Question:
Rock and Roll song, once recorded (or written) by a mega-famous group.
But which, in your opinion, was better rendered by, Oh I don't know--anyone else--even if (or especially if) they weren't that well known.
Obscure enough question?
I'll start off and hopefully clarify:
" Poison Ivy "-- Lieber/Stoller song from the 50's originally recorded by The Coasters (Who?) and then made a big hit by
THE ROLLING STONES !
But imho, THE best rendition was made later by a neo-mod group in the early '80s--The Lambrettas.
Ok, your turn.
Cheers,
Mario

Answer:
the Rolling Stones did Poison Ivy? sounds like they may have done it as a goof.
The first song by the Rolling Stones on AM radio in the midst of Beatlemania was a rendition of Buddy Holly's 'Not Fade Away'. I hadn't heard of Buddy Holly yet. And Buddy Holly took a Bo Didlly groove and wrote around it. And I bet Bo Didlly heard that riff somewhere and muddied it and sped it up and made it his own.

Answer:
"Hazy Shade of Winter" - I believe it was originally a Simon and Garfunkel.
The Bangles did a bang-up remake of it. I believe they used it in the "Less than Zero" movie soundtrack.

Answer:
the Bangles really did a great number on that song. I agree
I can't think of their bands name but it's a brother and sister with 2 others doing 'Sweet Jane' by The Velvet Underground
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Annie Lennox covers a few on her first solo album 'Diva" I don't have the words she is wonderful

Answer:
"I Put a Spell on You" has been done by numerous people - Screaming Jay Hawkins, Nina Simone and even a dance/club version by Sonique. All good, but I like Marilyn Manson's dark, crazed version the best.
Manson has done numerous cover versions including Tainted Love, Highway to Hell, Another Brick in the Wall, but the best, (from around the same time period as I Put a Spell on You) was his version of the Eurthymics "Sweet Dreams."
Other covers I prefer to the original:
Him - Wicked Game (orig. Chris Isaacs) - not really into Him but this cover is good and beefy
Johnny Cash - Hurt (orig. NiN) - can't argue with the Man in Black. This cover has a lot more feeling in it than the original.

Muse - Feeling Good (orig. Nina Simone) - Just a lot more energy than the original version. Muse is currently my favourite UK band but I heard this version even before I got into them properly, and loved it then. Nina's version seems stodgy in comparison.
Harry Nilssen - Without You (can't remember the original band) - aka the suicide song. This is the one dumped girls screech down the phone to their exes after a night of drowning their sorrows. The original version was so unmemorable that I can't remember the name of the band who did it. Harry Nilssen's was the archetypal version.
Doctor & The Medics - Spirit in the Sky (Norman Greenbaum) - a silly song, really, and D&TM brought out the fun in it.
Soft Cell - Tainted Love (don't remember the original) - they made this song so much their own that noone remembers the original artist. Manson had a stab at it too, but Soft Cell's version was better.
There's plenty of others but I'm at work right now and the boss will be annoyed if I play on the forums all day.

Answer:
Marilyn and Johnny Cash I have heard and agree. The rest I havent heard and I don't know why. I worked from 69 to 90 in NYC and everything else was a blur.
the business we were in was called the heart attack machine. printers for the major ad agencies in NY. Everything was either work or work related. I did discover Spirit long before their Dr Sardonicus. I bought their first album and went to the fillmore east evey time they showed up to open for the band whose name was familiar.

Answer:
First one that jumps to mind is Nina Simone's excellent interpretation of Jacques Brel's 1959 "Ne Me Quitte Pas". Aye, it "isn't rock 'n roll, but i like it".
Here is the story behind Brel's song (quick paste):
... was written after Brel was thrown out of Zizou's (Suzanne Gabriello - his mistress at the time) life after casting shame and sadness upon her. Zizou was pregnant from Brel and had an abortion after Brel refused fatherhood. Odd as it may seem, in Brel's tormented and emotional mind, it is she that had left him. Understanding this, provides a narrow but magnificent glimpse into the spirit of this giant performer.
As opposed to his male monologue, Simone interpreted a female POV introspective reflection on the theme. At least that's what it is to my ear. Your mileage may vary, as they say. It's not entirely strong throughout, but she hits some great notes. The lyrics are pretty priceless. The accent isn't important.

Answer:
[quote=fredricktoo;998760]the Bangles really did a great number on that song. I agree
I can't think of their bands name but it's a brother and sister with 2 others doing 'Sweet Jane' by The Velvet Underground
-------------------------------------I'ts the Cowboy Junkies that do the cover of sweet jane on the cd the trinity sessions an excellent cd if bordering a little on the rope over the rafters mood.

Answer:
When The Levee Breaks - Led Zeppelin (Original: Kansas Joe McCoy and Memphis Minnie - 1929)
I think a duo can be considered a group eh? JM & MM maybe not mega-famous but famous nonetheless in that genre/period.

Answer:
I really like Cowboy Junkies' version of Sweet Jane by the Velvet Underground. The original is wonderful, but the Junkies pared the song down to its brilliance. Very different from the original; in its own a true "remake".