they are shut up by the raw unplugged guitar&voice of Canadian Kate Rogers.






10. No Surprises (Bande à Part)

One of the hardest choices, maybe the hardest, of this playlist. My first pick was another one: the amazing cover by Regina Spektor. But then, it happened the underground revolution (see above, at Exit Music chapter). And amongst Regina's and all the other heartfelt, slow and sad versions, it emerged this strange, fast, beer-pubish, somehow happy cover played by a band from Corse, France. Yes, surprise: I never thought that one day I would have linked the adjective "happy" to No Surprises...





11. Lucky (Warren Haynes)

You cannot imagine how hard is to find a "real" cover of Radiohead's Lucky on Spotify. There are gazillions of songs titled Lucky. Warren live-at-Bonnaroo won over a dub instrumental and a just-for-kids cover.








12. The Tourist (Sarah Jarosz)

In my humble opinion, an extraordinary end. Almost a perfect mirror of Diagrams' Airbag. Slow. Acoustic. With drunken violins sayin' goodbye.

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The Beatles Covers Project (199 artists for 199 Beatles songs)

Info: The Beatles Covers Project is a collection of covers of all Beatles songs: album by album, track by track. B-sides and non-album tracks, too. For each song, I picked a different band or artist. The list includes many well known acts (Rolling Stones, Beach Boys, Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Aretha Franklin, Black Keys, Grateful Dead, Elton John, Sonic Youth, Jimi Hendrix, Ella Fitzgerald, Michael Jackson, David Bowie, Stevie Wonder, Oasis...), but also obscure folk singers, tribute bands, jazz pianists, classical orchestras, angry punkers, crazy headbangers and brave electrowizards. Most songs have been recorded after the Beatles, but some versions come from before (in their first albums, Beatles actually covered some already existing songs). First version of this project has been published in March 2010, then it has been regularly updated. By Christmas 2015, the original recordings by The Beatles have finally landed on Spotify. Nonetheless, I think this collection can still give you some hours of good sonic pleasure. It's available in full form (with all 199 songs) and/or by album.
Source: Beatles discography + Spotify search
Date of publication: March 2010 (when I first compiled it)
Spotify playlist latest update: 24th March 2016
Spotify direct links (full playlist): URI / HTTP

Please Please Me


Jerry Lee Lewis – I Saw Her Standing There
Peter Lipa – Misery
Max Yasgur's Farm – Anna (Go To Him)
Cookies – Chains
Max Cohen – Boys
The Smithereens – Ask Me Why
Flamin' Groovies – Please Please Me
Estereotypo - Love Me Do
Wayne Gratz – P.S. I Love You
The Shirelles – Baby It's You
Billy J Kramer & The Dakotas – Do You Want To Know A Secret?
Chet Atkins – A Taste Of Honey
The Dickies - There's A Place
The Isley Brothers – Twist And Shout

Listen to it on Spotify: HTTP Link, URI

With the Beatles


Ewan Rachel Wood – It Won't Be Long
Two Of Us – All I've Got To Do
Emilie Autumn – All My Loving
Ringo Ska – Don't Bother Me
The Inmates – Little Child
Etta Jones – Till There Was You
The Marvelettes – Please Mr. Postman
Chuck Berry – Roll Over Beethoven
Stackridge – Hold Me Tight
She & Him – You Really Got A Hold On Me
The Rolling Stones – I Wanna Be Your Man
Ian Cussick – Devil In Her Heart
The Pretenders – Not A Second Time
The Flying Lizards – Money

Listen to it on Spotify: HTTP Link, URI

A Hard Day's Night


Peter Sellers – A Hard Day's Night
The Beach Boys – I Should Have Known Better
Nando Lauria – If I Fell
Sun – I'm Happy Just To Dance With You
Terry Callier – And I Love Her
The Punkles – Tell Me Why
Michael Bublé – Can't Buy Me Love
Los Protones – Any Time At All
Joe Cocker – I'll Cry Instead
Dwight Yoakam – Things We Said Today
Heiko Effertz – When I Get Home
Harry Nilsson – You Can't Do That
UB40 – I'll Be Back

