20. I Would Die 4 U (Prince) by Car Seat Headrest.
19. Joey (Concrete Blonde) by Puss N Boots. Norah Jones’ trio takes on one of the best songs of the 1990s.
18. No Fun Mondays by Billie Joe Armstrong. Green Day’s lead singer livestreamed covers by Blondie, Billy Bragg, and more. It’s just fun pop at a time when we desperately need it.
17. Fast Car (Tracy Chapman) by Black Pumas. One of several Steven Colbert show covers that made 2020 better. See also: Excellent 2020 covers of this song by Craig Moreau and Vlossom.
16. Jump Into the Fire (Harry Nilsson) by Heather Trost.
Not as frenzied as the original, but that just makes it even more happy. (See what I did there?)
15. Moonlight Mile (Rolling Stones) by Cave In.
They kept the psychedelic mood but turned the song into arena rock. A perfect cover. See also: No Expectations by Green Leaf Rustlers. Chris Robinson’s new band also covered a lesser-known song by the Stones.
14. The Yo! internet cover series by Charlie Benante and his pals. Anthrax’s drummer got his heavy metal buddies together and gave us balls-out covers of Rush, U2, Fleetwood Mac, and more.
13. Bridge Over Troubled Water (Simon and Garfunkle) by Hozier.
Wow. See also: Muse’s Matt Bellamy covering the same song, and also doing a damn fine job.
12. 1979 (Smashing Pumpkins) by The Bilinda Butchers.
I really like this take on one of my all-time favorite songs.
11. Love Me Til My Heart Stops by Order of Operations. An EP of Talking Heads covers, synth style.
See also: This Must Be the Place by Dizzy. Another well-done cover of a great Talking Heads tune.
