Highlighting Some of Music’s Best Live Covers

by Emily Toone

Jeff Buckley: Van Morrison’s ‘Sweet Thing’ (1993)

https://youtu.be/gcRrbdfFvNk?feature=shared

Possibly most famous for his cover of Leonard Cohen’s ‘Hallelujah’ which was released originally on Grace, his rendition of ‘Sweet Thing’ nonetheless deserves a top spot as one of his best covers. This is not a studio recorded version which, if anything, gives it a magnetically candid appeal. Buckley’s characteristic melancholy revises much of the song up until half way through the chorus where he passionately belts out a string of ‘well’ and ‘my’. He chooses to hammer home the line ‘We shall walk and talk in gardens all misty wet with rain’ in desperate repetition after he demonstrates his skills on the guitar about a third of the way into the song. The climax is when the intensity of both the vocals and guitar reach a critical point; this is a massively emotive rendition of the song and is sonically very characteristic of a lot of what Buckley does with his music. Van Morrison’s album Astral Weeks is one of the most marvellous gifts he could have given mankind and Jeff Buckley not only recognised this, but paid homage to it in this cover.

Oasis: The Beatles’ ‘I Am the Walrus’ (1996)

https://youtu.be/Ram8JeA3khI?feature=shared

Knebworth 1996: Oasis’s performance is acclaimed for so many reasons and The Beatles cover is certainly one of them. Oasis choose to close their set with a cover, a bold choice but one that is understandable when considering the grandeur of ‘I Am the Walrus’. It makes a perfect finale and Oasis turn it into one. Liam Gallagher’s vocals are passionate from the get-go and replicate Lennon’s nasally rendition in his own personal way. In order to cover a song that is famously one of the first rock songs to include an orchestra, the instrumental aspects need to be pretty strong as well. In recognition of this, alongside Noel’s command  of the guitar, the strings add an incredible strength to the song. This comes to a head when the psychedelic lighting and amalgamation of sounds devolve into chaos, emulating exactly what the nonsense of the original seeked to create, making it one of, if not the, best covers of the song around. 

Lana Del Rey (and Chris Isaak): Chris Isaak’s ‘Wicked Game’ (2019)

https://youtu.be/nguuo344j00?feature=shared

Perhaps more of a collaboration than a cover, at her concert at the Hollywood Bowl, Lana Del Rey brought out Chris Isaak to perform ‘Wicked Game’.  Isaak starts the song instrumentally, to which Del Rey comes in to angelically support and harmonise with him at certain points. In the chorus she settles into a much lower register to sing the line ‘This world is only gonna break your heart’ flawlessly. What makes this cover incredible, though, is how much of the original’s mystical enchantment is preserved  by the pair. There is a haunting harmony at the end that showcases the compatibility of their voices and how wonderful of a collaboration this was.

Arctic Monkeys: Girls Aloud’s ‘Love Machine’ (2006)

https://youtu.be/aTNC9l46oR4?feature=shared

Having been raised on Girls Aloud, and ‘Love Machine’ holding a commanding presence in their roster of pop songs, finding out that the Arctic Monkeys had done a cover of it made me immediately curious. Coming from the Live Lounge archives, one may assume the natural choice would have been their much more famous rendition of Drake’s ‘Hold On, We’re Going Home’. However, the utter unseriousness of the Girls Aloud cover is what makes it so good. They are clearly, more than anything, having fun with it, as demonstrated by Alex Turner’s laughter half-way through. This is also visible in Matt Helders’ vocals, who is not one to usually sing on Monkeys’ records, and who aptly describes the cover as a karaoke more than anything. Nevertheless, there is definitely some of the band’s youthful charm on the cover and is an entertaining listen if you have any knowledge of the band’s wider discography.

Harry Styles: Kanye’s ‘Ultralight Beam’ (2017)

https://youtu.be/_WKmVidJAXQ?feature=shared

Love him or hate him, Harry Styles can sing and this cover proves just that. Produced during the release of his first solo album, which was a massively unpredictable and very unforeseen switch from the music of his One Direction days, the cover fits into the new direction he was pushing his image toward: the classic folk-rockstar. Having been sung at his secret London show at The Garage, a venue famous for its low capacity, the only footage of it is low-quality and grainy, yet this only adds to its charm. Styles massively alters Kanye’s original version, a risk that pays off as it means the song feels less like a comparison and more like a reinvention. The electric guitar riffs stand out throughout the first verse until the vocals in the chorus steal the show. ‘Foot on the devil and I’m moving my family to Zambia’: Styles reframes the lyrics here, but it is to his advantage as this line on its own is one of the strengths of the cover. The hauntingly slow, overdriven-guitar version of this song is one of the best I’ve heard, and it just so happens that it is Harry Styles who sings it. 

Hozier (and Trinity Orchestra): Pink Floyd’s ‘Time’ (2012)

https://youtu.be/UnB4spzCVEc?feature=shared

Pink Floyd’s ‘Time’ is a thing of beauty regardless of any alteration and the only singer who  could ever begin to give the song the justice it deserves is Hozier. He possesses the raw vocals that are necessary to sing David Gilmour’s verse in the song and, like Gilmour’s collaborator, Richard Wright, Hozier is aided by Oli Smith who sings the chorus. Hozier does, though, provide backing vocals to the ethereal chorus which demonstrates the breadth of his vocal abilities. This performance is ultimately a collaboration, so due respect must also be paid to the Trinity Orchestra who bring the rest of the Floydian song to life. There is an element that makes the song seem like the climax lies with Hozier and he unsurprisingly lives up to this expectation with ease. Despite the cover having taken place before he had formally released any music, its greatness lives on today and is definitely worth a listen.