Listen to it on Spotify: HTTP Link, URI

Beatles For Sale


Floyd Domino – No Reply
Georga - I'm a Loser
Alexander Pier Federici – Baby's In Black
Manic Street Preachers – Rock And Roll Music
Programmar – I'll Follow The Sun
The Hollies – Mr Moonlight
Little Richard – Kansas City/Hey Hey Hey Hey
Procol Harum – Eight Days A Week
Buddy Holly – Words Of Love
T. Rex – Honey Don't
Yes – Every Little Thing
Rosanne Cash – I Don't Want To Spoil The Party
Lisa Lauren – What You're Doing
Carl Perkins – Everybody's Trying To Be My Baby

Listen to it on Spotify: HTTP Link, URI

Help!


The Damned – Help
Restless Heart – The Night Before
Jackson Browne – You've Got To Hide Your Love Away (live)
Barbara Casini Quartet - I Need You
Beatlegras – Another Girl
Five Man Electrical Band – You're Going To Lose That Girl
Alma Cogan – Ticket To Ride
Buck Owens – Act Naturally
Bryan Ferry – It's Only Love
Glycerine – You Like Me Too Much
John Egniz Connection – Tell Me What You See
Ludella Black – I've Just Seen A Face
Elvis Presley – Yesterday
Larry Williams – Dizzy Miss Lizzie

Listen to it on Spotify: HTTP Link, URI

Rubber Soul


Bobby McFerrin – Drive My Car
Cornershop – Norwegian Wood
Anne Murray – You Won't See Me
Gershon Kingsley – Nowhere Man
The Klone Orchestra – Think For Yourself
David Sanborn – The Word
Béla Fleck – Michelle
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band – What Goes On
Chris De Burgh – Girl
Jenny Reynolds – I'm Looking Through You
Johnny Cash – In My Life
Connie Evingson – Wait
Barbara Dickson - If I Needed Someone
Nancy Sinatra – Run For Your Life

Listen to it on Spotify: HTTP Link, URI

Revolver


Beatallica – Sandman
Aretha Franklin – Eleanor Rigby
Lobo – I'm Only Sleeping
Yim Yames – Love You To
Emmylou Harris – Here, There And Everywhere
Nada – Yellow Submarine
The Black Keys – She Said, She Said
Lulu – Good Day Sunshine
David Kitt – And Your Bird Can Sing
Diana Krall – For No One
The Barbary Coast Guitar Duo – Doctor Robert
Ted Nugent – I Want To Tell You
Earth, Wind & Fire – Got To Get You Into My Life
The Grateful Dead – Tomorrow Never Knows (live)

Listen to it on Spotify: HTTP Link, URI

Sgt.Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band


Bill Cosby – Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Wet Wet Wet – With A Little Help From My Friends
Elton John – Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds
Gomez – Getting Better
Easy Star All-Stars feat. Max Romeo – Fixing A Hole
Al Jarreau – She's Leaving Home (live)
Eddie Izzard – Being For The Benefit Of Mr. Kite
Sonic Youth – Within You Without You
John Denver – When I'm Sixty-Four
Fats Domino – Lovely Rita
Psilicon Flesh – Good Morning, Good Morning
Jimi Hendrix Experience – Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Wes Montgomery - A Day In The Life

Listen to it on Spotify: HTTP Link, URI

The Beatles (White Album)


