Best Guitar Covers: Unique Takes on Great Tracks
Better than the originals?
5,0 / 5,0 | 
Guitar Covers exist pretty much everywhere. With growing access to social media platforms, it’s easier than ever to upload your own spin on a favourite track. Let’s look at some notable uploads.
The Best Guitar Covers:
Best Guitar Covers: Millions to Choose From!
We guitarists love to play other people’s songs. It’s just part of playing the guitar. For decades, there have even been official cover versions of other songs. Just look at Tainted Love, once a Motown jive, and then covered by Marilyn Manson. Worlds apart!
Thanks to the likes of YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram, it’s easier than ever to showcase your talents to the world. Vimeo and Myspace didn’t really survive, did they? A lot of artists that are successful now were discovered through their early YouTube covers stage.
There’s a real innocence and honesty in a guitar cover. Some like to totally flip things upside down, whereas others are faithful replicas of the original record, almost to show respect. We could spend hours looking at other covers, but here are a few that I think you’ll enjoy.
Spanish Fly – Pete Thorn
Our first look at some of the best guitar covers comes from renowned guitarist, Pete Thorn. Easily one of the most complex performances here, it shows a dedication to learning the art of the late Eddie Van Halen’s playing.
Over four years since he left us, and I still can’t believe it. This guitar cover showcases Pete Thorn’s ability as a musician and as a producer. The mix of this track is sublime, with a wonderful amount of natural and artificial reverb to make you feel like you’re in the room with him.
Furthermore, the technical ability required to pull off this song is virtually unmatched. The 7th track from their 1979 album, Spanish Fly was a step away from Van Halen’s bread and butter. And yet, it’s always been a fan favourite.
Isn’t She Lovely – Martin Miller
Moving on, we have something with a bit more production value. That’s the thing with guitar covers, you either get multiple camera angles and high-quality sound mixing, or just a man with a camera.
For me, this is one of the greatest arrangements of Stevie Wonder’s 1976 hit. Essentially, the guitar cover features Martin Miller and Tom Quayle accompanying one another with just two guitars. Each player takes turns to play either the melody or the backing chords.
What makes this so enriching, is that they subtly change the style throughout this six-minute video. The cover climaxes with a key change and some virtuosic techniques. It’s inspiring and easy to listen to.
Take It Easy – Josh Turner Guitar
By contrast, we have something more down to earth. A simple cover of The Eagles. But yet again, just two guys and their guitars, this time, with vocals.
Here, we still have an outstanding guitar cover, however, it’s more of an overall performance. Featuring Josh Turner and Carson McKee of both YouTube and live fame, it’s a wholesome version of a classic country hit.
The blend of a 12-string guitar with the lead Telecaster makes for a great match, and the vocal harmonies fill out the sound appropriately. Specifically, we’ve got a 1965 Gibson B-45-12, which is quite a rare beast. Along with Turner’s Mexican Standard Telecaster.
From Thomann, you can grab a similarly exclusive *Gibson 12-string, plus plenty of *Telecasters.
Africa – Gian Piero Ferrini
Another guitar cover, but this time we have a fingerstyle arrangement. What I love about this is how effortlessly Gian Piero Ferrini plays the vocal melody whilst accompanying himself! Oh, I am not worthy.
Potentially a lesser-known performer, this artist doesn’t get the recognition he deserves. His YouTube channel is full of astounding guitar covers that are done in this style.
He should get extra points for his overall ability, plus his unique arrangments of each song that he covers. Do you need some instrumental music for a public gathering? Why not try this guy, the covers are soothing and of well-known songs.
Money For Nothing – Yosuto
To conclude our look at the best guitar covers, we’ve got this rather comedic take by contrast to the others. Despite this, I believe that the playing style captures the essence of the original artist’s style.
This video has a what if? conundrum. The YouTuber has added a final solo to the Dire Straits guitar anthem. Does it work? It sure does. With techniques reminiscent of Mark Knopfler plus Yosuto’s own fingerprint makes for a great guitar cover.
Moreover, I like that he has used a Stratocaster with a humbucker in the bridge. Of course, Knopfler was known for playing mainly his Fender Stratocaster or Gibson Les Paul. So, we get the best of both worlds.
Best Guitar Covers: Hidden Talents?
Having looked at just five notable guitar covers from YouTube, do you think that there are better ones out there? I certainly know that there will be! The beauty of these covers is that they highlight musical abilities that the world wouldn’t have otherwise seen.
Why not let us know of any that you like to listen to down in the comments.
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2 responses to “Best Guitar Covers: Unique Takes on Great Tracks”
Thank you George for the Friday treat of new artists (to me anyway). I hope there’s enough feedback to make it a weekly thing. Martin & Tom’s wonderful rendition inspired me to dig into a couple classics this weekend myself!
I’m glad that this post sparked some inspiration! It’s good to share the weird and wonderful things we find online!