The other day, Evan told me that The Dish has been posting a blog series which asks: Best Cover Songs of All Time?

I immediately answered with this pick: Jimi Hendrix’s cover of Bob Dylan’s All Along the Watchtower – which, as it turns out, is one of the front-runners.

Another person put in with Jeff Buckley’s Hallelujah – one of the all-time greats and a big favourite in my teens.

So, the above aside, I decided to share my Top 3 cover songs.

 

3. Alkaline Trio & System of a Down cover Berlin’s Metro

Yes, the first one is a two-way tie.

I love these covers because both bands totally put their stamp on the song. If you didn’t know the original, you probably wouldn’t notice it was a cover in either case.

The best thing about this song is you can listen to it three times over and get 3 totally different experiences: nu wave, metal, and pop-punk.

 

The Original, Berlin’s Metro:

 

System of a Down’s The Metro

 

Alkaline Trio’s The Metro:

 

 

2. Sublime mash-up cover of Bob Marley’s One Cup of Coffee & Judge Not

Covers of Bob Marley songs are never quite as good as the original.

I first heard this Sublime track, which mashes up Bob Marley’s earliest recordings, several years ago. It wasn’t until I watched Kevin Macdonald’s documentary Marley that I looked into the originals.

Both versions are great.

Bob Marley’s One Cup of Coffee:

 

Bob Marley’s Judge Not:

 

Sublime’s cover, One Cup of Coffee / Judge Not:

 

 

1. Van Morrison’s cover of Bob Dylan’s Just Like a Woman

While The Beatles were oft-covered but seldom surpassed, Bob Dylan’s songwriting ability certainly outweighs his singing about 100-1.

I found this version of Just Like a Woman in my mid-teens, and it remains one of my very favourite songs to this day.

Bob Dylan’s Just Like a Woman:

 

Van Morrison cover of Just Like a Woman:

 

What are your top contenders for Best Cover Song Ever?