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The 50 Best Cover Songs of 2023

Posted by Staff at 9:00 am 10 Responses »

Dec 152023

Follow all our Best of 2023 coverage (along with previous year-end lists) here.

I like to think that badass lady in the artwork up there (done by our own Hope Silverman!) embodies the spirit of this year’s list. Not that they’re all CBGB-style punk songs—though there are a couple—but in her devil-may-care attitude. “Who says I shouldn’t do a hardcore cover of the Cranberries? A post-punk cover of Nick Drake? A hip-hop cover of The Highwaymen? Screw that!”

As with most good covers, the 50 covers we pulled out among the thousands we listened to bring a healthy blend of reverence and irreverence. Reverence because the artists love the source material. Irreverence because they’re not afraid to warp it, bend it, mold it in their own image. A few of the songs below are fairly obscure, but most you probably already know. Just not like this.

The Best Cover Songs of November 2023

Posted by Ray Padgett at 2:31 pm No Responses »

Nov 302023

boygenius ft. Ye Vagabonds — The Parting Glass (Trad. cover)

Every year, Phoebe Bridgers releases a surprise cover around the holidays to benefit charity. This year, she brought in her boygenius bandmates as well as vocal group Ye Vagabonds to cover “The Parting Glass.” It’s a traditional Irish tune, but their version pays specific homage to Sinead O’Connor, who covered it in 2002. Sales benefit the Aisling Project, an after-school project working with children and young people growing up in a disadvantaged area of Dublin. The beneficiary was chosen by the estate of O’Connor, who died in July. Continue reading »

The Best Cover Songs of October 2023

Posted by Ray Padgett at 1:31 pm No Responses »

Oct 312023

Deer Tick – Dancing In The Dark (Bruce Springsteen cover)

“For me, ‘Dancing in the Dark’ isn’t a song about romance, but instead a desperate plea to break out of some degraded, stagnant situation. The narrator is filled with angst, self doubt, and the only way out is to the sheer force of unwavering will power,” says Deer Tick guitarist/vocalist Ian O’Neil. “Bruce really shows us who he is on this one and it looks an awful lot like the rest of us.”

Die Sauerkrauts Polka Band — Now That’s What I Call Polka! (Weird Al cover)

There are a lot of Weird Al covers out there (okay, maybe not a lot, but more than you might think). This is new though. This band didn’t cover one of Weird Al’s parodies. They didn’t even cover a Weird Al original, like “Dare to Be Stupid.” They covered one of his polka medleys (a subject I interviewed Al about in Cover Me the book—excerpt at The AV Club). Meaning, they covered polka versions of hits by Miley Cyrus, One Direction, Gotye, and many more, all in a brisk medley. A very silly music video brings it home. Continue reading »

Pendulum Creates Electro-Rock Cover of Taylor Swift’s “Anti-Hero”

Posted by Aleah Fitzwater at 1:12 pm No Responses »

Oct 252023

Pendulum is an Austrian electronic rock band, and lately, they’ve been mixing it up a little. This version of Taylor Swift’s hit “Anti-Hero” has vocals that are a bit Bastille-y, percussion reminiscent of traditional drum&bass, and tight-knit guitars. Put it all together, and it is safe to say that this is not your average pop cover of TSwift. Continue reading »

Counting Crows Cover Taylor Swift’s “The 1” with Piano and Accordion

Posted by Aleah Fitzwater at 4:15 pm No Responses »

Sep 072023

Counting Crows is currently on tour with Dashboard Confessional in their Banshee Season Tour. At one of their most recent stops, Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, the band decided to play a Taylor Swift cover. But for those who closely follow Counting Crows, this should be no surprise, as lead singer Adam Duritz has recently found a deep appreciation for the female pop idol. Several months ago in an interview with Nuvo Duritz said: Continue reading »

The Maine Releases Light-as-Air Cover of Taylor Swift’s “Cruel Summer”

Posted by Aleah Fitzwater at 12:00 pm No Responses »

Jul 262023

Pop-punk quintet The Maine always seems to have a gentle and melodic with impeccable harmonies, and this cover of Taylor Swift’s “Cruel Summer” is no different. According to Alt Press, Maine’s vocalist John O’Callaghan had said “We couldn’t get tickets for Taylor Swift’s tour, so we decided to cover ‘Cruel Summer so we can have our own concert on the tour bus.” Continue reading »