Ten superb cover songs that could be even better than the original

Santana - “Black Magic Woman”

Next up is this brilliant song by Santana. It has that elusive dual category for cover songs of, firstly, not having many people realize it is a cover and not the original. Then secondly, it is better than the original version. “Black Magic Woman” was written by Peter Green for Fleetwood Mac, back in their UK-based blues band days. Their version was released as a single in 1968 and had modest chart success.

The version best known by most is the Santana one. It was the first single from their second studio album, Abraxas, in 1970. The song perfectly suited Santana’s Latin style, and Carlos Santana provided some excellent guitar work to make it a huge hit. Tying a neat circle, Green paired up with Santana for a live version of the song at the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Induction Ceremony in 1998.

Disturbed - “The Sound Of Silence”

Sometimes it's not about which is the best version of a song between the original and the cover. It shifts to an admiration of taking the original in a completely different direction and changing the style. That's very much the case when Disturbed took the gentle sound of the Simon and Garfunkel song “Sound Of Silence” and added a simmering intensity, tension, passion, and restrained power. 

It’s a dark version, quite apart from the wistful original. David Draiman delivers the vocals in a way that's hard to imagine based on hearing the Simon and Garfunkel version. This Disturbed adaptation has to be heard. It’s as good as the original if you take it as a different song altogether. 

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