LimeWire Music Blog

In case you hadn’t noticed, Pitchfork is getting its “Best of the Decade” on this week. Feel free to stop over there and get depressed about how many classic albums were deemed “less good” than Vampire Weekend (#50). But rather than pick apart that questionable list, I’d like to direct your attention to a list that’s a little less self-important: Take a look at Spin’s (heavily SoCo-sponsored) ranking of the 50 best cover songs of all time. All the usual suspects are there: The Raincoats’ rendition of “Lola”; William Shatner’s infinitely bizarre deadpan of Pulp’s “Common People”; Scissor Sisters’ questionable disco reimagining of “Comfortably Numb”; Johnny Cash’s take on “Hurt”; Soft Cell’s smash-hit Gloria Jones cover “Tainted Love”; Jeff Buckley’s recently popular version of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah”; Guns ‘n Roses’ pop-metal “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door.” Number one is a particularly strong choice: Nirvana’s version of David Bowie’s “The Man Who Sold the World.” In general, it’s a solid list.

But personally, my favorite covers have always been the bizarre and strangely appropriate ones. Here’s a short list of songs I would have included. Leave your suggestions in the comments.

1. Hole – “Gold Dust Woman” (The mother of all ridiculously apt covers; Courtney Love really does sing the Fleetwood Mac lyric “black widow” over and over.)

2. Johnny Thunders and the Heartbreakers – “Too Much Junkie Business” (A drug-addicted cover of Chuck Berry’s “Too Much Monkey Business”)

3. Bratmobile – “Where Eagles Dare” (The Misfits go riot grrrl.)

4. Mae West – “Hard to Handle” (The raunchy screen legend does Otis Redding’s classic like no other, in one of the weirdest films ever: Myra Breckenridge)

5. The Brian Jonestown Massacre – “I Fought the Law” (You sure did, Anton Newcombe.)