Completely Remade Songs

GuzzoGuzzo 8,611 Posts
edited April 2005 in Strut Central
The only real reason to do a remake of a classic track is to completely make it over. Name some of your favorites. Heres a few of mine

Rotary Connection[/b] "Respect"
Rotary Connection[/b] "Sunshine Of Your Love"
Cat Power[/b] Sea of Love"
Tennessee Ernie Ford[/b] "Work Song"

  Comments


  • jinx74jinx74 2,287 Posts
    can you redo this topic and spell correctly. maybe work on your sentence structure a little bit as well...

    its like reading retard writing all day here on soul strut.

    i wouldnt want to judge (decipher?) a spelling contest between you and kingmoist

  • high_chigh_c 1,384 Posts
    bad day?

  • GuzzoGuzzo 8,611 Posts
    oh cay

  • jinx74jinx74 2,287 Posts
    actually i think my weed is going bad...

    the last bag was nice but this one isnt so much. some strains of herb make me mean and nasty... like right now im feeling very unsocial... though being here is social and writing back to you is definitely being social... anyway...

    i was trying to be funny but it was written badly...

    ill go away now...

  • Tony Rebel completely remade "Yesterme Yesteryou," but I think you'll find that, as with many covers, it was completely unnecessary.

  • bassiebassie 11,710 Posts
    Slits - Heard it Throught The Grapevine
    Johnny Cash - Mercy Seat
    Julie Driscoll - Light My Fire
    Archie Shepp - Naima and The Girl from Ipanema

  • pickwick33pickwick33 8,946 Posts
    Kingsmen - "Louie Louie"
    Sonics - "Louie Louie"
    Bobby Womack - "Nobody Wants You When You're Down & Out"
    Ray Charles - "You Are My Sunshine"

  • The only real reason to do a remake of a classic track is to completely make it over.


  • nickjnickj 53 Posts
    Sammy Davis Jr + Count Basie[/b] "Work Song"

    some obvious ones:
    Coltrane - My Favorite Things
    Deodato - Also Sprach Zarathustra
    Donny Hathaway - What's Going On (maybe not really a "remake" though)

    some personal favorites:
    Gary Bartz/Andy Bey - Black Maybe
    Roberta Flack - Compared to What
    Quincy Jones - Summer in the City
    David T Walker - Lay Lady Lay
    Jose Feliciano - a whole bunch

    not to mention about 100 jazz/pop standards that lent themselves to a wide range of "remakes."

  • GuzzoGuzzo 8,611 Posts
    The only real reason to do a remake of a classic track is to completely make it over.


    whats so onfusing about that/ why redo a song just to make it sound completely similar to the original? ain't too much different from remaking a film

  • BigSpliffBigSpliff 3,266 Posts
    Brothers Unltd - A Change Is Gonna Come (Sam Cooke song sped up and mathed about with.
    Dap-kings - What Have You Done Fer Me Lately Biatch?
    Mike Flowers Pops - Wonderwall. Pulled the curtain up on the whole wussy strumming Britpop nonsense.

    There's others I can't think of right now.... plus some good reggae covers of Shaft etc.


  • BigSpliffBigSpliff 3,266 Posts

    Deodato - Also Sprach Zarathustra

    Oh yeah, I dig the version by Cecil Holmes Soulful Sounds.

    Also - Lou Donaldson - Say It Loud, I'm Black & I'm Proud, and I'm also a bit more laid back.

  • Dap-kings - What Have You Done Fer Me Lately Biatch?

    This Land Is Your Land

  • DJFerrariDJFerrari 2,411 Posts
    Solsonics - Red Clay
    Jadell - Compared to What

    These ones fit the 'completely' aspect to the fullest. Really digging both these tracks right now. Adding vocals to Red Clay was a nice touch. Highly underrated album.

