10 Rock Songs You Didn't Know Were Covers
Originally by...WHO???
A lot of artistic integrity goes into making a great cover song than you might think. Instead of using it as an excuse to become a karaoke act, the best kinds of covers in the rock world come when you reinterpret the song in a completely different way than how it was originally conceived. At the same time, some bands have proven that their cover game works a little bit too well.
Rather than just being seen as a loving homage, these songs have practically been stamped into the legacy of the acts that have covered it over the years. In these cases, the artist don't so much recontextualize it so much as they do rebirth it for an entirely new generation. Compared to energy of the original, these can oftentimes feel like night and day.
This is also a good way for these respective acts to show their versatility, by taking a song that could be in a completely different genre and frankenstein-ing it into their own creative mindset. They may not have written these songs, but the ownership of these tracks have definitely changed in the eyes of rock fans. I mean, here's hoping that they're at least splitting the royalties with the original bands.
10. Blinded By the Light - Manfred Mann's Earth Band
Manfred Mann tends to be one of the unsung heroes of the golden age of rock and roll. Compared to other acts coming up in the late '60s, most of the more glamorous bands like the Beatles and the Rolling Stones had far more clout that this little jam band. Once they were folded into Manfred Mann's Earth Band, Blinded by the Light became the one record that brought them to the big time.
At the same time, the song's origins are not really in the jam band scene. As opposed to the typical version, the original incarnation of this song was actually written by Bruce Springsteen and even turned up on Springsteen's first album Greetings From Asbury Park. The original version pales in comparison to Manfred Mann's version though, being more of a rambly story song in the vein of Bob Dylan than the musical adventure that it would eventually become.
Once these Brits got ahold of it though, they added a guitar lick for the ages, which was amplified by organ swells and a powerhouse vocal performance out front. Though Springsteen gave his all to his recording, the kind of screams they have on here could certainly give The Boss a run for his money. For as much of an icon that Springsteen became later down the line, this is the one song that really benefited from being pulled from the heartland.