Weird covers

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Horror! I have just found out there is a cover of "Love will tear us apart" by Paul Young out there. anyone heard it or got any other examples of incinceivable covers?

― Nikki25, Monday, 5 April 2004 19:05 (twenty years ago) link

definately the ones on hybrid kids.

― maria tessa sciarrino (theoreticalgirl), Monday, 5 April 2004 19:06 (twenty years ago) link

Proscriptor McGovern of Texas black metal band Absu covered Flock of Seagulls' "I Ran" -- that was a minor shocker. And I still think Dinosaur Jr's "Just Like Heaven" was some kind of big political statement, chasing Brits out of the late '80s American indie scene. Ditto for Treepeople's screaming, grunged out "Bigmouth Strikes Again."

Flying Lizards' "Sex Machine" is a classic.

― Ian Christe (Ian Christe), Monday, 5 April 2004 19:09 (twenty years ago) link

thanks for the link to that morgan fisher website, maria...

― (Jon L), Monday, 5 April 2004 19:19 (twenty years ago) link

I read about this version in a JD/NO biography, but never anywhere else. In fact, I that book claimed it was a breakthrough hit of his. But I've never been able to verify any of this, and I haven't heard the cover version either.

― Barry Bruner (Barry Bruner), Monday, 5 April 2004 19:27 (twenty years ago) link

PY's "Love Will Tear Us Apart", eh? It was on his hit album, for gosh sakes, and it was very MOR and very terrible.

― Sean Carruthers (SeanC), Monday, 5 April 2004 19:30 (twenty years ago) link

the two versions of love will tear us apart by Swans are pretty good though.

― scott seward (scott seward), Monday, 5 April 2004 19:31 (twenty years ago) link

so are their blind faith, stooges, and nick drake covers.

― scott seward (scott seward), Monday, 5 April 2004 19:32 (twenty years ago) link

But was it a hit? I seem to remember something about it being a huge hit in Germany ...

― Barry Bruner (Barry Bruner), Monday, 5 April 2004 19:33 (twenty years ago) link

Seems pretty logic it was a hit in Germany, huh... haha

― Nikki25, Monday, 5 April 2004 19:45 (twenty years ago) link

I've been looking for that Paul Young cover for ages. I thought it would be good for a larf.

― Bruce Urquhart (Bruce Urquhart), Monday, 5 April 2004 19:49 (twenty years ago) link

Ooops, I mis-remembered; it was on No Parlez, not The Secret of Association. I can't recall if the single was a hit anywhere.

― Sean Carruthers (SeanC), Monday, 5 April 2004 19:53 (twenty years ago) link

You can find it via soulseek if you're interested - that's where I - accidentally - bumped into it.

― Nikki25, Monday, 5 April 2004 19:53 (twenty years ago) link

I'm pretty sure it was a hit in the UK. As a pop kid of the wrong age, I was certainly aware of it before I ever heard the Joy Division one...

― ailsa (ailsa), Monday, 5 April 2004 19:55 (twenty years ago) link

during last weekends arsenal v man utd match, the manchester fans started singing (to the tune of 'love will tear us apart')
"Giggs, Giggs will tear you apart, again...
Giggs, Giggs will tear you apart, again..."

― zappi (joni), Monday, 5 April 2004 19:56 (twenty years ago) link

Cassandra Wilson, "Last Train To Clarksville" (Monkees)
Johnny Cash, "Rusty Cage" (Soundgarden)
Residents, "Satisfaction" (Stones)
Sonny Sharrock, "Wuthering Heights" (Kate Bush)
Lemmy/Wendy O. Williams, "Stand By Your Man" (Loretta Lynn)
Cabaret Voltaire, "She Loved [sic] You" (Beatles)
and my personal favourite...

Van Morrison, "It's Not Easy Being Green" (Kermit The Frog!!)

― Myonga Von Bontee (Myonga Von Bontee), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 07:36 (twenty years ago) link

first reaction: waddayamean 'I just found out...'????

Paul Young definitely had a hit with 'Love will tear us apart' in Holland and Belgium, I remember my sister being totally in love with him because it was on the telly a lot (early - mid eighties). It's probably on one of my 'Now This Is Music'-albums from back then.

― daarkbee (daarkbee), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 09:22 (twenty years ago) link

If you think PY's "Love Will Tear Us Apart" is bad, try listening to Russ Abbott doing "Atmosphere".

