The Portland-based Dandy Warhols have just announced a compilation record, pulling together some of the covers that in the past have ended up as b-sides, tribute albums and soundtracks. To accompany the announcement, the band released a newly-recorded cover of the Violent Femmes‘ classic “Kiss Off.” Continue reading »
“Masters of War” is one of Dylan’s most direct and effective protest songs, based on the traditional song “Nottamun Town.” Written during his protest song period, it is one of his Top 20 most covered songs, perhaps because of its directness. Continue reading »
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Last year’s unexpected theme was Tom Petty covers. For no obvious reason, he popped up again and again on our 2024 year-end list. And whaddya know, Tom’s back this year, with two more Petty covers on our list. This year, however, he is not the most-covered artist on our list.
That’s a tie between two artists, one extremely of-the-moment, one timeless. With three covers apiece, Chappell Roan and Neil Young share the most-best-covered crown. (Artists with two covers apiece this year, in addition to Petty, are Gillian Welch, John Prine, and—this one’s surprising—Nelly Furtado!)
Spoiler alert: None of those appears in the number-one position. Number one covers an artist who I don’t think has ever appeared on one of our year-end lists. But don’t skip ahead. There are 49 equally (well, almost) as good covers to get through first, spanning genres and sounds and eras and ages. Here we go.
Cover art by Hope Silverman
I am not sure how much traction (The) Sam Chase elicits in his home state of California, but over here in Blighty, courtesy a magnificent little festival called Maverick, he is always guaranteed a welcome. He, and his band, The Untraditional, cut quite the rug with his hoarse holler, belting out songs of a country hue, a punk attitude and a sometimes chamber-folk setting. This all makes for a beguiling combination, a rich mix of sandpaper and silk. Over the years he has worked solo, as a trio and now with his a 7 piece band behind him. That’s a lot, but, with cello, violin and trumpet, augmenting the more familiar guitar, keys, bass and drums, flickering remembrances of Van Morrison’s Caledonia Soul Orchestra wouldn’t be that far off point. And, yes, all seem present for Covered:, endeavoring to both compete with and comfort his foghorn fusillade.
To be fair, Chase’s voice gets dialed down a tad across most the selections here, culled from a bevy of the usual suspects: a Dylan, a Prine, a couple of Waits, balanced with CCR, Nirvana and one from the pirate cabaret of The Crux. The overall effect is strangely chameleonic, as he affects to occupy the persona of each individual singer, in character if not always sound. The difference comes largely from the arrangements, which tend toward the dusty roadhouse of amplified acoustica with drums. This renders a fluency to the flow of Covered:, a congruency that makes for a set that is all his own, however familiar the songs may or may not be.
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Last month, Bob Dylan wrapped up the most recent leg of his “Rough and Rowdy Ways” tour. And at his show in Belfast, he wrapped up the night with a Van Morrison song. Sorry, let me rephrase that; he wrapped up the night with a recent Van Morrison song.
At his November 20th show at Waterfront Hall in Belfast (Morrison’s hometown), Dylan ended the show with a performance of “Going Down to Bangor.” The track originally appeared on Morrison’s 2016 album Keep Me Singing. Dylan is a stickler for phones not being allowed at his shows, but an enterprising fan was still able to get a pretty good recording of it. Did anyone in the hall recognize the song? It’s hard to say, but, at the very least, you can tell that the response wasn’t overtly enthusiastic. Morrison himself has only played the song live a few times since releasing it.
Dylan has covered Van Morrison in the past, including “Into the Mystic” at a show in Spain in 2023 and the two toured together in 1998. In a Twitter post, Dylan promised more “R&RW” shows in 2026.
The product of Bob Dylan’s new singing style and a parallel decision to write more straightforward lyrics, “Lay Lady Lay” was his biggest hit in 4 years, since “Like a Rolling Stone” went to #2 on Billboard in 1965. Because of its relative accessibility – how very unlike ’60s Dylan it is – it is one of the Top 15 most-covered Dylan songs. For most artists, that wouldn’t be a lot of covers, but because it’s Dylan, it means there are hundreds. Continue reading »