10 Great Non-Rock Covers Of Rock Songs

2. Paul Anka - Jump (Originally By Van Halen)

Paul Anka is widely regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of the modern age.

Releasing his first album back in 1958, Anka produced classics for himself such as Diana and Put Your Head on My Shoulder. He also wrote the theme song for The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, as well as putting English lyrics to the song that would eventually become My Way.

That's the Frank Sinatra song, not the one by Limp Bizkit.

By the time 2005 rolled around, Anka was 64 years old and had pretty much done it all. So, naturally, he decided to make an album of rock songs in the style of lounge jazz.

Rock Swings saw Anka sing songs by such acts as R.E.M., The Cure, Nirvana, and Billy Idol.

Another contender for this spot was his genuinely excellent performance of Soundgarden's Black Hole Sun, but purely for the fun factor, we went for Paul giving it his best David Lee Roth on Van Halen's Jump.

He took the '80s rock classic and turned it into a smooth jazz sing-a-long, complete with call and response in the chorus. You'll never think of Van Halen in the same way again.

Contributor
Contributor

Jacob Simmons has a great many passions, including rock music, giving acclaimed films three-and-a-half stars, watching random clips from The Simpsons on YouTube at 3am, and writing about himself in the third person.