I made a tape of reimagined and just plain weird covers, too.

Coverage

Side A
1. You’re No Good - Elvis Costello
2. Hallowed Ground - Blowzabella
3. Spring (excerpt) - New Koto Ensemble of Tokyo
4. Sub-Mission - Motor Totemist Guild
5. Bumble Boogie - Jools Holland and his Millionaires
6. Cruella de Ville - The Replacements
7. St. Louis Blues Yodel - Elton Britt
8. Theme to Peter Gunn - Art of Noise with Duane Eddy
9. Purple Haze - Roto Rooter Goodtime Xmas Band
10. Lara’s Theme - The Campbeltown Pipe Band
11. Viva Las Vegas - The Dead Kennedys
12. Heigh Ho (The Dwarves’ Marching Song) - Tom Waits
13. The Alabama Song - The Doors
14. Til There Was You - The Beatles
15. Buona Sera - Bad Manners
16. Wild Side of Life/Honky Tonk Angels - The Knitters


Side B

1. Rose Garden - k.d.lang and the reclines
2. Can’t Get Enough of You Baby - The Colour Field
3. Enjoy Yourself (It’s Later Than You Think) - The Specials
4. Some Velvet Morning - Peter Zaremba and the Love Delegation
5. Money (That’s What I Want) - The Flying Lizards
6. Fools Rush In - Bow Wow Wow
7. In Heaven There Is No Beer - Polkacide
8. This Land is Your Land - Mojo Nixon & Skid Roper
9. Theme from Rawhide - The Chaps
10. Hotel California - The Gypsy Kings
11. The Death of Rock’n’Roll - Maddox Bros. and Rose
12. Der Fuerhrer’s Face - Corpses of Foreign Wars
13. Purple Haze - The Fibonaccis
14. The Four Mills Brothers - Van Dyke Parks

I was talking recently with a friend about "cover" tunes. Once again, I pontificated about how too many artists cover a tune and try to sound as close to the original as they can manage. My opinion is that if someone is going to record a tune that has already been recorded, they ought to try to add something to it. Of course, there are exceptions. If one is recording a song that was never very well known in the first place, or if your vocals or level of musicianship is superior to the original... I also think slavish covers are just fine when done live.
I tried to come up with examples of covers that I thought were as good or superior to the originals. It was hard to think of many off the top of my head. However, I thought it would be a good theme for a miscellaneous tape. I don’t have the time to devote to researching and programming this tape that I did many years ago, but I hope that it is still entertaining. I have extended the criteria to include covers that may not equal the original but which are funny or far out. I hope you enjoy the selection I was able to whip up on short notice.

Here is the guide to the better-known versions of these songs:

You’re No Good - Betty Everett
Hallowed Ground - Violent Femmes
Spring - Vivaldi
Sub-Mission - The Sex Pistols
Bumble Boogie - Jack Fina
Cruella de Ville - uncredited Disney folk
St. Louis Blues - written by W.C. Handy, done by many artists notably Cab Calloway
Theme to Peter Gunn - Henry Mancini
Purple Haze - Jimi Hendrix
Lara’s Theme - from the Movie "Dr. Zhivago"
Viva Las Vegas - Elvis Presley
Heigh Ho (The Dwarves’ Marching Song) - uncredited Disney folk
The Alabama Song - From "The Rise and Fall of Mahagonny", first performed by Lotte Lenya
'Til There Was You - from "The Music Man" performed by Barbara Cook on Broadway, Shirley Jones in the movie
Buona Sera - Louis Prima
Wild Side of Life - Hank Thompson (This came first.)
Honky Tonk Angels - Kitty West (This was the "answer" song. A couple of artists since have made a medley of the two songs.)
Rose Garden - Lynn Anderson
Can’t Get Enough of You Baby - Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons
Enjoy Yourself (It’s Later Than You Think) - Guy Lombardo & His Royal Canadians
Some Velvet Morning - Lee Hazelwood and Nancy Sinatra
Money (That’s What I Want) - Berry Gordy
Fools Rush In - written by Rube Bloom and Johnny Mercer, many artists, notably Frank Sinatra
In Heaven There Is No Beer - Frankie Yankovic
This Land is Your Land - Woody Guthrie
Theme from Rawhide - Frankie Laine?
Hotel California - The Eagles
I Gotta Woman - Ray Charles
Der Fuerhrer’s Face - Spike Jones and his City Slickers
Purple Haze - Jimi Hendrix (Again)
The Four Mills Brothers - The Lion (a calypsonian)