Pick a songwriter. Your 5-10 favorite covers of their work?

STEVIE WONDER - lead or solo writer on:

Tears of A Clown - Smokey Robinson and the Miracles

It’s A Shame - Spinners

Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever - Four Tops

What’s That You Doing? - Paul McCartney

Thelonious - Jeff Beck

I Do Love You - Beach Boys

I Can’t Help It - Michael Jackson

 

Love this thread so far... thanks!

 

Status Quo

1) Fabienne Delsol - When My Mind Is Not Live
2) Cud - Down Down
3) Lunar Na Lubre - Gerdundula
4) Great White - Again and Again
5) Persephone's Bees - Paper Plane
6) Camper Van Beethoven - Pictures Of Matchstick
7) Sky High - In My Chair
8) Lake of Tears - Is There A Better Way
9) Mud Slick - Rain
10) Porky's Hot Rockin - Caroline

 

WARREN ZEVON:

Poor Poor Pitiful Me - Linda Rondstadt

Werewolves of London - Grateful Dead

Lawyers, Guns and Money - Meat Loaf/ Hank Williams Jr.

Reconsider Me - Stevie Nicks/ Pretenders

Carmelita- Linda Rondstadt

Like the Seasons - The Turtles

Play It All Night Long - Bruce Hornsby/David Lindley- Ry Cooder

 

I am certainly no against cover tunes, and I hope you don't mind my approach to this, but I need to go a slightly different angle to play.

Joe Cocker
With A Little Help From My Friends - turned a sweet little Beatles track into a masterpiece
Bird On A Wire - Made Leonard Cohen's beautiful song, just a little more rootsy
Feelin' Alright - Made the Traffic song just resonate with me
Dear Landlord - Again just made the Dylan track a little more rootsy and nailed it
Darlin be Home Soon - John Sebastian's classic turned into a Joe tune

For a While Joe Cocker was arranging and rearranging other people's songs in such a way as to make me really appreciate his craft. I don't know if it was him or a producer or bandleader, but whoever it was did a great job.

 

How is this cat not in the R&R Hall of Fame?

 

GEORGE HARRISON:

My Sweet Lord - Chiffons

Here Comes the Sun - Ritchie Havens

Something - Frank Sinatra

If I Needed Someone - Roger McGuinn

Taxman - Tom Petty + The Heartbreakers

All Those Years Ago - Ghost Riders

I Want To Tell You - The Smithereens.

While My Guitar Gently Weeps - India Aria, Santana, Yo Yo Ma

 

+ "Tell Me Something Good" by Rufus ft. Chaka Khan. Stevie's the man!

 

Michael Nesmith:

Different Drum - Linda Ronstadt/Stone Poneys; The Flying Emus; Suzanna Hoffs; Lemonheads - Ronstadt best others very good as well
Some of Shelly's Blues - Nitty Gritty Dirt Band; Linda Ronstadt
Mary, Mary - Paul Butterfield Blues Band; Run DMC had a unique take too
Propinquity - Iain Matthews; Nitty Gritty Dirt Band - equally nice
Joanne - Andy Williams
I've Never Loved Anyone More (cowritten with Linda Hargrove) - Johnny Rodriguez and Lynn Anderson about equal
The Girl I Knew Somewhere - The Monkees (may not qualify as he was in the group but my favorite Nez written tune so I stretched)

 

Will keep it to five from each:

Todd Rundgren
Can We Still Be Friends? – Mandy Moore
It Wouldn’t Have Made Any Difference – Alison Krauss
Mated – Jaki Graham and David Grant
Pretending to Care – Jennifer Warnes
Hello It’s Me – Isley Brothers

Neil Young
A Man Needs a Maid – Rumer
Lotta Love – Nicolette Larson
Look Out for My Love – Linda Ronstadt
New Mama – Stephen Stills
Only Love Can Break Your Heart – Mint Juleps

Randy Newman
Baltimore – Nina Simone
Cowboy – Harry Nilsson
Last Night I Had a Dream – Fanny
The Beehive State – Doobie Bros.
Kathleen – Jack Lukeman

Laura Nyro
Eli’s Coming – Affinity
Save the Country – Thelma Houston
The Confession – Billy Childs/Becca Stevens
Time and Love – Barbra Streisand
Upstairs by a Chinese Lamp – Leni Stern

Jimmy Webb
Crying in My Sleep – America
MacArthur Park – Donna Summer
Wichita Lineman – Johnny Cash
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress – Radka Toneff
Scissors Cut – Art Garfunkel

 

Forgot one...

Joni Mitchell
Edith and the Kingpin – D*Note
River – Sarah McLachlan
A Case of You – Prince
Help Me – k.d. lang
The Boho Dance – Bjork

 

I got one to add to the list..

"Memphis In The Meantime" by Chris Smither

 

I forgot to add this one.

