By Sadie Tresnit

“Drivin’ On 9”

Originally by Ed’s Redeeming Qualities, famously covered by the Breeders.

The first time I found out that the Breeders’ version of this song was a cover, I was live on air. Somehow in my years of loving the song, I had failed to pay any attention to the writing credits. As soon as I was done with my show for the day, I set about finding and listening to the original. Unlike the easy airiness of the Breeders’ cover (it’s one of my favorite road trip songs for a reason!), Ed’s Redeeming Qualities gives the song a darker and more sardonic tone. The 1989 original centers on the story of a man wondering if a child is his. Lyrics like “wondering if you took your pill, wondering if it's mine” are cut from the Breeders’ rendition. If the violin sounds the same to you in both tracks, you’ve got a sharp ear. Carrie Bradley played the instrument in both versions after Kim Deal befriended the band. Though Deal’s version is undoubtedly the better-known of the two, the original is well worth a listen.

“Respect”

Originally by Otis Redding, famously covered by Aretha Franklin.

When Redding released this song in 1965, he probably didn’t anticipate the way it would take off, albeit without his voice. If there’s one Aretha Franklin song you know, chances are it’s “Respect,” and for good reason. Her 1967 rendition made huge waves in the music world with its background singers and innovative R-E-S-P-E-C-T bridge. Redding’s peppy original is from the perspective of a man asking for respect at home after he works for money all day, but Franklin’s version flips the song on its head and turns it into a feminist and civil rights anthem. It became her first No. 1 hit and effectively shaped her career, boosting her to superstardom. Redding himself ultimately acknowledged that the song had become Franklin’s.

“The Man Who Sold the World”

Originally by David Bowie, famously covered by Nirvana.

This song might not be Bowie’s absolute eeriest, but it definitely unsettled me the first time I heard it. I was in eighth grade, just starting to become a hardcore Bowie fan right after he passed away. In a way, I imagine it was a bit like how Nirvana fans felt listening to Kurt Cobain’s rendition on the band’s “MTV Unplugged” album just months after his passing. Something about the song is intangible and ghostly in either rendition, shaped by the fact that neither singer is around anymore. Bowie’s album made Cobain’s list of favorites, but Nirvana’s cover of the song quickly surpassed the original's popularity. In fact, Bowie once shared that his younger fans thought he was covering Nirvana when he played it live. But why did Nirvana opt for so many covers in their acoustic set, part of a show meant to highlight their big hits? And especially this one, which was a relatively deep cut at the time? According to drummer Dave Grohl, there was “no way” the band would just play their regular songs with acoustic guitars instead of electric. They wanted to try a completely different style.

“(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction”

Originally by the Rolling Stones, famously covered by Devo.

One of the Stones’ most enduring hits, this song was first released in 1965 and covered by Devo in the late ‘70s. As the story goes, the famous riff came to Keith Richards in a dream, after which he quickly made a recording and Mick Jagger supplied the lyrics. The Devo cover has similarly chance-based origins. In the middle of a garage jam session, one member of the band started singing the lyrics to “Paint It Black,” but they didn’t fit well with the rhythm. They switched instead to “Satisfaction” and the rest is history. When Jagger first heard the new rendition, which departs significantly from the original, he started dancing. Though I initially thought my roommate was crazy for preferring the cover to the original, I’ve started to appreciate it more lately for what it is. 

“You Can Have It All”

Originally by George McCrae, famously covered by Yo La Tengo.

Much like my experience with “Drivin’ On 9,” I was shocked to find out Yo La Tengo’s version of this song was a cover. YLT was one of those bands my parents played all the time when I was growing up (I was even lucky enough to see them a couple times) so this rendition was the only one I knew. I was doing some digging for one of my shows when I stumbled upon McCrae’s original, written by Harry Wayne Casey and Richard Finch. Unlike many of the other entries on this list, the cover almost doesn’t sound like the same song. McCrae’s original is as groovy as can be. If you start to sing it in the shower, you’ll start to incorporate a dance routine without even thinking (not that I’m speaking from experience or anything). It’s like a time machine to the disco era. In contrast, everything is slower and dreamier when Yo La Tengo plays it. Georgia Hubley’s mellow voice takes the song from a dance hit to an ethereal meditation. While I wasn’t able to find the story of why the band covered the song, their version is incredibly unique and deserves all the recognition it gets.

“Superstar”

Originally by Delaney & Bonnie, famously covered by the Carpenters, and famously covered by Sonic Youth.

The fact that Sonic Youth’s version of the song is a cover shouldn’t come as a surprise since it appears on an album called “If I Were a Carpenter,” but did you know that the Carpenters didn’t write the song? I certainly didn’t. First released by Delaney & Bonnie in 1969 under the name “Groupie (Superstar),” the original is a bit more wavy and bluesy than either of the famous covers. After hearing the tune on the “Tonight Show,” Richard Carpenter decided to cover it, and a hit was born. The lyric “I can hardly wait to sleep with you again” was changed to the less-risque “be with you again,” but the Carpenters otherwise stay relatively faithful to the original. Elevated by Karen Carpenter’s remarkable voice, the song charted high in several countries upon its 1971 release. Later, in 1994, a group of alternative rock bands released a tribute album of Carpenters cover songs. Perhaps the most famous of these is Sonic Youth’s rendition of “Superstar,” delivered moodily with much more feedback than the original. Though Richard Carpenter apparently wasn’t a fan, this version has gone on to become a beloved classic.

“Águas de Março/ Waters of March”

Originally by Antônio Carlos Jobim, famously covered by Art Garfunkel.

“Águas de Março” is one of those songs you don’t forget after you first hear it. I can still vividly remember hearing it in a taxi in Brazil and listening to my dad talk about how it was one of his favorite songs of all time. I have to agree. There’s something magical about Jobim and Elis Regina singing it together, and it has a habit of popping up in my queue when I least expect it. It’s always a welcome surprise. Even before I looked up a translation/tried relying on my negligible knowledge of Portuguese, I loved how the words and voices sounded together. There’s something about it that transcends language barriers. Luckily for us, though, Jobim wrote lyrics for the song in English as well. They differ from the Portuguese version (after all, March signifies different things in the northern and southern hemispheres) but both center on the cyclical beauty of nature. The song has been covered about a million times in both English and Portuguese, but Art Garfunkel’s English rendition is one of my favorites. He stays faithful to the original in terms of tone and rhythm, and it’s fun to hear him try something new in addition to his typical Simon-and-Garfunkel folk style.