these artists took the songs of others
and made them their own welcome to
watchmojo.com and today we’re counting
down our picks for the top ten cover
songs for this list we’ve selected cover
songs that are more famous than the
originals we’ve based our choices on
their overall recognition and popularity
and pop culture with a mix of their
critical and commercial success number
10 the man who sold the world original
David Bowie which came cover Nirvana
your dad
the title track to Bowie’s the man who
sold the world was a glam and
psychedelic rock number that inspired
cover versions by Lulu and Rick Barone
Kurt Cobain was also a fan of the album
which led Nirvana to rework the track
for their MTV Unplugged appearance that
live grunge rendition proved so popular
that Bowie was later complemented by
concert goers for doing a Nirvana song
number nine hallelujah original Leonard
Cohen
major cover Jeff Buckley Babu King
Cowen’s detached delivery of the folk
ballad has undergone many
transformations since its 1984 release
however it’s Buckley’s hauntingly
beautiful 1994 interpretation that
continues to pervade pop culture by
expanding on the serious tone of John
Cale’s 1991 recording and creating a
contrast between joy and sorrow the late
singer captured several emotions in one
song hallelujah also secured Buckley’s
posthumous success when it topped
Billboard’s Hot Digital Songs in 2008
number eight hurt original Nine Inch
Nails
cover Johnny Cash
featuring Trent Reznor’s incredibly
gritty performance the alternative and
industrial rock regional by Nine Inch
Nails received a Grammy not in 1996 but
it was Cash’s raw emotional delivery six
years later that made it so hard to
forget the pain in his voice
racking up numerous accolades the
country songs dark subject matter was
especially poignant considering the man
in blacks deteriorating health I would
find Oh number seven nothing compares to
you original the family cover Sinead
O’Connor
this funk jazz and synth pop ballad
attracted little fanfare when Prince’s
side-project the family recorded it in
the mid 80s enhanced by O’Connor’s
heartbreaking vocals the pop and soft
rock ballad top charts around the world
in 1990 a memorable music video
revealing O’Connor’s vulnerable side
complimented the love songs simple
lyrics and helped become one of the
best-selling singles of the year
number six I shot the sheriff original
Bob Marley cover Eric Clapton this
Marley Jam about justice helped raise
the Wailers global profile in the early
1970s by adding blues rock to its reggae
flavors Slowhand took I shot the sheriff
even further and scored his first and
only number-one hit the successful cover
also established Clapton solo career and
brought both reggae and Bob Marley’s
music to the mainstream
number five respect original Otis
Redding
cover Aretha Franklin by adding a bridge
sack solo and memorable chorus to
Redding’s R&B original The Queen of Soul
topped the pop and black singles charts
with respect while Redding’s version was
from a male point of view
Franklin’s decidedly female spin was
quickly embraced by feminism she later
earned her due respect when the Grammy
winning song turned her into a worldwide
star
number four all along the watchtower
original Bob Dylan them must be some way
out of here did Joe go to the theme
cover the Jimi Hendrix Experience
Dylan used acoustic guitar and harmonica
to produce this dark and understated
folk rock song but the single didn’t
find a home on the charts until the Jimi
Hendrix Experience took things electric
thanks to Jimi’s unrivaled guitar skills
and the band’s psychedelic and blues
rock it became their only American top
20 hit and inspired Dylan’s later
performances of the track
number three twist and shout original
the top notes cover the Beatles
this rock’n’roll tune was first recorded
by the top notes as shaken up baby in
1961 the next year The Isley Brothers
found crossover success on the pop and
R&B charts with their fast paced tape
however John Lennon’s rough-and-ready
vocals took the shouting to a new level
two years later
after becoming a top to us hit the
Beatles rendition went on to exemplify
British rock and roll
number two I will always love you
original Dolly Parton
cover Whitney Houston
Houston’s emotional and dramatic
renditions for The Bodyguard spent a
record 14 weeks at number one on the
Billboard Hot 100 but it was originally
written and recorded by Dolly Parton who
took it to the top of the Hot Country
Songs chart almost two decades earlier
Oh
thanks to its pot and gospel flavors and
Houston’s incomparable vocals the
grammy-winning soul ballad still remains
inextricably linked to the late
songstress
yeah
number one hound dog original Big Mama
Thornton
cover Elvis Presley
you a member capitalizing on the success
of the slower paced blues tune by Big
Mama Thornton multiple artists recorded
hound dog before Elvis made it his own
in 1956 but it was the Kings more upbeat
version featuring drum rolls and extra
guitars that topped the charts
Pressley complimented his early
performances of the song with risque
gyrations that undoubtedly helped it
become one of his best-selling singles
ever do you agree with our list which is
your top cover song
be sure to subscribe to watchmojo.com
for more entertaining top 10
