5 Beatles Songs That Received an Elvis Presley Makeover
Elvis Presley covered several of The Beatles’ songs. For example, he sang one of The Beatles’ songs in a medley with one of his own hits. Despite Elvis’ talent, not all of his Beatles covers were great.
5. ‘Get Back’
Elvis covered The Beatles’ “Get Back” in a medley with his own hit “Little Sister.” On an aesthetic level, it makes sense. “Little Sister” is one of his harder rock hits and “Get Back” was one of The Beatles’ harder rock hits.
Lyrically, the songs work pretty well together. “Little Sister” is a bit of a bitter song about a former lover. To make the medley work, Elvis turns “Get Back” into a kiss-off. One can only wonder what the original “Get Back” would have been like if Elvis was the featured artist instead of Billy Preston.
4. ‘Yesterday’
“Yesterday” is one of the most famous ballads of all time and Elvis is one of the most famous balladeers of all time. It only makes sense that Elvis would want to tackle the track. While The Beatles’ song is an acoustic guitar song, the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll’s cover is more of a piano tune.
One of the great parts of Elvis’ later work is the amazing backup vocals. Here, they don’t really work. “Yesterday” is a song about loneliness and adding backup singers detracts from the mood. Regardless, the cover is still beautiful.
3. ‘Hey Jude’
This cover feels more casual and less composed than the Fab Four’s version it’s also a lot shorter. Maybe that’ll work for some listeners, but what’s “Hey Jude” without the most amazing fade-out in history?
The King’s voice sounds wrong here. Maybe he had a sore throat or something? Considering how much everyone loves “Hey Jude,” this cover might be more famous if the execution was even passable. Ultimately, Elvis’ “Hey Jude” is just another piece of album filler. At least it’s better than Bing Crosby’s take on the song, but that’s not saying much.
2. ‘Something’
Some of The Beatles’ songs that George Harrison wrote, like “While My Guitar Gently Weeps,” “Taxman,” and “Within You Without You,” are pretty ornate. “Something,” his most famous song for the Fab Four, is considerably more lowkey. It finds beauty in simplicity.
The King turns this song into more of a power ballad. It’s an interesting idea, and it reeks of his Vegas years. It might have been interesting for him to make it a more subtle track a la “Love Me Tender.” His cover doesn’t live up to the original, or even his best ballads from this period like “Kentucky Rain” and “Always on My Mind.”
1. ‘Lady Madonna’
The original “Lady Madonna” sounds like Elvis’ peak era. His cover of the track is impromptu.
He adds a little more of a Southern flavor to the song. The track was loose and under two minutes, but it works shockingly well. We can only imagine how good it would be if he recorded a more formal cover of the song. His “Lady Madonna” fascinating, and it shows why he’s still one of the greatest covers artists ever.
