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Covers

In popular music, a cover version, or simply cover, is a new rendition (performance or recording) of a previously recorded song. more...

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Popular musicians may play covers as a tribute to the original performer or group, to win audiences who like to hear a familiar song, or to increase their chance of success by using a proven hit or to gain credibility by its comparison with a previous version of the song. Covering material is an important method in learning various styles of music. Bands may also perform covers for the simple pleasure of playing a familiar song. A cover band plays cover versions exclusively.

Early cover versions and the origin of the term

From early in the 20th century it was common practice among phonograph record labels that if any company had a record that was a significant commercial success, other record companies would have singers or musicians "cover" the tune by recording a version for their own label in hopes of cashing in on the tune's success. Since there was little promotion or advertising involved, when the average record buyer went out to purchase a new record, they usually asked for the song, not the artist; additionally, distribution of records was highly localized so a quickly-recorded version of a hit song from another area could hit the streets before the original was available, and the highly competitive record companies were quick to take advantage of these facts.

This began to change in the later 1930s, when the average age of the record-buying public began to drop. During the Swing Era, when a bobby soxer went looking for "In the Mood", she wanted the popular Glenn Miller version, not someone else's. However, record companies still continued to record different versions of songs that sold well.

In the early days of rock and roll, many songs originally recorded by musicians were re-recorded by other artists in a more toned-down style that lacked both the earthiness of the originals and the social stigma of the original rock music, being that most of the originals were written or performed by black artists. These bowdlerized cover versions were considered by some to be more palatable to parents, and these artists were more acceptable to programmers at particular radio stations. (For this reason, singer-songwriter Don McLean has called the cover version a "racist tool.") Songs by the original artists which were then successful are called crossovers as they "crossed over" from the original audience. Also, many songs originally recorded by male artists were rerecorded by female artists, and vice versa. Such a cover version is sometimes called a cross cover version.

While it is all but impossible to trace the actual history of the term "cover version," it is likely the term began to be used by record collectors once the early rock'n'roll records had become collectible. A widely-accepted origin of the term is that it relates to the record company "covering a bet" by placing a bet on a song someone else has already bet on, hoping to ride the coattails of their good luck. It has also been suggested that the term "cover" may have its origins in an attempt by the artist who recorded the newer version of the song to have his/her version literally "cover" the original version in the sales racks. Woolworth, a discount chain store, even had its own label (Embassy) specializing in low-price copies of popular tunes. Another commonly-suggested origin, also apocryphal, is that a new recording by a white artist was intended to "cover up the blackness" of the original and make it acceptable to white listeners.