A song murdered by someone.

Yoko Ono's cover of Someone Like You by Adele.   Check it out on youtube and see if its the most frightening sound you have ever heard

@snook2 
Welp, it's absolutely impossible to top that!

How about a whole album.

My vote goes to Peter Frampton and The Bee Gees re-imagining of Sgt. Pepper’s in 1978 for the musical film of the same name. The album was so bad it’s impossible to pick a worst of..  The movie intro says it all.

“This musical, set to late-period Beatles hits, recounts the story of Sgt. Pepper's famed musical group, which found success during World War I bringing music to weary soldiers in the field. The band's leader has since died and now it's up to his grandson, Billy Shears (Peter Frampton), to carry on the group's traditions. To this end, he recruits the Henderson brothers (Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb) to help him defend the group's magic instruments from nefarious crook B.D. Hoffler.“

albarge said:

"To me, the Righteous Brothers’ recording comes across as excessively "mannered," defined in this context as "overelaborate in delivery." While many people may interpret that as contributing to soul, to me it just detracts from the beauty of the song. For that song, at least, I prefer a more straightforward and unembellished interpretation."

I get that and I agree to a certain point. But for me, the clincher that hooks me with the Righteous Brother's version is the vocal gymnastics which even they could not reproduce live that makes the song so special.

But, what you're speaking of here does ring true. The Joan Baez version of The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down is too smooth and polished....not to mention a woman singing a man's lines (which I don't mind except in this song....it just doesn't work). Some songs are best with all the rough edges in place. Probably all blues are better for the rough edges.....its what makes the blues what they are and a lot of what allowed rock to grow out of the blues.

I think we should start a thread about covers that are better or as good as the originals.

@n80

I'd participate. I think I'd have more to offer there.