Lemmy Kilmister, John 5, Eric Singer – Back In the USSR
Siouxsie And The Banshees – Dear Prudence
Arif Mardin – Glass Onion
Youssou N'Dour – Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da
Bacalhau – Wild Honey Pie
Dwight Twilley – The Continuing Story Of Bungalow Bill
AM – While My Guitar Gently Weeps
The Breeders – Happiness Is A Warm Gun
Brad Mehldau – Martha My Dear
Say Hi To Your Mom – I'm So Tired
Carly Simon – Blackbird
Luis Eduardo Aute – Piggies
Lena Horne, Gabor Szabo, Gary McFarland – Rocky Raccoon
Georgia Satellites – Don't Pass Me By
Lowell Fulson – Why Don't We Do It In The Road
Daniel Johnston – I Will
John Scofield, Medeski, Martin & Wood – Julia
Leiff Garrett – Birthday
Big Gilson – Yer Blues
Then There Were Two – Mother Nature's Son
Kristin Hersh – Everybody’s Got Something To Hide Except For Me And My Monkey
Damills – Sexy Sadie
U2 – Helter Skelter (live)
Tanya Donelly – Long Long Long
Stone Temple Pilots – Revolution
Barbra Streisand – Honey Pie
Ella Fitzgerald – Savoy Truffle
Tom Freund – Cry Baby Cry
Neil Cowley Trio - Revolution 9
Capella Istropolitana With Soloists Of The Baroque Chamber Orchestra – Good Night

Listen to it on Spotify: HTTP Link, URI. (SR0065)

Abbey Road


Michael Jackson – Come Together
Shirley Bassey – Something
Ed Harlow – Maxwell's Silver Hammer
George Benson – Oh! Darling
Rockabye Baby! – Octopus's Garden
Noir Désir – I Want You (She's So Heavy)
Belle and Sebastian – Here Comes The Sun (live)
Solveig Slettahjell – Because
Sarah Vaughan – You Never Give Me Your Money
Booker T. & The MG's – Sun King/Mean Mr. Mustard/Polythene Pam/She Came In Through The Bathroom Window/I Want You (She's So Heavy)
Neil Diamond – Golden Slumbers, Carry That Weight, The End (live)
The Silver Beetles – Her Majesty

Listen to it on Spotify: HTTP Link, URI

Let It Be
(12 tracks, 38 minutes)


Boney M. – Two Of Us
Hemi & The Ruderunners – Dig A Pony
David Bowie – Across The Universe
Ref – I Me Mine
Laibach – Dig It
Gladys Knight & The Pips – Let It Be
Judy Garland – Maggie, Maggie May
Giacomo Bondi & The Apple Pies - I've Got A Feeling
Richie Arndt – One After 909
Cher – The Long And Winding Road
Monti Beton – For You Blue
Al Green – Get Back

Listen to it on Spotify: HTTP Link, URI

Magical Submarine Strawberry B-Sides
(songs not included in original albums)


Chuck Mead - Old Brown Shoe
The Revolver Road Band – You Know My Name
John Bush, Stef Carpenter, Mike Inez, John Tempesta – Magical Mystery Tour
The Surphonics - Thank You Girl
Secret Machines – Flying
Colin Newman – Blue Jay Way
Jamie Hoover – It's Only A Northern Song
The Kennedy Choir – Penny Lane
The Mamas & The Papas – I Call Your Name
Joaquin Pardinilla & Inaki Fernandez - The Inner Light
The Bingo Kids – All Together Now
Digsy – Paperback Writer
Sandro y Los de Fuego – Te Conseguire (I'll Get You)
Ane Brun – From Me To You
Teenage Fanclub – The Ballad of John and Yoko
Jeff Beck – She's A Woman
Journey – It's All Too Much
Tackhead – Don't Let Me Down
Blair Casdin – Your Mother Should Know
Aerosmith – I'm Down
(Luismi) Apache – Hello Goodbye
Billy Idol, Steve Stevens, Blasko, Brian Tichy – I Feel Fine
Boreades De Montreal - This Boy
Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66 – The Fool On The Hill
Satin And Circuits – She Loves You
Todd Rundgren – Rain
Don Henley – Yes It Is (live)
Caetano Veloso – Lady Madonna
Stevie Wonder – We Can Work It Out
Los Fabulosos Cadillacs – Strawberry Fields Forever
Echo And The Bunnymen – All You Need Is Love
Mina – Hey Jude
Oasis – I Am The Walrus (live)
Petra Vlkova & Band - Free as a Bird
Regina Spektor - Real Love

Listen to it on Spotify: HTTP Link, URI

The John Lennon 69 (a Spotify collection of covers)

source image

What:

Wikileaks told me that today is the day John Lennon died. This is a little tribute: 69 different artists playing his songs. 

