10 Cover Songs Much Better Than The Original

7. Eric Clapton - "Cocaine" (J.J. Cale)

A number of Cale's songs would be covered by various artists, usually to the detriment of the original artist. (Sadly, few people credit Cale with the writing of "Call Me the Breeze" and "After Midnight," both songs that Eric Clapton would cover as well, to much worse effect than this example.) J.J. Cale is a real cool dude, but he was almost too cool to perform this song.

Although both versions of "Cocaine" follow almost the exact same arrangement, Cale's comes off as uncommonly chill, with a weird disco influence to it. This certainly isn't a bad song in Cale's hands, but Clapton manages to give it a bigger spark. There's a dirty swagger to Clapton's guitar work and a playful gruffness to his voice that's missing from the original.