[Vote] Originals vs. Covers - which do you prefer? (Current Vote: Songs 191 and 192)

[Jeannaisais]

167: Cover (ironically...usually not my type to have that style *shrugs*)

168: Cover (apparently I don't care too much for Elvis's voice...better not let my grandma hear that lol)

[Basel Gill]

Well, here's the results. Rush won the first battle with the original getting 2 votes to 1. ZZ Top's cover won the second battle, also by 2-1. I'd been under the impression that I was doing this for just one week, but Corki is on an LoA. I can put something up after I finish dinner.

[Basel Gill]

Song 169: Black Magic Woman

 

 

There might be some of you out there saying "Whaaaat?!" This is one of those songs where a cover has become so much better-known than the original that it is often believed to be the original version, while the true original sinks into relative obscurity.

 

ORIGINAL: Fleetwood Mac

Fleetwood Mac's Black Magic Woman was written by lead singer/guitarist Peter Green and recorded by their original lineup. It was released as a single in various countries in 1968, and on Fleetwood Mac compilation albums in 1969. It would hit #37 in the UK. Green left the band in 1970, but the song would be a staple of their concerts for several years afterward. Often, one of the band would remind audiences that Fleetwood Mac were the original artist. This was felt to be needed after it became a much, much, bigger hit for...

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v0uS0IhXYLA

 

 

vs.

 

 

COVER: Santana

San Francisco-based Santana would release their remake in 1970. It was performed with a mix of influences including Latin music, Hungarian folk, and jazz. It went to #4 in the US and Canada. The album Abraxas, which included the song, hit #1 in the US and Australia and #7 in the UK. It is currently quintuple platinum in the US. Black Magic Woman remains one of the band's most famous songs.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7pi1fQtliM

 

 

Voting ends Thursday 28th April 2011 at 10pm (GMT)

[Jeannaisais]

Original

[Deadsy]

Voting ends Monday 25th April 2011 at 10pm (GMT)

 

Deadsy - Tom Sawyer

 

 

 

WHOA WHOA WHOA. I demand a recount!

 

and I refuse to say who I'm voting for. It should be obvious.

 

 

Oh and it hit 100 on the Billboard chart. So there. They should have listened to me and released She Likes Big Words as a single.

[Basel Gill]

 

Oh and it hit 100 on the Billboard chart.

 

That's what I get for trusting Wikipedia.

[Jeannaisais]

*clears throat* No spamming please! And deadlines are deadlines! Now who else is going to vote?

[Adrian44]

Cover

[Basel Gill]

Cover.

[Basel Gill]

Well, Santana won the last round by a score of 2-1. Here is the next round:

 

Song 170: Don't Fear The Reaper

 

 

 

 

ORIGINAL: Blue Oyster Cult

 

This song is the one of the best known, and the highest charting track by Long Island, New York rockers Blue Oyster Cult. Released in 1976, it hit #12 as a single in the US and #16 in the UK. The album it came from, Agents of Fortune, hit #29 in the US. It has been featured in the original version of Halloween and the novel and miniseries versions of The Stand by Stephen King. In 2000, the making of the song was spoofed in a famous Saturday Night Live skit starring Christopher Walken. I've always considered this album cover one of my all-time favorites, and have used it as an avatar on several different forums over the years.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ClQcUyhoxTg

 

 

vs.

 

 

COVER: Gus

 

Los Angeles singer Gus Black, who commonly records under just his first name, recorded a cover of the song that featured on the soundtrack to the 1996 slasher film Scream. As far as I can tell, the cover was not released as a single. While the film was a smash hit, the soundtrack failed to live up to expectations. It never cracked the Billboard top 200 albums.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRjUQXz2tyg

 

 

Voting ends Monday May 2nd, 2011 at 10pm (GMT)

[Basel Gill]

Song 171: Smoke on the Water

 

This is one of the most famous and enduring songs in the history of hard rock music. The lyrics tell the true story of an incident that happened to original artists Deep Purple while they were recording in Montreux, Switzerland. A Frank Zappa concert nearby turned into a horrible fire when an idiot shot off a flare gun into the ceiling. The planned recording venue was destroyed, and the band was left to cast about town to find a new spot to record on the pricey mobile recording unit they had rented. Montreux has since honored the song with a lakeside sculpture.

 

 

ORIGINAL: Deep Purple

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUwEIt9ez7M

 

 

vs.

