Sometimes country singers borrow songs from other genres and do them country-style. The results can be surprisingly spectacular. The instrumentation changes, the vocal infection gets more country, and the overall effect is memorable. Not every song lends itself to this treatment. However, the ones that do get snapped up by top country artists. Just take a listen to what Kenny Chesney, Reba McEntire, Blake Shelton, and Johnny Cash did with covers from another genre. It's just plain awesome.
Videos by Wide Open Country
'I Want To Know What Love Is' by Kenny Chesney
Kenny Chesney worked his country magic with this classic song by Foreigner. They did it back in 1984. According to newcountry1015.com, "Written and composed by Foreigner's Mick Jones, the tune was the band's biggest hit, reaching No. 1 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart in February 1985."
Chesney put it on his album Cosmic Hallelujah in 2016. He gives it an infectious, insistent beat that will make you forget all about the rock band's interpretation. The minute I heard it, I fell in love with it. It always amazes me what different singers can do with the same song. This is a prime example of what happens when covers from another genre succeed.
'The Night The Lights Went Out In Georgia' by Reba McEntire
This song was sung in 1973 by Vicki Lawrence. You probably recall her wacky antics from The Carol Burnett Show on TV years back. Per American Songwriter, "The song bounced around to several artists before Lawrence eventually decided to release it herself. [It was penned by her spouse , Bobby Russell.] Lawrence brought the song all the way to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1973."
Years later, in 1991, Reba McEntire recorded it for her album, For My Broken Heart. Her version also did well. To me, this moody story song just oozes country. McEntire was the ideal person to cover it from that artistic perspective.
'Home' by Blake Shelton
Michael Buble co-wrote "Home" and had a monster hit with it in 2005. The theme of the song - yearning for the place you love most in the world after all your globe-trotting is done - is totally country. Blake Shelton's voice fit the song to a T. Three years later, he transformed it into a country music chart-topper. Both men sang it with a depth of emotion that listeners loved. Still, with all due respect to Michael Buble, Blake Shelton covered it brilliantly.
'Hurt' by Johnny Cash
If you told me that Johnny Cash would cover a song by Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails and do it heart-breakingly well, I would have been skeptical. So much for my opinion! Cash recorded the song in 2002, one year before he passed away. It has the sorrowful air of a valediction from a man who had lived well and hard - and who was ready to make his final exit from the stage. Per side-line.com, "Reznor praised Cash's interpretation of the song for its 'sincerity and meaning,' going so far as to say 'that song isn't mine anymore.'"
