What's in a genre?
Inspired by some horrid acoustic covers of songs on TikTok, mostly rap songs that have no business sang like it's a 1980s campfire folksong. Here is a list of genre swap covers that are just as good if not better than the original:
Bringin' on the Heartbreak by Def Leppard
Glam metal, hard rock
The original was written by Def Leppard and was the second single from their 1981 album High 'n' Dry. It didn't appear on US charts but was heavily rotated on MTV. Due to its popularity it was remixed and rereleased in 1984 with Phil Collen on guitar, this version reached 61 on the US Billboard Hot 100.
The cover:
Bringin' On the Heartbreak by Mariah Carey
R&B
Released in 2002, Mariah Carey released a r&b cover while keeping its rock influence by collaborating with Dave Navarro. It was received positively by Def Leppard's Joe Elliott. Phil Collen also praised Mariah Carey and defended her from DL's more outspoken fans. The cover failed to chart in the US but reached top-thirty and top-forty in Switzerland and Belgium respectively.
Killing Me Softly with His Song by Lori Lieberman
Folk
The origin for this song granted quite a bit of controversy, the production of the song was composed by Charles Fox with lyrics attributed to Norman Gimbel. Norman failed to credit Lori Lieberman. Liberman (19) had an affair with Gimbel (33) who for years agreed to credit Lieberman but sometime in 1976 (three years after Gimbel divorced his then wife) he became abusive and was dumped by Lieberman. In response, the pair decided to kill Lieberman's career by hiring lawyers and demanding outstanding expenses. Despite being vocal about the writing efforts, in 1997 Gimbel and Fox decided to publicly deny Liberman's involvement in the writing process. Liberman contributes her inspiration of the song to be a performance of Don McLean, this was a known fact that passed through many circles. In 2008 Gimbel demanded McLean remove text from his website that said he was the inspiration for the song, McLean's lawyers pulled up a 1973 article where Gimble admitted to the influence of McLean and the involvement of Lieberman. Gimbel and Fox remain firm in denying Lieberman's contribution - citing hyperbole as an explanation.
Killing Me Softly by Fugees
Hip Hop
Although this cover is a more straight forward cover of the original it isn't actually influenced by Lieberman or the 1973 release by Roberta Flack. The Fugees decided to cover this because they wanted a song on the record that wasn't "just a rap song." Influenced by A Tribe Called Quest, they sampled Bonita Applebum and added a "bass reggae drop" to the song. They wanted to change the lyrics to make an anti-drug anti-poverty song but Gimbel and Fox refused. The Fugees' cover wasn't eligible for the Billboard Hot 100 as it wasn't released as a US commercial single.
I Will Always Love You by Dolly Parton
Country
Dolly Parton wrote the song in 1973 as a farewell to her business partner and mentor Porter Wagoner, ending a seven-year partnership. The song has always been admired and truly marked Dolly as both singer and songwriter. At one point Elvis Presley approached Parton to cover the song but due to a 50/50 deal Parton turned down the partnership. Parton suggested the song be covered by Patti Labelle on multiple occasions who didn't turn Parton down but also kept pushing it aside, she states she regrets not covering the song. The song reached 1 twice on Billboard's Hot Country Songs as it was re-recorded and released by Parton in 1982.
I Will Always Love You by Whitney Houston
Pop, Soul, R&B
In 1992 Whitney covered the song for her film debut The Bodyguard. Originally, this wasn't the song of choice. Whitney had actually covered Jimmy Ruffin's What Becomes of the Brokenhearted but that song was used for Fried Green Tomatoes (1991). The song was climbing the charts during the filming so they decided to drop it. Kevin Costner suggested I Will Always Love You, of which Whitney had only ever heard the Linda Ronstadt's remake. When Parton heard this she called producer David Foster and sent the final verse which is missing from Ronstadt's remake. It peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 for 14 weeks.
Valerie by the Zutons
Indie Pop, Blue Rock
Released in 2006, this song was written by lead singer Dave McCabe in about 20 minutes. Written in a taxi ride, the song was a "postcard" to celebrity makeup artist Valerie Star who was in trouble for a DUI. It peaked at 33 on the European Hot 100 Singles.
Valerie by Mark Ronson featuring Amy Winehouse
Pop, Soul, Jazz
Winehouse was a large fan of the original song and was known to hum the song regularly. When Mark Ronson approached Amy Winehouse to make an album consisting of soul covers to guitar records Winehouse suggested Valerie. Ronson didn't think it was a good fit but went into the recording studio anyway, he later fell in love with Winehouse's version. Ronson's version is based around the beat from the Jam's 1982 song Town Called Malice. Around the same time as Ronson's version, which had airplay, Winehouse released a jazz acoustic version for Radio 1's Live Lounge. Ronson's version peaked at 2 on the UK singles charts.
All Along the Watchtower by Bob Dylan
Folk Rock
Written by Bob Dylan and produced by Bob Johnston, the song was released in 1967. The song was heavily influenced by his motorbike accident. The accident seemed to be a turning point on Dylan who got to take the time away from touring and other hectic aspects of his life.
All Along the Watchtower by Jimi Hendrix
Hard/Psychedelic Rock
Hendrix was always a fan of Dylan, he came to the studio with reel-to-reel tapes of Dylan's unreleased recordings that were provided by publicist Michael Goldstein, who worked with Dylan's manager. Originally, Hendrix intended to record Dylan's I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine but changed it to All Along the Watchtower. This was released only six months after the original and peaked at 20 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart.
(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction by the Rolling Stones
Rock
Written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, the song features an iconic riff by Richards. Originally only appearing on pirate radio stations, the song was considered too sexual for regular airplay. Richards claims he doesn't actually remember writing it, he instead found a cassette tape he had recorded which ended when he fell asleep. The original featured harmonica by Brian Jones. Despite its underground beginnings to song was released by London Records and peaked at number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for 4 weeks.
(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction by Devo
New Wave, Reggae Rock
Originally released as a self-produced single, the record was later re-recorded for their first album and released in 1978. The band created their version during a jam session that didn't start with the lyrics from (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction, instead, the lyrics were actually a sub when the original jam session instrumental didn't seem to fit Paint It Black. The song peaked at 41 on UK's Singles Chart.
Red Red Wine by Neil Diamond
Soft Rock, Folk Rock
Red Red Wine was written by Neil Diamond in 1967, and appeared on Diamond's second studio album. Neil left his label in 1968 but Band Records released his singled after his departure. For the RRW single, Bang Records added a background choir without Diamond's involvement or permission. Diamond's version peaked at 62 on Billboard Hot 100.
Red Red Wine by UB40
Reggae
UB40 released the song for their cover album Labour of Love. The band wasn't actually familiar with Diamond's version, they had only heard Tony Tribe's cover at the time. They originally attributed the writing credit N Diamond to the Jamaican artist Negus Diamond. On its initial release it hit 1 in the UK but didn't see success in the US. However, upon a rerelease in 1988 it hit Billboard Hot 100's No.1 spot.
Honorable Mentions:
Johnny Cash's Hurt (I was going to put it but they're both described as alt. rock even though I wouldn't consider them the same genre tbh)
Rock This Way, Run-DMC. This featured Aerosmith so I debated whether I'd count it as a full genre switch.
Source: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14