The Best of song covers

In the genre of Rock music, there are so many rock songs that just deserve to be played in a different light. Sometimes this light is dim, the whole tribute is considered an insult to the original. In essence, spiting in the face of the glory of the song. Every here and there, heros emerge from the darkness. This is what is considered covers. A song that is played again, but by a different band or person. Some covers just suck, while others go as far as being better than the original.

The violin is always seen as boring, but when used right…it can be a force to be reckoned with. This is a cover on the Van Halen solo “Eruption”. An anthem in guitar solos, and this violinist really does step up to the plate and knocks it home.

I didn’t know that this was a cover on a earlier song, so now I can appropiately give it the props it deserves. This is a cover on “Last Kiss” (not sure who did the original). Pearl Jam managed to do a marvelous cover on this song. They make it feel new, but still keep that old feel to it.

Roy Orbison played an instant rock classic. The song called “Pretty Woman”. Van Halen has went as far, as to make a cover on it that has actually reached a higher caliber than the original. They did add a intro to it called “Intruder”, but that is just one part that made this cover so great. The video may seem strange, but the song is what completely captivated my interest. One of the few covers that is actually better than the original (tough accomplishment when trying to overcome a rock classic like “pretty woman”).

This guy from New York did a killer cover on my favorite Beatles song “While My Guitar Gently Weeps”. He even went as far as to add a solo in the middle of it. He just makes it sound so new again. Shines it in a different light that actually does the song justice. I won’t say it was better than the original, because this was all instrumental, no vocals. But then again, rare is the case when the vocals on the cover surpases the original.

The Charlie Daniels Band is a country type of band. I only country I listen to is country rock. I myself consider them so, but I’m not so sure if they really are. Anyway, their best song was “The Devil Went Down to Georgia”. Guitar Hero did something I never thought ever possible. They took a song where there was only a little bit of guitar in it, and made it into a shredding, rock-out-loud cover. I will not say the cover Steve Ouimette did was better than the original, but it sure does come close.

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