SECOND LIFE.

You have known a song for years and suddenly hear an earlier version. The melody is the same, but the voice, the tempo, and even the intent seem changed. That is one of the most enjoyable discoveries in pop music: a familiar favorite turns out to be part of a longer conversation.

A cover is a new performance of an existing song. The performer may stay close to an earlier recording or change almost everything around it. This is different from a remix, which reworks existing recorded material. A cover, in turn, may contain samples. Composition, performance, and recording are different layers of the same music.

LISTEN TO WHAT SHIFTS.

There are three useful entry points. Start with the voice: where does someone breathe, which words are emphasized, and how are lines finished? Next, listen to the rhythm. A different speed or a different distribution of accents can make a song sway, push, or hesitate. Finally, look at the structure: what has been omitted, when does the band enter, and where does the climax lie?

These choices make it clear why singing louder or more exuberantly does not in itself make a better cover. A small intervention can change more. A sentence that asks for something in one voice can sound like a condition in another. Aretha Franklin’s Respect is a powerful example of how performance and perspective reinforce each other.

THE MOST FAMOUS VOICE IS NOT ALWAYS THE FIRST.

A cover also requires attention to the earlier makers. A singer who makes a song famous did not automatically write it. And the writer did not necessarily make the first released recording. The paths of Nothing Compares 2 U and Killing Me Softly show why that distinction is worth making.

This means listening doesn't have to be a contest between original and cover. The new performance can lead you back to an artist you didn't know yet. Play two versions back-to-back and choose one detail to follow. Often, you will hear something in the familiar recording that you missed before.

THE 20 BEST COVERS ACCORDING TO SJELF.

Our order is an editorial choice based on unique character, persuasiveness, and what the performance reveals in the song. It is not a measured world ranking. The selection runs through pop, soul, rock, and hip-hop; years are used to distinguish between recordings, singles, and album releases where necessary.

01. Jimi Hendrix — All Along the Watchtower

1968 · Earlier: Bob Dylan (1967).

Hendrix turns the guitar into a second storyteller. Short flourishes and sustained notes give the restless story a physical tension. The chords remain recognizable, but the playing field becomes much larger. Our number one because the instrumental answers have just as much to tell as the vocals.

02. Aretha Franklin — Respect

1967 · Earlier: Otis Redding (1965), also the writer.

The background vocals react to Aretha as if a conversation is unfolding. Her phrasing makes the message clear and direct. The same basic idea carries a different weight from this voice: she shows how much meaning can shift without rewriting a song entirely.

03. Johnny Cash — Hurt

2002 · Earlier: Nine Inch Nails (1994). Written by Trent Reznor.

The small imperfections in Cash’s voice are given plenty of room. Guitar and piano bring the words close to the listener; the later build-up makes that proximity palpable. It sounds like looking back, even if the lyrics are not a literal autobiography of Cash.

04. Whitney Houston — I Will Always Love You

1992 · Earlier: Dolly Parton (1974), also the writer.

The opening without accompaniment demands full attention for the voice. Only later does the grand gesture arrive. Houston turns Parton’s farewell into a performance with a massive emotional arc, while maintaining the softness the song needs in the quieter passages.

05. Sinéad O’Connor — Nothing Compares 2 U

1990 · Released earlier: The Family (1985). Written by Prince.

O'Connor gives every phrase a distinct edge: sometimes controlled, sometimes audibly fragile. The space around her voice makes that difference significant. Prince recorded a version himself, but The Family released the song first. Writer and original release are different entries here.

06. Jeff Buckley — Hallelujah

1994 · Earlier: Leonard Cohen (1984); John Cale (1991).

The guitar lets the chords fade, and Buckley takes his time with every movement of the melody. His version also follows in the line of Cale’s earlier arrangement. A cover sometimes arises from a conversation between multiple performances, rather than a single leap from the original.

07. Nina Simone — Feeling Good

1965 · From the musical The Roar of the Greasepaint – The Smell of the Crowd; sung on stage earlier by Cy Grant. Written by Anthony Newley and Leslie Bricusse.

Simone begins with her voice alone and then lets the accompaniment land heavily. The descending instrumental movement makes her rising vocal strength even clearer. Freedom is given a physical sensation here: breath, space, and a voice that claims its place.

08. Soft Cell — Tainted Love

1981 · Earlier: Gloria Jones, recorded in 1964 and released in 1965. Written by Ed Cobb.

