The weirdest cover songs in the history of music

A good one cover version - is an art and a science. It has to be innovative enough to justify its existence, and at the same time - similar enough to the original to be recognisable. In general - to make a decent cover is a hundred times more difficult than it may seem at first sight. Even a rock pro like Jeff Lynnhe admits that when he records new versions of old hits, he is often not satisfied with the result, because "everything was much better in my head".

If some covers are good, others may be extremely weak and meaningless. And then there is a category of interpretations that are otherwise strange you can't even call them. That's what we're going to talk about today!

Elton John - "Young, Gifted and Black" (original by Nina Simone)

A nice sound is not an indication that a cover is a success. There are several factors that determine this odditythat we're talking about today. For example, the message of a song that doesn't go well with the artist who decided to re-record it. That's what happened in the case of Elton Johnwho had his eye on "Young, Gifted and Black.". Although - in many ways he was obliged to make this record, as during his youth the future "Rocketman" had to earn money by recording re-recordings of popular hits.

Why Elton was considered the most suitable singer for the anthem of black civil rightswill forever remain a mystery.

Duran Duran - "911 Is a Joke" (original Public Enemy)

A similar situation occurred with Duran Duranexcept unlike John, he's recording "911 Is a Joke." no one forced them to do anything. It was entirely the initiative of the participants themselves. As a result - a strange song about African-American criminal experience performed by white British people.

"Come on, get up, break away,
911 is the laughing stock of your town!
Come on, get up, get off,
God doesn't serve a late 911!"

You have to hand it to me, because the cover is still sounds cool. Afterwards, Rolling Stone magazine called Duran Duran "crazy geniuses"! You can't argue with that.

Ani Difranco and Jackie Chan - "Unforgettable" (original by Natalie Cole and Nat King Cole)

mere existence Jackie Chan on our list already looks weird. Few people know that the legendary actor has long been known as a singer in Asia as well! Since 1984, he has released dozens of albums in Cantonese, Chinese, Taiwanese, Japanese and English.

Regarding "Unforgettable."Jackie sounds rather strange here. Perhaps if he had sung in Cantonese dialect instead of broken English, the effect would have been more stunning.

Lesley Gore - "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" (AC/DC original).

For Leslie Gorewho made a name for herself in the '60s with tender lyrics like "You Don't Own Me," a choice in the form of the explosive "You Don't Own Me". "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap." AC/DC band as a reprise seems extremely strange... Nevertheless, Leslie decided that experimentation is a very good thing.

It's kind of a weird version "Dirty deeds for the price of junk." with an unusual sound, where instead of bass and guitar, brass and piano were used. Well - the main thing is that Gore herself was satisfied!

Charles Bradley - "Changes" and "Stay Away" (Black Sabbath and Nirvana originals)

Career Charles Bradley is an oddity in itself, not to mention his covers. Born in 1948, Bradley has spent most of his life working as an James Brown's doppelganger.

It wasn't until 2002, at the age of 53, that he was discovered by Daptone Records. And in 2011, Bradley released his first album. Sadly, he passed away in 2017 from stomach cancer.

Bradley capped off a career that never really got off the ground with covers of hits in the style of hard rockwho are as far removed from James Brown as you can get. And it's really weird.

Barbra Streisand - "Life on Mars?" (David Bowie original)

"Life on Mars?" in execution Barbra Streisand - perhaps the most reckless cover imaginable. However, the voice of the singer of the hit "Woman in Love" can save any situation. And it is only thanks to her that this interpretation can be called half good.

Half bad "Life on Mars?" because of the arrangement, which is a "merit" thing John Peters - Streisand's then boyfriend, who had nothing to do with music but was a hairdresser. Subsequently David Bowie blasted the cover to smithereens. Many critics followed suit. And Barbra herself called her whole album "ButterFly" "pretty lousy" and "the only one she didn't like". Yes, there are a lot of weird moments here - the cover alone looks like a record by some punk band!