AV Club's 9 Increible Cover Songs

From the AV Club:

Dinosaur Jr. - Just Like Heaven

The best covers have a reverence for the original song while adding a unique spin, offering new interpretation of a well-worn creation. My favorite example of this particular combo is Dinosaur Jr.’s version of The Cure’s “Just Like Heaven.” The original is a breathy, wispy take of a love lost at sea. But Dinosaur Jr. digs out the menace in the song, adding a ferocious beat to the “you” in the chorus, eventually ending on that frightening note (the band also hilariously chimes in only on the word “head”). And naturally, a trippy J Mascis guitar solo makes every song better. Not only did Dinosaur Jr. love this particular cover—the band recorded it for a compilation album, then refused to give it up, releasing it themselves—but it’s Robert Smith’s own favorite alternate version of the song. J Mascis sent it to him on a cassette, and Smith told Blender, “It was so passionate. It was fantastic. I’ve never had such a visceral reaction to a cover version before or since.” Smith says that the Dinosaur Jr. version even affects how The Cure now plays the song live.