Top 10 Most Annoying Cover Songs of All Time

WatchMojo

Some songs should just be left alone! Join us as we count down our picks for the most irritating song covers that make us reach for the mute button. Our countdown includes renditions by Limp Bizkit, Madonna, Jessica Simpson, and more! Which cover version makes you want to plug your ears?

Transcript

00:00Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the cover songs that not

00:10only fail to live up to the original, but are just downright irritating.

00:19Number 10, Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting, Nickelback featuring Kid Rock.

00:30Depending on who you ask, a Nickelback and Kid Rock team-up is either a whole lot of fun, or the worst idea imaginable.

00:38To call both artists divisive would be putting it lightly, so when they recorded a version of Elton John's

00:44Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting together, at least the results were going to be interesting, good or bad.

00:50Well, for most people, this cover wasn't even that. It's a pretty flat take on this hard-rocking classic,

01:02which took a seemingly can't-miss formula and processed it down to its most vapid and boring form.

01:08It's equal parts obnoxious and utterly forgettable, which is a difficult balancing act to pull off well.

01:15Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting, Get a Little Action in

01:20Number 9, Do You Think I'm Sexy, Paris Hilton

01:24Let you on my body, let you think I'm sexy, come on sugar, let me know

01:32Rod Stewart may have gotten up on stage and sang Do You Think I'm Sexy with a semi-straight face,

01:37but the song is clearly very tongue-in-cheek.

01:47Or at least it was, until Paris Hilton decided to reinterpret it.

01:51As soon as that happened, all of the fun and playfulness of the original was lost.

01:55Hilton was genuinely telling you how attractive she was, and there was no wink and nudge behind it.

02:00Although we understand how someone could listen to Stewart's song and think that he was seriously that fond of his own reflection,

02:06it's funny that Hilton and her team thought this was a good idea.

02:10If you really need me, just reach out and touch, come on honey tell me so

02:18Number 8, Big Yellow Taxi, Counting Crows featuring Vanessa Carlton

02:22They'd be paradise and put up a fucking lie

02:26You could say that the Counting Crows style of alternative rock is like Marmite.

02:32Some love it, and others completely despise it.

02:35Whatever one's feelings about the group, taking an anti-commercial anthem like Big Yellow Taxi

02:40and turning it into a clean-cut commercial hit was a bit too ironic not to mention.

02:46The original by Joni Mitchell is a heartfelt plea about the merits of taking care of the environment.

02:51Don't it always seem to go that you don't know what you've got till it's gone

02:56They paved paradise, put up a parking lot

03:00One particularly scathing review described the Counting Crows themselves as the parking lot that was put up after paradise was paved.

03:08It's pretty safe to say that this critic is not alone in thinking that.

03:12Put up a parking lot

03:14The notion that Duran Duran ever thought it was a good idea to cover a public enemy song is an odd one.

03:35Hearing these millionaire pop idols attempt to dive headfirst into socially conscious hip-hop is a truly bizarre experience.

03:42Eyes out 9-1-1 a long time ago

03:44But don't you see how late they're reacting

03:46They only come and they come when they wanna

03:49So get them off trucking and bomb the corner

03:51Most people would agree that Chuck D & Co are one of the most influential and successful rap groups of all time.

03:57Simon Le Bon and Duran Duran are quite accomplished in their own field too.

04:01To this day though, it's hard to understand exactly what they were trying to accomplish

04:05by attempting to earn some hip-hop acclaim, a total misstep in every sense of the word.

04:11Now I'm on is a joke

04:13Now I'm on is a joke

04:18Number 6. Dancing in the Street

04:20David Bowie and Mick Jagger

04:22Parting out around the world

04:25Are you ready for a brand new beat?

04:29The sheer number of iconic musicians who have recorded a version of Dancing in the Street is a testament to the strength of the original track.

04:37First released by Martha and the Vandellas, everyone from Karen Carpenter to Van Halen has had a go at this tune.

04:43It's the David Bowie and Mick Jagger version that really sticks out though.