Comments:

There are hundreds of Lennon covers available on Spotify. Selecting 69 was a hard (and very subjective) task. Some come from a huge 2007 Amnesty benefit album for Darfur, some others are from more obscure and forgotten past records. Some sound close to the original, some get distant. Some are serious, some are funny. And, caution, MIA is not the Paper Planes girl, but a Berlin rock band.

P.S. since this is a covers playlist and I want it to feature Lennon's voice, too ... well, I also included a famous cover sung by him. :o)

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THE PLAYLIST
(69 tracks, about 4 hours)

A Perfect Circle – Imagine
U2 – Instant Karma
Youssou N'Dour – Jealous Guy
Manic Street Preachers – Working Class Hero
R.E.M. – #9 Dream
The Flaming Lips – (Just Like) Starting Over
Bunbury – Watching The Wheels
Jack Johnson – Imagine
John Hiatt – Instant Karma
Noir Désir – Working Class Hero
Louis Armstrong – Give Peace a Chance
Maroon 5 – Happy Xmas (War Is Over)
Martin L. Gore – Oh My Love
M.I.A. – Mind Games
Lenny Kravitz – Cold Turkey
Generation X – Gimme Some Truth
Herbie Hancock – Imagine
The Punkles – Give Peace A Chance
Deftones – Jealous Guy
Sam Phillips – Gimme Some Truth
Jack's Mannequin feat. Mick Fleetwood – God
The Alarm – Happy Xmas (War Is Over)
Black Eyed Peas – Power To The People
Ray Charles with Ruben Studdard & The Harlem Gospel Singers – Imagine
The Postal Service – Grow Old With Me
Hot Chocolate – Give Peace A Chance
Madeleine Peyroux – Jealous Guy
Angelique Kidjo feat. Naima – Happy Xmas (War Is Over)
Madrugada – I'm Losing You
Antony & The Johnsons – Imagine
Sinéad O'Connor – Mind Games
Primal Scream – Gimme Some Truth
Jeanette Lindström – Grow Old With Me
Joe Cocker – Isolation
Yoko Ono – Give Peace a Chance
John Lennon – Stand By Me
Beatallica – Happy Xmas (War Is Over)
Matisyahu – Watching The Wheels
Robert Randolph & The Family Band – I Don't Wanna Be A Soldier Mama
Snow Patrol – Isolation
Ozzy Osbourne – Woman
Duran Duran – Instant Karma
Roxy Music – Jealous Guy
Marianne Faithfull – Working Class Hero
a-ha – #9 Dream
Travis – Gimme Some Truth
Mary Chapin Carpenter – Grow Old With Me
Eskimo Joe – Mind Games
Aerosmith feat. Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars – Give Peace A Chance
Jackson Browne – Oh, My Love
Freddie Hubbard – Cold Turkey
Me'Shell Ndegeocello – Imagine
Ben Harper – Beautiful Boy
Widespread Panic – Crippled Inside
Jakob Dylan featuring Dhani Harrison – Gimme Some Truth
Green Day – Working Class Hero
Glen Campbell – Grow Old With Me
Sarah McLachlan feat. The Sarah McLachlan Music Outreach Children's Choir and Youth Choir – Happy Xmas (War Is Over)
Corinne Bailey Rae – I'm Losing You
The Soft Boys – Cold Turkey
Luna – Jealous Guy
Shelby Lynne – Mother
Susheela Raman – Oh My Love
Elton John – One Day At A Time
Regina Spektor – Real Love
Johnny Winter – Rock And Roll People
Colin James – I'm Losing You
Tin Machine – Working Class Hero
José Carreras/Placido Domingo/Luciano Pavarotti – Happy Xmas (War is Over)