― noodle vague (noodle vague), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 09:26 (twenty years ago) link

On a similar note, it's a little known fact that Phyllis Nelson's 'Move Closer' was actually an exhortation to her man to move his 'Closer' LP off the sofa, so they could get down to some vinyl-free lovin'.

― Buffalo Stan (Buffalo Stan), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 10:03 (twenty years ago) link

Tori Amos "Ring my Bell"

― mark grout (mark grout), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 10:05 (twenty years ago) link

Wow, maria - can I just echo milton in saying thanks for that link. I never knew Hybrid Kids had been reissued on CD (In fact, I may well have wrongly bemoaned its non-availability here on ILM) I shall go hunting for this immediately.

― Jeff W (zebedee), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 10:05 (twenty years ago) link

dEUS/Tom Barman - Don't Rock The Boat. I was amused to see how many dEUS fans rushed to the store to buy the original.

― jesus nathalie (nathalie), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 10:27 (twenty years ago) link

Didn't Phil Collins cover 'Love Is A Battlefield'?
And, taking off from there, in SOC-manner, the Brandy+some rapper cover of 'Another Day In Paradise' was also pretty much uncalled for, wasn't it?
Also, some r&b group covered Dire Straits' 'Why Worry?' in the mid-late nineties.
Squarepusher also covered 'Love Will tear Us Apart'.
Oh, and my surprise was big when I heard Saul Williams perform Radiohead's 'Lucky' a few years back.
Also: Kelis doing 'Born To Be Wild' and 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' as a part of her tour set after the first record.

― Jay Kid (Jay K), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 11:25 (twenty years ago) link

How's about Voivod's cover of Syd Barrett's mind crunching 'Astronomy Domine'?

― Sick Nouthall (Nick Southall), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 13:54 (twenty years ago) link

"New Dawn Fades" by...

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Tuesday, 6 April 2004 14:23 (twenty years ago) link

Laibach: "God is God" (the original is by Juno Reactor). My friend played this to me: it's the only time I've heard a trance track covered by a metal band. In fact, it's probably the only time I've heard any instrumental electronic track being covered by any rock band.

― Tuomas (Tuomas), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 14:36 (twenty years ago) link

celtic frost - mexican radio

― brains (cerybut), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 15:41 (twenty years ago) link

Butthole Surfers - Hurdy Gurdy Man

― don, Tuesday, 6 April 2004 15:57 (twenty years ago) link

Rasputina has done some prime covers. what i really want to hear someday, however, is their cover of "Baby Got Back." which they apparently have only done live, thus far.

― janni (janni), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 15:59 (twenty years ago) link

biz markie - bennie and the jets!

― kjfsd, Tuesday, 6 April 2004 16:17 (twenty years ago) link

Dolly Parton- Stairway to Heaven

― earlnash, Tuesday, 6 April 2004 16:20 (twenty years ago) link

where does Cabaret Voltaire cover the Beatles? I have like 100 Cabaret Voltaire records and I've never heard of this, or I have it and just never noticed it?

Their covers of the Velvet's Here She Comes Now and the Seeds No Escape are classic of their catalog, and Theme From Shaft and Touch of Evil...

My fave cover is Robert Wyatt's I'm a Believer...

― Dan Selzer (Dan Selzer), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 16:53 (twenty years ago) link

Tricky has done some stange covers in his time... Noticably The Cure's "Lovecats".

― the impossible shortest special path! (the impossible shortest specia), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 18:28 (twenty years ago) link

Big Black's version of James Brown's "The Payback."

― Phil Freeman (Phil Freeman), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 18:35 (twenty years ago) link

us maple covering dion's "the wanderer".

― maria tessa sciarrino (theoreticalgirl), Tuesday, 6 April 2004 19:21 (twenty years ago) link

Supersuckers are issuing a cover of Hey Ya

― Brando_T., Wednesday, 7 April 2004 00:17 (twenty years ago) link

Jawbox - "Cornflake Girl"

― jaymatter, Wednesday, 7 April 2004 00:19 (twenty years ago) link

I really would like to see the Pixies making a cover of Hey Ya.

