Tik Tok is a sad song?? January 7, 2011 11:33 AMSubscribe
Recommendations for acoustic covers of pop songs that add emotion?
I found and looked through this question that has a few relevant answers, but I'm more specifically interested in the cover turning a pop/dance song into a slow one with depth and emotion. This, this and this is what I'm looking for.
Taken by Trees did a haunting version of "Sweet Child of Mine" for a horror movie I cannot recall.
Just about any cover Johnny Cash or Ray Charles ever did. Cash's cover of NiN's "Hurt" fits the bill particularly well. posted by cross_impact at 11:46 AM on January 7, 2011
No joke, but I really appreciated the following cover more than the original Outkast song:
Not really a pop song in the same vein as Cyndi Lauper or Katy Perry, but certainly in the spirit of what you're asking for. posted by axiom at 11:55 AM on January 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
If you can find Lispector's version of 'Total Eclipse of the Heart', it's an almost perfect example - it's almost too sincere and emotional to listen to. You can find it here - it's on the 'Lucas Never Understood' album.
Another Tori Amos cover: a super-creepy version of Eminem's already-creepy "'97 Bonnie and Clyde", off her album Strange Little Girls where she reinterprets songs originally performed by men. posted by pised at 12:07 PM on January 7, 2011
John Darnielle (The Mountain Goats) has been been doing a cover of "The Sign" at live shows for years, often including a monologue about his love of the song. There are a million recordings and videos floating around: this is a particularly good version. posted by neroli at 12:51 PM on January 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
Jarboe adds melodrama to everything. posted by Kafkaesque at 2:13 PM on January 7, 2011
"I'm a Believer" was a giant pop hit for the Monkees in 1966. Neil Diamond wrote it and did this acoustic version all these years later. Maybe 1966 isn't what you had in mind, but still... posted by Right On Red at 2:26 PM on January 7, 2011
Dig around MeFi Music a little. This may have been some sort music challenge or something a while back. At any rate, listen to edgeways haunting version of "You Spin Me Round" posted by klarck at 5:34 AM on January 8, 2011
As much as I hate to admit it, the cast from Glee has done a couple of really good covers, one being the cover of Lady Gaga's Poker Face.
As if Townes Van Zant wasn't stripped enough, this Be Good Tanyas version of Waitin' Around To Die is awesome (and was used well on Breaking Bad). Evan Dando did a good job with it too. posted by skypieces at 11:08 AM on January 8, 2011
Nthing Tori Amos; her cover of "I Don't Like Mondays" by the Boomtown Rats is one of my favorite songs. posted by kostia at 10:09 PM on January 11, 2011
Travis - Hit Me Baby One More Time
This might be the most niggling exception, but the Travis version (at least the recording of it I've heard) kind of undercuts itself because you can hear them laughing in the background: they're jokey and overly broad about it. The Fountains of Wayne version is practically heartbreaking by comparison. posted by kittyprecious at 10:51 AM on January 12, 2011
Crooked Fingers' cover of Prince's When You Were Mine is pretty brutal if banjo/cello gets into your heart more than synth does. posted by Greg Nog at 11:40 AM on January 12, 2011
Hellsongs are a female-fronted, Swedish 'lounge rock' band who do acoustic covers of Metal classics such as Iron Maiden's 'Run to the Hills'. posted by Rufus T. Firefly at 11:43 AM on January 12, 2011 [1 favorite]
I recently heard the original version for the first time in ages. I was shocked at how crass and commercial it was. Coulton's version is just so sweet and heartfelt. How he manages to dig poignancy out of a vintage early 90s Sir Mix-A-Lot song is nothing short of miraculous. posted by ErikaB at 7:19 PM on January 13, 2011
Not acoustic, but definitely slowed down and emotionally charged: Dump doing Prince's 1999. posted by carsonb at 7:22 PM on January 13, 2011
Another Eva Cassidy entry: Ain't No Sunshine (original by Bill Withers). Check out her other songs -- she was a very talented woman who did some lovely covers. posted by Paris Elk at 9:51 AM on January 29, 2011
« Older One of my greatest wishes in l... | Advice on resizing a pdf.... Newer »
posted by Sidhedevil at 11:38 AM on January 7, 2011 [1 favorite]