4 Cover Songs I’m Not Afraid To Say Are Better Than the Original, Even if It’s Controversial

A good artist can do a good cover song. A great artist can really get behind a cover, making it their own until it sounds wholly original. The overarching context, of course, is that music is entirely subjective, and what sounds like great cover songs to me might pale in comparison to the originals to you. I’m ready for us to disagree. That’s okay.

Because frankly, I love these cover songs too much not to go to bat for them. Some of them were versions I heard before I knew the original existed, so they’re kind of hardwired in my brain as the O.G. And if you’re willing to stray from the first edition, I’d argue these revisions are worth a listen.

“Landslide” by The Chicks

The first version of “Landslide” I ever heard was by The Chicks, who still performed as The Dixie Chicks back then. (I was living in an Appalachian Ohio town in the early 2000s. The Chicks were big, okay?) The trio’s acoustic instrumentation and airtight harmonies fit the song so well, I had no idea that someone named Stevie Nicks could have written it several decades earlier. No hate to Stevie—I love her, too. But The Chicks’ version holds a special place in my heart.

“Helter Skelter” by Dana Fuchs

To be fair, I would put the entire Across The Universe soundtrack on this list of incredible covers. I loved the way the songs were reimagined into the storyline of the film, and I thought the singers they hired did an incredible job. An undeniable standout was Dana Fuchs, who played Sadie, named after “Sexy Sadie”. Anytime Fuchs was on the screen, she had a magnetic presence. But the raw grit of her voice is unmatched, especially on an abrasive track like “Helter Skelter”.

“Lotta Love” by Nicolette Larson

Neil Young is one of my favorite artists, and I say that knowing that he has a rough-around-the-edges charm about him. Still, when someone takes one of his songs, polishes it up, and puts a stronger singer on it, Young’s songwriting can really shine through. Nicolette Larson’s version of “Lotta Love” is a disco reimagining of Young’s Comes A Time album. There’s something about the way Larson delivers lines like “You know I need relating not solitude” that sounds so vulnerable in an empowering, “this is what I want” kind of way.

“Black Magic Woman” by Santana

Closing out this list of incredible cover songs is another track that I thought was originally by the cover artist. Fleetwood Mac released “Black Magic Woman” in 1968. Santana released his Latin rock version two years later. Santana’s slinky guitar tone adds another level of mystique to an already ethereal track. Indeed, the iconic guitarist and his bandmates were experts at taking songs and making them their own, whether it was “Black Magic Woman”, “Evil Ways”, or “Oye Como Va”.

Photo by Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic, Inc