 

 

COVER: Kabuki-za Orchestra

 

The only other time I have shared this link on a forum, someone responded that it would take them several weeks to wrap their brain around it. In 2008, the Kabuki-za Orchestra gave a version of this tune to commemorate the 250th anniverasry of the Great Fire of Edo (the classical name for Tokyo). It used traditional Japanese instruments such as shamisen (the three-string banjo), flute, and taiko drums, and a Western-style symphony orchestra. The video never fails to blow my mind.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tujga5JdP1M

 

 

Voting ends Monday, May 2nd 2011 at 10pm (GMT)

[Adrian44]

ORIGINAL

ORIGINAL

[Jeannaisais]

Original x 2

[Basel Gill]

170: Original

171: Original

 

Points for April counted to here ~Jea

[Basel Gill]

Just a little over a day to vote on this, then Jean and Horn will be taking over till Corki gets back.

[Corki]

Two more votes for originals.

[Corki]

And with those votes, time for the results!

 

Don't Fear The Reaper by Blue Oyster Cult beat the cover by Gus in song 170 by 4 votes to 0.

 

And in song 171, Smoke on the Water was won by Deep Purple's original, which triumphed over the cover by Kabuki-za Orchestra by 4 votes to 0.

 

A bug thanks to Basel for running this in my absence!

 

Time for next set. You may these have been done before - and you are correct. Since my life is about to go crazy for about two months, I am making my life as easy as possible by re-using "Original vs. Cover" posts already completed.

 

As always, if you want to run this for a week (and it would be much appreciated so I can look for somewhere to live!), just drop me a PM and I will be in contact.

[Corki]

Thinking I had mucked up the results post, this has taken a bit longer than I had expected. Anyway, from our first 30 songs, I am picking the first three winners for Covers to see if they can keep that up...

[Corki]

Song 172: Mad World

 

Two different takes on the song - one a sombre ballad, the other an electro-rock version. This featured as song 4 in September 2009.

 

 

ORIGINAL: Tears for Fears

Released in 1982, it peaked at number 3 in the UK charts for the British group. Originally meant to be a B-side, the group decided otherwise.

 

 

vs.

 

 

COVER: Gary Jules and Michael Andrews

The cover was released 20 years later, and was used for the Donnie Darko film. Totally different as it is a ballad. It went to number 1 in the UK charts over the Christmas period.

 

 

Voting ends Thursday 5th April 2011 at 10pm (BST)

[Corki]

Song 173: Toxic

 

Song 5 173 comes courtesy of Krakalakachkn, featuring a modern pop superstar whose personal issues seem to reach the front pages of celeb magazines, and a relatively unknown group (well, in the UK anyway!). This featured as song 5 in September 2009.

 

 

ORIGINAL: Britney Spears

This is a Grammy Award winning song for Spears that was released in 2004. It reached number 1 in the UK, and charted well in the US and across the globe. The music video caused some controvsary due to the scenes of Britney Spears appearing virtually naked, causing MTV to move it to late night rotation.

 

 

vs.

 

 

COVER: Nickel Creek

Nickel Creek consisted of 3 members, whose music has roots from bluegrass. However, the group prefers to call their music "Progressive Acoustic". Here is a live cover of Britney Spear's song. The group picked up numerous awards before splitting up in 2007.

 

 

Voting ends Thursday 5th April 2011 at 10pm (BST)

[Corki]

Song 174: Enjoy The Silence

 

Lacuna Coil, a metal group from Italy take on Depeche Mode, a heavyweight of the music world with Enjoy the Silence. This featured as song 7 in September 2009.

 

 

ORIGINAL: Depeche Mode

Depeche Mode are one of the most successful bands to appear from the 1980s, withforty-five songs in the UK Singles Chart and #1 albums in UK, US and throughout Europe, and selling over 100m records! Released in 1990, Enjoy the Silence is one of Depeche Mode's most successful and recognisable songs.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1rdfFroO67g

 

 

vs.

 

 

COVER: Lacuna Coil

Enjoy the Silence is a popular song when it comes to covers. I have picked the cover by Lacuna Coil, the Italian metal group. It was their second single from the Karmacode album from 2006. It is probably a bit "heavier" than the original.

 

 

Voting ends Thursday 5th April 2011 at 10pm (BST)

[Basel Gill]

172: Original

173: Cover

174: Cover

[Corki]

172: Cover

 

173: Original

 

174: Cover

[Jeannaisais]

Cover

Original (can that cover really be considered a cover even though it sounded almost exactly the same?)

Cover (the name of this song brings on a whole new meaning to anyone whom has seen the latest Doctor Who episode)

 

Corki - our picks are exactly the same on three songs? How does this happen?

[Jeannaisais]

Any other votes on these?