3 Covers of Major Rock Hits That Fans Agree Should Never Have Happened

Some songs shouldn’t be touched. There are plenty of songs that have been covered countless times that will always be fair game. But the songs that fans pretty much worship? Best let sleeping dogs lie. That was the case for the three songs below. Each of these major rock hits has a cover version that fans have all agreed should never have happened. It’s not that these cover artists are bad musicians, but they just made the mistake of picking songs that are too golden to replicate.

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“Love Will Tear Us Apart” — Joy Division Covered By Fall Out Boy

Where you can give Fall Out Boy credit is the fact that they managed to make Joy Division’s top hit, “Love Will Tear Us Apart,” completely their own. Their cover is deeply original, infusing their own sound with this 80s rock masterpiece.

But that’s also where they went wrong. When a song is this beloved, any change to it will send fans into a frenzy. Fall Out Boy didn’t remix this song with a light hand by any means. That led to some backlash from Joy Division stalwarts. But, really, they were screwed either way. If they had done this song completely faithfully to the original, listeners would likely have called it boring or unnecessary.

“Fortunate Son” — Creedence Clearwater Revival Covered By U2

In a similar vein, U2’s cover of Creedence Clearwater Revival’s “Fortunate Son” was just too far away from the original to appease fans. The band successfully took their version in a different direction, but it just kind of makes you miss the original.

This song has one of the most iconic opening riffs of all time. It’s punchy and wiry, instantly transporting you to another time and place. U2 softened that riff with a synth tone, immediately removing its iconography. If this were a U2 song first, it would be passable, but compared to the original, it doesn’t hold up.

“My Generation” — Hilary Duff

Lastly, on our list of some universally disliked rock covers is Hilary Duff’s “My Generation.” Now, this cover isn’t Duff’s fault, really. She was young, pushed by the powers that be to cover a rock classic.

As a teen star, Duff couldn’t shoulder the message in this song. She lacked the grit and counterculture edge of The Who. But we can say it introduced a new generation of listeners to the band. Eventually, they likely heard the original and, thanks to Duff’s introduction, latched onto it.

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