Listen to it on Spotify: HTTP, URI (SR0318)

Blood Covers on the Tracks (a tribute version of Bob Dylan's masterpiece Blood on the Tracks)

PopMatters is doing a terrific work in celebrating the 35th anniversary of Bob Dylan's Blood on the Tracks, one of the greatest albums of all time, one of the strongest songwriting efforts, one of the very few evidences that an artist can write great tunes even in its 15th studio album.

On Spotify, I haven't found the original work: just a couple of tracks featured in some movie soundtracks. Instead, I could play the record club game, again: cover versions are available for each track of the album. 

Maybe the result is a bit too soft. Folk troubadours and jazz singers, Jeff and Jeff, Joan and Cassandra, they all wore the slow-tempo dress: acoustic guitars, classic rock, wide breadth atmospheres, no time limits, no punk, electro or other experimentations. I hoped to find at least one thing like the Ramones' take of What a Wonderful World. I haven't.

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The Playlist

(12 tracks, 1.1 hours)

Barb Jungr – Tangled Up In Blue
Jeff Tweedy – Simple Twist Of Fate
Lloyd Cole And The Commotions – You're a Big Girl Now
Phil Pritchett – Idiot Wind
Madeleine Peyroux – You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go
Angel Snow – Meet Me In The Morning
Joan Baez – Lily, Rosemary And The Jack Of Hearts (live)
Jeff Buckley – If You See Her, Say Hello (live)
Cassandra Wilson – Shelter From The Storm
Muddyboys – Buckets of rain

Bonus:
Bob Dylan – Meet Me In The Morning (from Away We Go movie soundtrack)
Bob Dylan – Buckets Of Rain (from Wonder Boys movie soundtrack)

Listen to it on Spotify: HTTP Link, URI. (SR0150)

Previously:

The Wall (Pink Floyd)

Kick (Inxs)

Everything... (The Beatles)

Big Stars Play Big Star (a Spotify playlist)

Info: Originally (March 2010) this playlist was meant as tribute to Alex Chilton, mashing up covers of Box Tops, Big Star & solo songs, plus something more. It was compiled in a rather quick & messy way, few hours after Chilton's death. In 2016, the playlist morphed almost exclusively in a collection of well known artists (Elliott Smith, Counting Crows, Placebo, Jeff Buckley, Yo La Tengo, Afghan Whigs...) covering Big Star songs. With some little exceptions, at the end. 

Source: Big Star Albums + Spotify search

Date of publication: March 2010 (completely renewed in March 2016)

Spotify playlist latest update: 27th March 2016

Spotify direct links: URI / HTTP

Full list

Some songs may be not available in all countries

1. Elliott Smith - Thirteen
2. The Bangles - September Gurls
3. Lucero - I'm in Love With a Girl
4. Counting Crows - The Ballad of El Goodo
5. Juliana Hatfield - Don't Lie To Me
6. Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - When My Baby's Beside Me
7. Whiskeytown - Give Me Another Chance
8. Placebo - Holocaust
9. Kristin Hersh - Jesus Christ
10. Gin Blossoms - Back of a Car
11. The Lemonheads - Mod Lang
12. Damon & Naomi - Blue Moon
13. The Walkabouts - Big Black Car
14. Jeff Buckley - Kangaroo
15. Yo La Tengo - Take Care
16. The Afghan Whigs - Nightime
17. Teenage Fanclub - Free Again (Alex Chilton song)
18. Al Green - The Letter (Box Tops song)
19. Wilco - Thirteen