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

Ace Frehley/KISS - “New York Groove”

“New York Groove” was written by Russ Ballard of Argent fame, and writer of several other great songs. It was a hit in the UK by Hello in 1975 as a foot-stomping glam rock number. In the US, it’s best known as a song by Ace Frehley or KISS. 

Frehley, along with other members of KISS, was busy working on a solo album for release in 1978. He chose “New York Groove” as a single from his album and scored chart success with it. KISS took it onto their setlist later and regularly played it live. The original was pretty good at the time but would never have got the status or live atmosphere of being performed live by KISS, making theirs better than the original version. 

The Tourists - “I Only Want To Be With You”

The Tourists was where Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart made an early breakthrough, ahead of long solo careers and as the Eurythmics. It was 1960s legend Dusty Springfield though who had the original hit with “I Only Want to Be With You” in 1964. Then in 1976, Scottish band Bay City Rollers had a big hit in the UK with the song. 

This means it was quite brave of The Tourists to release their own cover of it in 1979. Springfield’s version had a classic 1960s sound, the Bay City Rollers made it a pop song again. For The Tourists, it was more of a new wave song and rockier too. Guitars and keyboards added depth and made theirs a great version and possibly the best. 

Continued on next page