The electronic pattern is sparse enough to let Marc Almond’s vocals come uncomfortably close. Where Jones’s performance pushes forward with a soul band, the repeated accents here make the melody feel insistent. The rhythm changes how you experience the relationship in the song.

09. Joe Cocker — With a Little Help from My Friends

1968 · Earlier: The Beatles (1967). Written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney.

Cocker opens up the friendly singalong with a slower, swaying arrangement. The responses from the backing vocalists make the plea for support feel larger. It is a useful listening comparison: listen first only to the drums and hear how much of the change begins there.

10. Ike & Tina Turner — Proud Mary

1971 · Earlier: Creedence Clearwater Revival (1969). Written by John Fogerty.

The quiet lead-in makes the acceleration an event. Tina’s vocals and the group’s reactions set the melody in motion while the band seems to push harder and harder. The build-up is so defining that you recognize the performance by its trajectory alone.

11. Pet Shop Boys — Always on My Mind

1987 · Earlier well-known version: Elvis Presley (1972). Written by Wayne Carson, Johnny Christopher, and Mark James.

An apology is given a dance rhythm and big synthesizer accents. Neil Tennant keeps his delivery relatively cool, giving the exuberant accompaniment its own emotional role. The contrast works: you can dance to the song while simultaneously hearing the distance between two people.

12. Nirvana — The Man Who Sold the World

1994 album release · Recorded live in 1993. Earlier: David Bowie (1970).

Cobain’s voice remains raw in the largely acoustic setting. The guitar figure carries the recognition, but the performance gives the song a searching atmosphere. The slight tension in the vocals makes the strange encounter from Bowie’s song feel very close.

13. Mark Ronson feat. Amy Winehouse — Valerie

2007 · Earlier: The Zutons (2006).

The rhythm bounces and the horns provide short punctuation. Winehouse sometimes places words just behind the beat, giving the melody a different kind of suppleness. Compare this Ronson version with her sparser performances: the same singer can choose multiple paths within a single cover.

14. The Byrds — Mr. Tambourine Man

1965 · Released earlier that year by Bob Dylan, also the writer.

The shimmering electric guitar and multi-part harmonies capture the long song in a compact pop format. Not all verses are included. That very selection shows how an arrangement is also editing: choosing which part of a song becomes the new center.

15. Al Green — How Can You Mend a Broken Heart

1972 · Earlier: Bee Gees (1971).

Green lets his voice move from a soft line to a vulnerable high note while the band keeps carrying him calmly. The space between the words does a lot of work. The melody hardly needs to change to feel more like a hesitant conversation in this performance.

16. Charles Bradley — Changes

Here: the album version on Changes (2016). Earlier: Black Sabbath (1972); Bradley released his cover as a single in 2013.

Bradley gives the long notes frayed edges and makes his breathing audibly part of the song. The ballad turns out to fit soul surprisingly well. That is the discovery of this cover: behind a name often associated with heavy guitars lies a melody capable of carrying such a voice.

17. Eva Cassidy — Fields of Gold

1996, Live at Blues Alley · Earlier: Sting (1993), also the writer.

Cassidy accompanies herself with a finely crafted guitar pattern and keeps the words clear. The silences feel like part of the melody. The song becomes smaller in scale, while the imagery the vocals evoke is granted more room.

18. Sonic Youth — Superstar

1994 · Earlier: Delaney & Bonnie (1969), then Carpenters (1971). Written by Bonnie Bramlett and Leon Russell.

The guitar texture abrades around a slowly unfolding melody. The relatively flat vocals strip the comfort from the familiar chorus. What might sound romantic in a smoother arrangement takes on an uncomfortable loneliness here. The choice of sound changes the entire perspective.

19. Fugees — Killing Me Softly with His Song

1996 · Earlier: Lori Lieberman (1972) and Roberta Flack (1973). Written by Charles Fox and Norman Gimbel.

Lauryn Hill’s vocals remain round and melodic above the hip-hop beat. The responses between them make the recording a collaborative effort without pulling the song apart. Flack’s performance is an important predecessor, but those who look back to the beginning will also arrive at Lieberman.

20. Santana — Black Magic Woman

1970 · Earlier: Fleetwood Mac (1968). Written by Peter Green.

The percussion and fluid guitar playing give the blues a different movement. Listen to how the guitar pulls at a note and then releases it: the timing makes the difference. The song remains recognizable, while the band builds its own rhythmic environment around it.