Cover Me's 50 Best Cover Songs of 2021

December 21, 2021 9:51 PM

The 50 Best Cover Songs of 2021

I liked these in particular:
#38. k-os – Just What I Needed (The Cars cover)
#32. Lady Parts – 9 to 5 (Dolly Parton cover) (Lady Parts on Fanfare)
#7. Fatoumata Diawara – Blowin’ in the Wind (Bob Dylan cover)
#6. Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs – Hot Stuff (Donna Summer cover)

posted by Gorgik (23 comments total)

YES. Lady Parts are brilliant, and We Are Lady Parts (TV show) is also brilliant and massively underrated. The scene that features this track is a hoot. Pigs x7 and The Lovely Eggs glonged-up version of 'Hot Stuff' is everything you need from completely deranged sludge/doom covers, and once you've heard it you can't really unhear it - thuggish, malicious, sleazy brilliance.

I have few opinions about anything else on this list.
posted by prismatic7 at 10:43 PM on December 21, 2021 [1 favorite]

My I'm Your Captain, and my Country Roads are coming in 2022!

Love hearing covers...
posted by Windopaene at 10:47 PM on December 21, 2021

Phoebe Bridgers had one of my favorite covers of 2020 (Fake Plastic Trees) and this year's cover of Nothing Else Matters is a home run as well. She's so great.

Also excited to be introduced to Fatoumata Diawara's knockout cover of Blowin' in the Wind and Brandi Carlile's tender, triumphant live performance of We Belong.

What a fun post!
posted by merriment at 4:39 AM on December 22, 2021 [3 favorites]

Some fun stuff there, but would like to have seen some Pomplamoose and Dave Grohl/Foo Fighters stuff included. They did some nice covers this past year.
posted by Hey, Zeus! at 4:50 AM on December 22, 2021 [2 favorites]

Probably omitted because the Metallica tribute album was already well-represented, but Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit's cover of "Sad But True" turns a slow dirge into a rollicking slide-guitar driven hill country blues stomp. Very surprising interpretation.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 6:44 AM on December 22, 2021 [1 favorite]

Love Lady Parts (Bashir With A Good Beard is on rotation at my yard). Honestly slightly nervous about the production of season 2, because it wrapped up so nicely as a one-season thing.
posted by pompomtom at 6:45 AM on December 22, 2021

Spotify playlist with the songs that are available on Spotify. In particular, it's missing the top song.
posted by donpardo at 6:58 AM on December 22, 2021 [1 favorite]

Also enjoyed: Ashley Monroe 's cover of The Beach Boys "Don't Worry Baby."
posted by DirtyOldTown at 7:17 AM on December 22, 2021

My Morning Jacket is on there... Not to derail but is there anyone else who sorts MMJ's output into two eras: Jim James singing high lonesome with an ocean of reverb and JJ sings like a Muppet? I still listen to those first few records all the time, but I haven't enjoyed anything new from them in years.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 7:21 AM on December 22, 2021 [1 favorite]

Very surprising interpretation

Jason Isbell also covered REM's Driver 8, which I would describe as 'pedestrian'. He's far better with his own material in my opinion.

Allison Krauss and Robert Plant covered Lucinda William's Can't Let Go, and it's pretty good, though doesn't stray from the original much.

Charlie Crockett did an entire album of James Hand covers, but played them all pretty straight too.
posted by The_Vegetables at 8:20 AM on December 22, 2021

My Morning Jacket is on there... Not to derail but is there anyone else who sorts MMJ's output into two eras

Yeah definitely. It's not on youtube but I have an exceptional cover of The Who's A Quick One While He's Away that's played pretty close to the original, but it's such a dramatic song it works. And he's a better fake Roger Daltry than Eddie Vedder in the MMJ live versions available.
posted by The_Vegetables at 8:27 AM on December 22, 2021

This seems like a pretty good list. I think they picked the wrong Angel Olsen cover, but that's a minor quibble.
posted by box at 8:45 AM on December 22, 2021

donpardo, thanks for the Spotify list.
posted by Keith Talent at 8:55 AM on December 22, 2021 [1 favorite]