― Elvis is Dead, Wednesday, 7 April 2004 00:38 (twenty years ago) link

Will Oldham - "Don't Cry For Me, Argentina"

― cws (cws), Wednesday, 7 April 2004 09:20 (twenty years ago) link

I heard the Paul Young "Love Will Tear Us Apart" yesterday ... downloaded it from slsk ... WHAT AN ABOMINATION.

I had to tell somebody.

― Barry Bruner (Barry Bruner), Friday, 9 April 2004 11:40 (twenty years ago) link

weird covers. joy division. grace jones. she's lost control. 8 minutes 12 seconds. it it amazing.

― myke boomnoise (myke boomnoise), Friday, 9 April 2004 15:55 (twenty years ago) link

six months pass...

I recorded this cover of gay bar by the electric 6 last night for a laugh.

http://www.eyecandyforthebrokenhearted.com/gaybarcover.mp3

It's pretty weird.

― papa november (papa november), Monday, 8 November 2004 04:16 (nineteen years ago) link

nice : )

― RJG (RJG), Monday, 8 November 2004 04:21 (nineteen years ago) link

Kronos Quartet - "Purple Haze," "Marquee Moon" (the latter from Elektra's 'Rubaiyat' 40th anniversary album, a treasure trove of great/offbeat covers)

― Rickey Wright (Rrrickey), Monday, 8 November 2004 08:51 (nineteen years ago) link

where does Cabaret Voltaire cover the Beatles? I have like 100 Cabaret Voltaire records and I've never heard of this, or I have it and just never noticed it? - Dan Selzer

Sorry for not answering you months ago, Dan!

If you still care, "She Loved You" is on cabaret Voltaire 1974-1976. It's nearly 9 minutes long, slower than death, and features an extremely creepy, near-inaudible whisper of a "vocal".

― Myonga Von Bontee (Myonga Von Bontee), Monday, 8 November 2004 09:42 (nineteen years ago) link

thirteen years pass...

Just gettin' it all kinds of wrong in more than one case here.

― outside, you're never alone. (Austin), Thursday, 16 August 2018 01:19 (five years ago) link

good picks, a lot of them new to me! glass candy's cover of "rise", wow, that's a nice one. nothing coming to mind right now - maja ratkje doing prince's "solo"? but that's a weird one to start with. how about dead horse's version of "rock lobster"?

― Arch Bacon (rushomancy), Thursday, 16 August 2018 01:46 (five years ago) link

four years pass...

Somehow my wife found this 2007 comp on Tidal… it features the likes of Luna doing Paula Abdul’s “Straight Up,” and Superchunk doing “Say My Name” (seems like peak something-or-other)!

― morrisp.fandom.com (morrisp), Thursday, 20 April 2023 01:35 (one year ago) link

Peak Gen X sell-out shaming

― Josefa, Thursday, 20 April 2023 01:54 (one year ago) link

Jim O’Rourke’s take on a Spice Girls song is pretty good…

― morrisp.fandom.com (morrisp), Thursday, 20 April 2023 02:03 (one year ago) link

one year passes...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7OrLR8J-1bA

Intense!

― Chuck_Tatum, Monday, 29 April 2024 23:44 (two weeks ago) link

Intensely "unavailable"(?)

― rendered nugatory (morrisp), Tuesday, 30 April 2024 00:16 (two weeks ago) link

Staple Singers covering Talking Heads. I heard this for the first time today

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-S656JfwjPk

― bbq, Tuesday, 30 April 2024 01:41 (two weeks ago) link

^^^ secret weapon when I used to dj.

― Requiem for a Dream: The Musical! (Dan Peterson), Tuesday, 30 April 2024 02:19 (two weeks ago) link

Intensely "unavailable"(?)

― rendered nugatory (morrisp), Tuesday, 30 April 2024 00:16 (nine hours ago) link

Oops. The link was to a beautiful, intense and odd reading of "Moonlight Sonata" by Glenn Miller. Also here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nK5BBl7VE6A

― Chuck_Tatum, Tuesday, 30 April 2024 10:06 (two weeks ago) link

I'll just play this in the opposite direction cos I think the better known version is a much changed cover
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cF64tTw9nDE
is Jerry Lee Lewis's original.

The MC5 picked it up from this cover which does show traces of the original and revved it up further
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ot_-B-83Lb0

― Stevo, Tuesday, 30 April 2024 10:43 (two weeks ago) link

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