"God Is God" by Joan Baez

 

Some great picks!

I'm going with the Bee Gees as well.

Off the top of my head:

1. To Love Somebody--Nina Simone
2. Please Read Me--Nina Simone
3. I Can't See Nobody--Nina Simone
4. Please Don't Turn Out The Lights--The Gibb Collective
5. (Our Love) Don't Throw It All Way--Andy Gibb
6. New York Mining Disaster--Chumbawamba
7. Immortality--Celine Dion
8. Too Much Heaven--Hanson (live cover only)
9. How Deep Is Your Love--Adeaze
10. Come On Over--Olivia Newton-John
    
    

 

Arguably the best cover, of anyone's songs, he ever performed.

IIRC it was in Hornby's top 12 tracks of all time.

 

Babyface - one of the best songwriters, but not much R&B on this forum

Whitney Houston - Exhale (Shoop, Shoop)
Toni Braxton - Breathe Again
After 7 - Can't Stop
Toni Braxton - Another Sad Love Song
Madonna - Take A Bow
Whitney Houston - I'm Your Baby Tonight
The Boys - Dial My Heart
Mariah Carey - Melt Away
Boyz II Men - End of The Road
Toni Braxton - Let It Flow

 

Dylan...

1.Manfred Mann's Earth Band / Please Mrs.Henry (1972)...from a band notorius for covering Dylan this blast of hard rocking brilliance is easily in the top tier Dylan covers

2.Johnny Winter / Highway 61 Revisited (1969)...JW takes this Dylan song & wears it like a coat made to fit his extraordinary slide guitar skills

3.Maria Muldaur / Heart Of Mine : Love Songs of Bob Dylan (2006)....Maria's commitment on the complete record is a high point in her long standing career

 

YES! Gotta include:
Mother-In-Law / Ernie K-Doe
Fortune Teller / Rolling Stones, The Who, others
Java / Al Hirt
Southern Nights / Glen Campbell
Yes We Can Can / Pointer Sisters
Play Something Sweet (Brickyard Blues) / Three Dog Night
Sneakin’ Sally Through The Alley / Lee Dorsey, Robert Palmer

 

Bruce Springsteen
1 Tougher Than The Rest-Chris LeDeux
2. Fire-Pointer Sisters
3. Because The Night-Patti Smith
4.Johnny 99- Johnny Cash
5.Vampire Weekend-I'm Goin' Down
6.Highway Patrol-Johnny Cash
7.Ain't Got You-Soloman Burke
8. Jeannie Needs A Shooter-Warren Zevon
9.Seeds- Dave Alvin
10-Working On The Highway-Joe Ely

 

{ Paul Simon }

01. Kathy's Song by Eva Cassidy
02. Bridge Over Troubled Water by Aretha Franklin
03. America by Yes
04. Hazy Shade of Winter by Bangles
05. Red Rubber Ball by the Cyrkle

 

Buddy Holly...

1.The Bunch / Learning The Game
2.The Bunch / That'll Be The Day
3.Stones / Not Fade Away
4.Grateful Dead / Not Fade Away
5..Blind Faith / Well All Right
6.Beatles / Words Of Love
7.Beatles / Crying Waiting Hoping

 

There are not enough Buddy Holly cover versions in the world .

 

Robert Pollard:

The Breeders- "Shocker in Gloomtown"
Flaming Lips- "Smothered in Hugs"
Portastatic- "Echoes Myron"
Blitzen Trapper- "Hot Freaks"
Lou Barlow- "Game of Pricks"
New Radiant Storm King- "I Am a Scientist"
Local H- "Smothered in Hugs"
Samiam- "Motor Away" (no studio version as far as I know, but I like the acoustic live version I've heard)
Swearing at Motorists- "Volcano Divers"
Gem- "Kisses to the Crying Cooks"

 

Bob Dylan
"All Along The Watchtower" (Jimi Hendrix)
"My Back Pages" (The Byrds)
"Mr. Tambourine Man" (The Byrds)
"Like A Rolling Stone" (The Remains)
"Girl From The North Country" (The Blue Things)
"Blowin In The Wind" (Peter, Paul, & Mary)
"One Too Many Mornings" (The Beau Brummels)
"It Ain't Me Babe" (The Turtles)
"Absolutely Sweet Marie" (The Flamin Groovies)
"If Not For You" (George Harrison)

In each case I prefer the cover over Dylan's original.

 

Lou Reed

What Goes On - the Feelies
Waiting for my Man - Nico
Caroline Says - Marc & the Mambas
New Age - Rachel Sweet
White Light White Heat - Tubeway Army (loved it when I saw them do it live in 1978... never heard it since)
Sweet Jane - Mott the Hoople
The Runaways - Rock and Roll
Kill Your Sons - Christian Death
Street Hassle - Simple Minds
Little Toy Soldier (Venus in Furs) - Riot Squad