Worth noting that Lowland Hum covered the entire Peter Gabriel - So album (bandcamp link). What they did is all really good, but Sledgehammer is definitely the pick of the litter. My all-time least favorite Peter Gabriel song and they completely reimagined it.
posted by mcstayinskool at 8:57 AM on December 22, 2021 [1 favorite]

I would like to nominate Slow Pulp's cover of Sum 41's In Too Deep.
posted by schoolgirl report at 8:58 AM on December 22, 2021 [1 favorite]

That was a lot of fun! I loved the Lady Parts cover (and now I want to check out the show!) and I really got a kick out of Something To Do's ska cover of Levitating
posted by Mchelly at 9:04 AM on December 22, 2021

Spotify playlist with the songs that are available on Spotify. In particular, it's missing the top song.

If anyone is wondering, the list has 44 of the 50 songs. The missing ones are:

Alex Lahey – This Kiss (Faith Hill cover)
Brandi Carlile – We Belong (Pat Benatar cover)
Fatoumata Diawara – Blowin’ in the Wind (Bob Dylan cover)
HONGJOONG – Numb (Linkin Park cover)
“Weird Al” Yankovic – This Town Ain’t Big Enough for Both of Us (Sparks cover)
Billy Strings – The Gambler (Bobby Bare / Kenny Rogers cover)
posted by star gentle uterus at 10:12 AM on December 22, 2021 [1 favorite]

Phoebe Bridgers had one of my favorite covers of 2020 (Fake Plastic Trees)

She just came out with a Tom Waits cover, Day After Tomorrow. Not really a normal Christmas song.
posted by Bee'sWing at 10:52 AM on December 22, 2021 [1 favorite]

Susanna Hoffs has an album of covers out this year, Bright Lights.
Track listing:
1. “Time Will Show the Wiser” – The Merry-Go-Round
2. “One of These Things First” – Nick Drake
3. “You and Your Sister” – Chris Bell
4. “Name of the Game” (feat. Aimee Mann) – Badfinger
5. “I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight” – Richard & Linda Thompson
6. “You Just May Be the Other” – The Monkees
7. “Him or Me – What’s It Gonna Be?” – Paul Revere & The Raiders
8. “Femme Fatale” – The Velvet Underground
9. “Take Me With U” – Prince
10. “No Good Trying” – Syd Barrett

Spotify
YouTube
(The three Under the Covers albums she did with Matthew Sweet are also worth seeking out if you like this sort of thing.)
posted by indexy at 11:36 AM on December 22, 2021 [3 favorites]

Jason Isbell also covered REM's Driver 8, which I would describe as 'pedestrian'.

That one really was pretty blah. Generally, he does some great covers, though. His "Oh Well" is badass.

Here's one you wouldn't expect from 2004: Isbell, with the Drive-By Truckers, covering Outkast's"Hey Ya." (Track 22)
posted by DirtyOldTown at 11:45 AM on December 22, 2021

Here's one you wouldn't expect from 2004: Isbell, with the Drive-By Truckers, covering Outkast's"Hey Ya." (Track 22)

Mr jilloftrades says he was at that show and that cover was fantastic, as was the cover of Tom Petty’s Rebels.
posted by jilloftrades at 4:03 PM on December 22, 2021 [1 favorite]

Interesting, will have to dip into this further.

Immediate thoughts: of the Angel Olsen covers EP, I'd have maybe gone for If You Leave, but the whole thing is worth a listen. Of that Velvet Underground tribute, the Stipe track is fine, but my favourite is Courtney Barnett's 'I’ll Be Your Mirror', she puts her own spin on it, whereas most songs on the album are fairly straight takes on the original.
posted by Pink Frost at 6:33 PM on December 22, 2021 [1 favorite]

The Dee Gees should have had a spot near the top of this list.
posted by flabdablet at 5:29 AM on December 24, 2021