Five covers EPs I always loved

Some bands build their early careers on a well-placed cover, like Van Halen blasting right out ofthe gate with a redefining take on The Kinks’ “You Really Got Me.” Some bands make a point ofavoiding covers altogether. And some love their covers so much that at a certain point in theircareer they’ll release an entire album of covers (and there’s a great list of them here). Buriedsomewhere in the middle of it all though is the covers EP. For many listeners a covers EP hits acertain sweet spot: enough tracks to feel like a little treat, not so many as to lose focus or havelisteners impatiently drumming their fingers waiting for the next album of original material. Acovers EP says “dude, listen to these songs that we loved when we were starting out” but itdoesn’t say “and you must listen to everything I listened to in order to understand where I’mcoming from.” There are countless covers EPs out there but these are my personal favorites.

Skid Row – B Side Ourselves

“Psycho Therapy” (Ramones)“C’mon and Love Me” (KISS)“Delivering the Goods” (Judas Priest)“What You’re Doing” (Rush)“Little Wing” (The Jimi Hendrix Experience)Skid Row released this EP between their Slave To The Grind and Subhuman Race albums, andit stood out for me because in those pre-Spotify/YouTube/iTunes days you couldn’t simplycommand a song to appear in your ears: you had to either catch it on the radio or encounter itsphysical representation in the form of a CD or cassette. Wild, I know. So for me, this was thefirst time I’d heard a song by The Ramones, and although I was already a Jimi Hendrix fan byage 13 I hadn’t yet come across “Little Wing.” The Judas Priest cover features a guestappearance by the metal god Rob Halford himself, and there’s an energy throughout this discwhich captures the power of Skid Row in this unique era, when they successfully survived thelast days of rock’s hair metal era and before grunge temporarily put the boot in to bands likeSkid Row. This was a band with the world at their feet and a song in their hearts.

Metallica – The $5.98 E.P.: Garage Days Re-Revisited

“Helpless” (Diamond Head)“The Small Hours” (Holocaust)“The Wait” (Killing Joke)“Crash Course In Brain Surgery” (Budgie)“Last Caress/Green Hell” (Misfits)This EP represented Metallica’s first release with Jason Newsted on bass following the tragicdeath of Cliff Burton, and the band chose to go back to their roots before diving in to new music.These tracks are all available on the band’s 1998 Garage Inc double album too, but for me theytell an entirely different story when heard in their original context instead of fitting in amongstother covers, B-sides and one-offs. If Garage Inc is the story of a band using their platform asThe World’s Biggest Metal Band to shine a light on the songs that inspired them, Garage DaysRe-Revisited tells a story of a band who was struggling to cope with the emotion of the situation,and who retreated to the comfort of the jam room and the songs that inspired them in their earlydays before life became so complicated.

Stone Sour – Meanwhile In Burbank…

“We Die Young” (Alice In Chains)“Heading Out To The Highway” (Judas Priest)“Love Gun” (KISS)“Creeping Death” (Metallica)“Children Of The Grave” (Black Sabbath)

I get a feeling we’ll be seeing more of this as time goes on: covers EPs that feature songsreleased post-1990. While most of Stone Sour’s recent covers EP (the first of a trilogy) focuseson tracks from the 1980s, the inclusion of Alice In Chains’ “We Die Young” acknowledges AIC’srightful place in the Great Heavy Rock Songbook. It’s interesting to note that this EP featuressongs by Judas Priest and KISS, just like Skid Row’s. And it’s also cool to see a band payingtribute to Metallica, who have done so much to share cool covers with the world.

Red Hot Chili Peppers – Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Covers EP

“A Teenager in Love” (Dion and the Belmonts)“Havana Affair” (The Ramones)“Search and Destroy” (Iggy Pop and James Williamson of The Stooges)“Everybody Knows This is Nowhere” (Neil Young)“I Get Around” (The Beach Boys)“Suffragette City” (David Bowie)The Chili Peppers released this EP in 2012 as an iTunes-only digital download to celebrate theirinduction in the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame. The idea was to pay tribute to other bands who camebefore them in joining the ranks of the Hall. The tracks themselves date from between 1991 and2011, with three guitarists represented: John Frusctiante, Dave Navarro and Josh Klinghoffer.

Rush – Feedback

“Summertime Blues” (Eddie Cochran/Jerry Capehart)“Heart Full of Soul” (The Yardbirds)“For What It’s Worth” (Buffalo Springfield)“The Seeker” (The Who)“Mr. Soul” (Buffalo Springfield)“Seven and Seven Is” (Love)“Shapes Of Things (The Yardbirds)“Crossroads” (Robert Johnson, Cream)Alright, this one is probably long enough to qualify as an album if you really wanna stretch it, butthis eight-song release clocks in at just over 27 minutes. While most of the EPs covered (ha!) inthis list feature songs from the ‘metal and onwards’ era, Rush’s reflects an earlier era, an era wenow think of as ‘classic rock.’ Heck, it even includes two songs apiece by Buffalo Springfield andThe Yardbirds, and you might as well count “Summertime Blues” as a The Who song too and atthem to the ‘two songs by…’ list. What’s really great about Feedback is that it gives the listenera clear indication of where Rush derived their energy, yet it provides virtually no hintswhatsoever as to how they developed such a progressive, iconic sound of their own.

Page Title: Five Great Covers EPsPage Description: Here are five great covers EPs by Metallica, Stone Sour, Red Hot ChiliPeppers, Rush and Skid Row. What are your favorites?Page Keywords: Metallica,Stone Sour,Red Hot Chili Peppers,Rush,Skid Row,JimiHendrix,Black Sabbath,Judas Priest,Ramones,Alice In Chains,
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