    DJ Ferrari

  • The only real reason to do a remake of a classic track is to completely make it over.


    whats so onfusing about that/ why redo a song just to make it sound completely similar to the original? ain't too much different from remaking a film

    my confusion is why you would need to completely make it over? i can think of a pretty much endless list of standards, hits, and other popular covers that have been done in essentially the exact same form as the original and are every bit as valid, good, and necessary. it's a form of paying respect, providing background context on who your influences are and proving your chops. its a long standing tradition in american music. should sarah vaughn have not done the gershwin songbook cuz ella already killed that shit? should ella have not gone there because shit was already played out? it doesn't have to be a crunk version of summertime for me to respect the remake.

  • ArchaicArchaic 633 Posts
    Stevie Ray Vaughn's "Little Wing"...

  • DuderonomyDuderonomy Haut de la Garenne 7,789 Posts

    I was talking about this last night with a friend:

    Scissor Sisters "Comfortably Numb"[/b] is for me a great cover/remake, but my friend can't listen to it without thinking of how far off the Pink Flloyd version it is... which is exactly what I like about it. When is fookin' great (no homo)(no homo-hatered)(can we just get a disclaimer icon?)

  • ArchaicArchaic 633 Posts
    Blue Cheer - Summertime Blues

  • GuzzoGuzzo 8,611 Posts


    whats so onfusing about that/ why redo a song just to make it sound completely similar to the original? ain't too much different from remaking a film

    my confusion is why you would need to completely make it over? i can think of a pretty much endless list of standards, hits, and other popular covers that have been done in essentially the exact same form as the original and are every bit as valid, good, and necessary. it's a form of paying respect, providing background context on who your influences are and proving your chops. its a long standing tradition in american music. should sarah vaughn have not done the gershwin songbook cuz ella already killed that shit? should ella have not gone there because shit was already played out? it doesn't have to be a crunk version of summertime for me to respect the remake.

    Necessary??? yes they are good sometimes but I don't know about neccasary. I mean why remake a song note for note? youre not really doing anything interesting. If the original was great then why make a carbon copy of it? your only going to pale in comparison to the OG. If an artist has a different take on the song it makes the track newly compelling. Now your paying homage and not being a mimic.

  • Big_StacksBig_Stacks "I don't worry about hittin' power, cause I don't give 'em nuttin' to hit." 4,670 Posts
    Here are some:

    -"What the World Needs Now"-The Chambers Brothers.
    -"Feel for You"-Chaka Khan (sort of).
    -"Theme from the Electric Surfboard" and "Hey Jude"-Clarence Wheeler & the Enforcers.

    Peace,

    Big Stacks from Kakalak

  • DuderonomyDuderonomy Haut de la Garenne 7,789 Posts


    whats so onfusing about that/ why redo a song just to make it sound completely similar to the original? ain't too much different from remaking a film

    my confusion is why you would need to completely make it over? i can think of a pretty much endless list of standards, hits, and other popular covers that have been done in essentially the exact same form as the original and are every bit as valid, good, and necessary. it's a form of paying respect, providing background context on who your influences are and proving your chops. its a long standing tradition in american music. should sarah vaughn have not done the gershwin songbook cuz ella already killed that shit? should ella have not gone there because shit was already played out? it doesn't have to be a crunk version of summertime for me to respect the remake.

    Necessary??? yes they are good sometimes but I don't know about neccasary. I mean why remake a song note for note? youre not really doing anything interesting. If the original was great then why make a carbon copy of it? your only going to pale in comparison to the OG. If an artist has a different take on the song it makes the track newly compelling. Now your paying homage and not being a mimic.

    Pretty much the best reason to cover a song I would have thought. Although I like 60's-70's covers of "It's Your Thing" to still sound funky.



  • whats so onfusing about that/ why redo a song just to make it sound completely similar to the original? ain't too much different from remaking a film

    my confusion is why you would need to completely make it over? i can think of a pretty much endless list of standards, hits, and other popular covers that have been done in essentially the exact same form as the original and are every bit as valid, good, and necessary. it's a form of paying respect, providing background context on who your influences are and proving your chops. its a long standing tradition in american music. should sarah vaughn have not done the gershwin songbook cuz ella already killed that shit? should ella have not gone there because shit was already played out? it doesn't have to be a crunk version of summertime for me to respect the remake.

