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Remakes / cover versions that improve on the original


Devon Malcolm

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Where do we stand on 'Hallelujah' by Lenoard Cohen? Did Jeff Buckley do it better? Or do you think another version is better? (Obviously, the latter is the wrong answer).

Personally, I'm a Buckley fan. I think he absolutely owns the song to the point where it now belongs to him. But then again, 'Grace' was a really important album for me so it has a lot attached to it.

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The Buckley version is an inferior cover of the John Cale version which isn't as good as the original.  Laughing Len wins this. My favourite Cohen cover is REMs First We Take Manhattan.

Mr Tambourine Man by The Byrds is better than the Dylan one, but then so is Shatners.

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I prefer Shola Ama's version of You Might Need Somebody. Randy Crawford's version was good, but I like Shola's voice. She may not have 'made it her own' (as Chest Cowell would say) in terms of changing things up, but it was a decent upgrade.

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29 minutes ago, Keith Houchen said:

Mr Tambourine Man by The Byrds is better than the Dylan one, but then so is Shatners.

Like I mentioned, for me the only reason why I don't consider The Byrds' version better is because they cut it so short. I would've loved to hear their arrangement for such lyrics as:

"And if you hear vague traces of skipping wheels of rhyme
To your tambourine in time"

or (my favourites):

"Yes, to dance beneath the diamond sky with one hand waving free
Silhouetted by the sea
Circled by the circus sands
With all memory and fate
Driven deep beneath the waves
Let me forget about today until tomorrow..."

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