Super-duper-fluous Cover Songs And The Bulletproof Song
This morning I worked out to The Futureheads. It's a great cd and they do a nice cover of Kate Bush's "Hounds Of Love", possibly her most enduring track. This brought to mind the concept of the bulletproof song. Then while doing situps I heard "Is She Really Going Out With Him" by Sugar Ray and thought about the superfluous cover song. Both ideas are patent pending.
The bulletproof song is eminently worthy of being covered, cannot be equaled or bettered, and is nearly impossible to ruin. The Residents came close with their version of "Satisfaction". A few bulletproof songs that come to mind are "12XU" by Wire, "Suspect Device" by Stiff Little Fingers and "Gates Of Steel" by Devo.
Two glaring examples of the superfluous cover song are the Joe Jackson one above and The Wallflower's version of Bowie's "Heroes" for the Godzilla soundtrack. Allmusic.com's review of the Joe Jackson cover fawns it's "where vocalist Mark McGrath precisely mimics the tone, timbre, and phrasing of Joe Jackson". Like it's a good thing! Bowie's "Heroes" will never age and it annoys me to no end that some numbnut decided to have a popular young band do a cover instead of using the bulletproof original by old man Bowie.
If you have other examples of the bulletproof song and the superfluous cover song, please leave a comment.
posted by emerson at 9:22 AM
6 Comments:
I'd call Otis Redding's "Sitting on the Dock of the Bay" a prime bulletproof song, but that didn't stop Michael Bolton, Pearl Jam, and several other misguided souls from covering it, and making the original sound that much better in comparison.
9:55 PM
"Blitzkrieg Bop" is a bulletproof song.
6:00 AM
Friday On My Mind = BP
Steve
12:35 PM
The best thing about The Futureheads covering Kate Bush was that SOMEBODY remembers Kate Bush. I love her music dearly but she's nearly forgotten.
Sniff. Sob. Moan.
In other news:
Bulletproof - Gloria, Kids Of America, We Are 138...many of the songs covered by Me First & The GG's (god I love that fucking band!)
Superfluous - anything that you attribute a lot of meaning to that somebody else wrecks.
Love, Stimpy
1:04 PM
Ah Stimpy, your wisdom is not dumb but whizzical!
1:32 PM
Sympathy for the Devil is the opposite of bulletproof- in fact, NOBODY else could pull it off. Except maybe Jane's Addiction- how did they do it? It almost sounds better than the original.
Honorable Mention- Brother's Johnson covering Shuggy Otis' Strawberry Letter
1:40 PM
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