and made them their own welcome to
watchmojo.com and today we’re counting
down our picks for the top ten cover
songs for this list we’ve selected cover
songs that are more famous than the
originals we’ve based our choices on
their overall recognition and popularity
and pop culture with a mix of their
critical and commercial success number
10 the man who sold the world original
David Bowie which came cover Nirvana
your dad
the title track to Bowie’s the man who
sold the world was a glam and
psychedelic rock number that inspired
cover versions by Lulu and Rick Barone
Kurt Cobain was also a fan of the album
which led Nirvana to rework the track
for their MTV Unplugged appearance that
live grunge rendition proved so popular
that Bowie was later complemented by
concert goers for doing a Nirvana song
number nine hallelujah original Leonard
Cohen
major cover Jeff Buckley Babu King
Cowen’s detached delivery of the folk
ballad has undergone many
transformations since its 1984 release
however it’s Buckley’s hauntingly
beautiful 1994 interpretation that
continues to pervade pop culture by
expanding on the serious tone of John
Cale’s 1991 recording and creating a
contrast between joy and sorrow the late
singer captured several emotions in one
song hallelujah also secured Buckley’s
posthumous success when it topped
Billboard’s Hot Digital Songs in 2008
number eight hurt original Nine Inch
Nails
cover Johnny Cash
featuring Trent Reznor’s incredibly
gritty performance the alternative and
industrial rock regional by Nine Inch
Nails received a Grammy not in 1996 but
it was Cash’s raw emotional delivery six
years later that made it so hard to
forget the pain in his voice
racking up numerous accolades the
country songs dark subject matter was
especially poignant considering the man
in blacks deteriorating health I would
find Oh number seven nothing compares to
you original the family cover Sinead
O’Connor
this funk jazz and synth pop ballad
attracted little fanfare when Prince’s
side-project the family recorded it in
the mid 80s enhanced by O’Connor’s
heartbreaking vocals the pop and soft
rock ballad top charts around the world
in 1990 a memorable music video
revealing O’Connor’s vulnerable side
complimented the love songs simple
lyrics and helped become one of the
best-selling singles of the year
number six I shot the sheriff original
Bob Marley cover Eric Clapton this
Marley Jam about justice helped raise
the Wailers global profile in the early
1970s by adding blues rock to its reggae
flavors Slowhand took I shot the sheriff
even further and scored his first and
only number-one hit the successful cover
also established Clapton solo career and
brought both reggae and Bob Marley’s
music to the mainstream
number five respect original Otis
Redding
cover Aretha Franklin by adding a bridge
sack solo and memorable chorus to
Redding’s R&B original The Queen of Soul
topped the pop and black singles charts
with respect while Redding’s version was
from a male point of view
Franklin’s decidedly female spin was
quickly embraced by feminism she later
earned her due respect when the Grammy
winning song turned her into a worldwide
star
number four all along the watchtower
original Bob Dylan them must be some way
out of here did Joe go to the theme
cover the Jimi Hendrix Experience
Dylan used acoustic guitar and harmonica
to produce this dark and understated
folk rock song but the single didn’t
find a home on the charts until the Jimi
Hendrix Experience took things electric
thanks to Jimi’s unrivaled guitar skills
and the band’s psychedelic and blues
rock it became their only American top
20 hit and inspired Dylan’s later
performances of the track
number three twist and shout original
the top notes cover the Beatles
this rock’n’roll tune was first recorded
by the top notes as shaken up baby in
1961 the next year The Isley Brothers
found crossover success on the pop and
R&B charts with their fast paced tape
however John Lennon’s rough-and-ready
vocals took the shouting to a new level
two years later
after becoming a top to us hit the
Beatles rendition went on to exemplify
British rock and roll
number two I will always love you
original Dolly Parton
cover Whitney Houston
Houston’s emotional and dramatic
renditions for The Bodyguard spent a
record 14 weeks at number one on the
Billboard Hot 100 but it was originally
written and recorded by Dolly Parton who
took it to the top of the Hot Country
Songs chart almost two decades earlier
Oh
thanks to its pot and gospel flavors and
Houston’s incomparable vocals the
grammy-winning soul ballad still remains
inextricably linked to the late
songstress
yeah
number one hound dog original Big Mama
Thornton
cover Elvis Presley
you a member capitalizing on the success
of the slower paced blues tune by Big
Mama Thornton multiple artists recorded
hound dog before Elvis made it his own
in 1956 but it was the Kings more upbeat
version featuring drum rolls and extra
guitars that topped the charts
Pressley complimented his early
performances of the song with risque
gyrations that undoubtedly helped it
become one of his best-selling singles
ever do you agree with our list which is
your top cover song
be sure to subscribe to watchmojo.com
for more entertaining top 10
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