    Necessary??? yes they are good sometimes but I don't know about neccasary. I mean why remake a song note for note? youre not really doing anything interesting. If the original was great then why make a carbon copy of it? your only going to pale in comparison to the OG. If an artist has a different take on the song it makes the track newly compelling. Now your paying homage and not being a mimic.

    i guess my confusion lies in where you draw the line between "completely make it over" and "a different take". lots of grey area in there.

    but yes, necessary. i can think of plenty of remakes that are very true to the original and very necessary. i love to hear both billie holiday and nina simone sing ohh child. if nina's version is "pale in comparison to the og" then i guess i dont get music cuz to me that is necessary.

  • GuzzoGuzzo 8,611 Posts


    Necessary??? yes they are good sometimes but I don't know about neccasary. I mean why remake a song note for note? youre not really doing anything interesting. If the original was great then why make a carbon copy of it? your only going to pale in comparison to the OG. If an artist has a different take on the song it makes the track newly compelling. Now your paying homage and not being a mimic.

    i guess my confusion lies in where you draw the line between "completely make it over" and "a different take". lots of grey area in there.

    but yes, necessary. i can think of plenty of remakes that are very true to the original and very necessary. i love to hear both billie holiday and nina simone sing ohh child. if nina's version is "pale in comparison to the og" then i guess i dont get music cuz to me that is necessary.

    youre right there is a whole lot of gray area invovled with this discussion. I also don't really consider a lot of american songbook/ standards to be remakes. WC Handy, Gershwin, Rogers & Hammerstein, etc. didn't sing these songs they wrote them and left it up to the singers to interpret any way they wanted.

    remakes of more contemporary songs (IMO) are only good if they are at least slightly different from the song they are covering. I really don't want to hear someone not only do an unoriginal song but do it in an unoriginal style. If anyone is going to take the time to record a track for the world to hear they may as well make it their own in some way.

  • bassiebassie 11,710 Posts
    Blue Cheer - Summertime Blues
    Yes!


    Not completely remodeled - but Joy Division's version of Sister Ray makes me feel like this


    and this


    with a bit of wanting to break shit thrown in for good measure.
    The VU version already swings and rocks and drives like a m***rf***r and Joy Divison somehow manage to do it, too.

  • The only real reason to do a remake of a classic track is to completely make it over.

    ...


    remakes of more contemporary songs (IMO) are only good if they are at least slightly different from the song they are covering.

    now your coming around. you've got a propensity for making sweeping generalizations i dont think you necessarily mean.

  • GuzzoGuzzo 8,611 Posts
    The only real reason to do a remake of a classic track is to completely make it over.

    ...


    remakes of more contemporary songs (IMO) are only good if they are at least slightly different from the song they are covering.

    now your coming around. you've got a propensity for making sweeping generalizations i dont think you necessarily mean.

    well I still think a completely reconstructed cover is more interesting than a direct remake. Hearing Rotary Connections freaked versin of respect always gets me much more than hearing someone like Tom Jones do it.

    There is also somethng to be said for how an artist uses their voice as an instrument. If they are putting thier own interesting vocal spin on the track well the nthey have changed it and made it more compelling. If they are just hitting the same notes as the original artist they ain't really doing much more than glorified kareoke (sp?)

  • thunk1thunk1 8 Posts
    massive attack[/b]-any love

    You go out every night as a single
    But you dont really know what to do
    You see someone that youd like to mingle
    And imagine that she is waiting for you
    Chorus: Any love that you feel
    Is real
    Any time that you use love
    You lose love
    There is no certain crowd that you run with
    But your passions they never run thin
    You say hi, they say hi and its done with
    Still you dont really love from deep within
    Chorus
    Batted eyes and bitter tears
    Price you pay for all the years
    Of holding back whats deep inside
    And living with a hell of a lot of lies
    Chorus
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