Love is not a victory march
Can you think of many cover songs that are more well known than the original version? Probably not, since that rarely ever happens. I can only think of one: Jeff Buckley's cover of Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah. How many of you have even heard Leonard's version of the song? If you have, did you hear it before or after you heard the Buckley cover?
A few nights ago when Matt and I were exchanging thoughts on what to put on each other's mix cds (yes we're emo as hell) I asked if he was a fan of Jeff Buckley's. He said that he'd only really heard Jeff's cover of Hallelujah. That got me thinking about how many times I've heard Jeff Buckley's version of the song outside of my own personal listening. It's been played at least twice on The OC. I knew that I'd love that show when in the second episode, Marrissa made Ryan a mix cd and included Hallelujah. When it started to play she said, "This song reminds me of you." Earlier in the episode Ryan had said that he didn't really listen to much music and so the line, "But you don't really care for music, do ya'?" seemed to fit him perfectly.
I also remember hearing Jeff's version of the song alot after 9/11 happened. The great thing about the lyrics to this song is that you can pretty much apply them to anything you might be going through in your life. And when Jeff sings the song, his voice adds a comforting touch, making you feel if only for a minute, a little better than before.
I went looking for some other covers of this song and found some pretty interesting ones. So here are the original, Jeff's version, and some other people's interpretations of Hallelujah.
posted by S.M.T. @ 7:59 PM
11 Comments:
kd lang did an absolutely gorgeous version of "Hallelujah" on her most recent cd, Hymns from the 49th Parallel.
Great post! -- jonhope
I'll definitely have to check that out. Thanks for letting me know :)
I know the Cohen version and not the Buckley version... maybe because I'm Canadian. I've got to get that kdlang cd... heard good things about it.
You probably really weren't looking for an answer, but Soft Cell's Tainted Love is a far more popular/well known cover than the original by Gloria Jones.
I'd also argue Jimi Hendrix's All Along the Watchtower is considered more definitive than Dylan's original.
Also Ike & Tina Turner's Proud Mary far surpasses CCR's original. Fogerty even acknowledges that.
And I had a music teacher (!) who insisted Joan Baez wrote The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down and had never even heard of The Band.
To name just 4 covers more well known than the original.
I'm wondering if age has something to do with it. I (who am 40) was quite familiar with the Cohen version and didn't even know about the Jeff Buckley one until the OC finale last year.
--- Mindy
I knew of John Cale's version before Jeff Buckley ever recorded it. I always found it interesting that they used Cale's version in the film version of SHREK but issued Rufus Wainwright's on the soundtrack CD (!?). A great song.
Avail's version of "Pink Houses" blows John Mellancamp's out of the water. Same goes for Big Black's version of Kraftwerk's "The Model." I might even go so far as to say that Dinosaur Jr's version of "Just Like Heaven" is a tinge better than the original, but I don't want to become to the victim of a finger flick attack. *ducks*
And even as a huge Cohen fan (I throw on a scratchy copy of his first LP whenever I wish to feel transcendent), I have to admit I heard Buckley's version long before dear ol' Lennie's.
Wow Mindy! Thanks for reminding me of all of those other covers. Gloria Jones was married to Marc Boland, right?
I read somewhere that Dylan was so impressed with Hendrix's cover of All Along the Watchtower,that from then on he only performed Jimi's version of the song.
And I must confess that before I knew anything at all about The Doors, I thought Echo and the Bunnymen were the original performers of People Are Strange. But I don't know how well known that cover is.
Gm, you're probably one of the few people who heard the Cohen version before the Buckley one. I heard Buckley's version long before Cohen's
Vaughn, I just heard John Cale's version the other day and really liked it a lot
I'm pretty sure that Bowie's version of "Fill Your Heart" from Hunky Dory is better known than the original.
After listening to the Buckley version, I'm pretty sure I've never heard it at all, let alone first. Do I win a prize? :) Maybe it's time to buy some Jeff Buckley... Thanks for the links.
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