04:56This rendition and its very flamboyant music video were conceived for 1985's Live Aid concerts.

05:02Though the idea of Bowie and Jagger teaming up sounds like a dream come true, the resulting track was instantly mocked for being tacky.

05:10If it was tacky in 1985, the passage of time most definitely did not help it.

05:15Every guy, grab a girl, everywhere around the world, now we're dancing

05:23Number 5. These boots are made for walking

05:26Jessica Simpson

05:27Nancy Sinatra's These Boots Are Made For Walking was penned by the legendary Lee Hazelwood and is in its own way a timeless classic.

05:41It should come as no surprise that it hit number one on the Billboard charts, becoming one of Sinatra's signature songs.

05:48And now someone else is getting all your best

05:52Jessica Simpson's version, released as part of the Dukes of Hazzard soundtrack, went for a totally different tone.

05:59People were quick to point out that Simpson is by no means the level of vocalist that Nancy was.

06:04The song was also repurposed as a seductive and quite risque showpiece for Simpson, which some felt cheapened the source material.

06:11Sure, it sold well, but most people would agree that it doesn't compare to the original.

06:16Number 4. Anarchy In The UK

06:26Motley Crue

06:33The Sex Pistols burst onto the scene with an image and attitude that was totally fresh.

06:38When California band Motley Crue decided to cover Anarchy in the UK, the resulting track didn't quite have the same impact.

06:45Sure, the instrumentation is spot on and brings solid energy to the table.

06:50But the rewritten lyrics and ill-fitting Johnny Rotten-esque ad-libs fall flat.

07:02If you're already a fan of Motley Crue, then there's a good chance that this cover works for you.

07:07If you're not, it's just an irritating version that does nothing to improve on the original.

07:12Just one another country

07:20Number 3. Burning Down The House

07:22The Used

07:23Watch out!

07:25Too much electric!

07:27Go babies!

07:30Anyone who is familiar with Talking Heads will be aware of just how infectious their energy was, on record and on stage.

07:37Even by their standards, Burning Down The House stands out as one of the grooviest and catchiest songs in their discography.

07:44Three, one, ten, six, ten, five, seven, three, burning down the house!

07:51However, when The Used decided to give it an edgy, emo-tinged makeover, the result was interesting, to say the least.

07:59People were generally confused by this cover's existence in the first place.

08:03Released as part of the Transformers' Revenge of the Fallen soundtrack,

08:06most people would agree that this one falls firmly into the category of unnecessary renditions.

08:12Something short cannot lead off my feet

08:18Burning Down The House

08:20Number 2. American Pie

08:22Madonna

08:23I started singing

08:25Bye-bye most American life

08:28Drown the Chevy to the levee

08:30But the levee was dry

08:32Did the world need a Madonna version of Don McLean's American Pie to mark the turn of the century?

08:38Well, apparently the iconic pop star thought so.

08:41The original was a sprawling epic, running almost nine minutes over several verses,

08:46that deal with a range of themes and imagery.

08:56Madonna shaved it down to a compact, two-verse structure, and basically missed the entire point along the way.

09:02Acoustic guitars are replaced by dated synthesizers,

09:05leaving us without the energy that the original's live band provided.

09:09The song went to number one in several countries,

09:11so there was a period of time where it was damn near impossible to avoid.

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09:38Number 1. Faith Limp Bizkit

09:41Trust us, Limp Bizkit's version of Behind Blue Eyes by The Who was definitely in contention.

09:55However, no single cover summed up the obnoxiousness of the period quite like their take on George Michael's Faith.

10:02Love Them or Hate Them, Limp Bizkit were truly a product of their time,

10:12and this attitude-filled performance is just about as Limp Bizkit as it gets.

10:17Fred Durst's vocal delivery is certainly interesting.

10:21Of course, he makes a point of changing the line,

10:24not everybody has got a body like you, to a body like me.

10:28It's brash, unapologetic, and unquestionably, one of the most annoying covers of all time.

10:43But what cover songs truly grind your gears?

10:46Be sure to let us know in the comments below.

10:51Please read this video.

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