Badass song writers can still rock covers. The lads do it right.
Who needs a guitar, Judee? The dampered piano chords wash over you and the tight harmonies intoxicate. This song was not meant to be a solo. Judee, Judee, Judee...
You can have your opinions about Marilyn Manson, but what musician has this much color, this much texture, and this many dream-like qualities? Who better to scare the bejezus out of us while we cream our panties listening to mystery, sex, and rock and roll?
God, the bass slides are enough to warrant a spot on the list. Though The Byrdses sacrifice a lot of lyrics by shortening this song to pop length, the harmonies and that fucking bass slide gets me everytime.
Remember Lester in American Beauty, smoking a j and banging out American Woman by The Guess Who? Lenny delivers every bit of a bang, branding it with his own scent, and keeping all the sexiest climaxes ravenously in tact. Also Lenny's electric takes this song up to an 11.
4. I Will Survive . Cake
Capture Gloria Gaynor's disco flair, and throw in a perfectly timed f-bomb; what's not to love? It's Cake. E'rybody likes Cake.
3. Piece of My Heart - Janis Joplin
This song has soul. Janis blows soul to smithereens. Everyone knows this song, moves to this song, and feels this song. It's not a background tune.
2. Killing Me Softly - Fugees
This song is sex. Face it: Killing Me Softly does it for you, too. This song is ubiquitous, appeals to people across genres, and is memorable. Even if you don't know all the words, you find it stuck in your head, randomly, even after you haven't heard it in a minute. Those harmonies, the back beat, and what is that--a sitar?
1. Mighty Quinn - Manfred Mann
Early Dylan with some sort of Baroque flute device. Need I say more?
