6 Hit Songs You (Probably) Didn’t Know Were Covers!

Though every artist's performance of a song carries its own unique and distinctive style, not every song is an original piece of work. Every once in a while, an artist will cover a song – sometimes well-known songs, other times not – and remind us that, while these songs weren’t written or conceptualized by them, it’s still possible to be bold and original in paying homage to the original performer. These 6 musicians proved successful with their interpretations – and maybe even convinced you to believe that their covers were the original version!

1. "Doin’ Time" by Lana Del Rey 

Originally performed by: Sublime

For her 6th studio album, Norman F*cking Rockwell!, pop-songstress Lana Del Rey received widespread acclaim for her cover of “Doin’ Time” – a genre-bending bop from Long Beach rock band Sublime.

2. "Don’t Know Why" by Norah Jones

Originally performed by: Jesse Harris

In 2003, Norah Jones won a whopping 8 Grammy Awards for her debut album, Come Away With Me, including Record and Song of the Year for her cover of singer-songwriter Jesse Harris’s  “Don’t Know Why”. 

3. "Fast Car" by Luke Combs

Originally performed by: Tracy Chapman

Country superstar Luke Combs saw unprecedented success with his rendition of Tracy Chapman’s 1988 megahit "Fast Car", featured on his album Gettin’ Old, released earlier this year.

4. "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" by Cyndi Lauper

Originally performed by: Robert Hazard 

Four years after writing and demo-ing a cover of New Wave artist's Robert Hazard's 1979 song "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun", pop star Cyndi Lauper was given a chance to re-record it with her own unique and unusual spin – and the rest is history.

5. "Respect" by Aretha Franklin

Originally performed by: Otis Redding

Two years before Aretha Franklin made music history with her timeless classic "Respect", soul singer Otis Redding wrote and recorded the song for his 3rd studio album, Otis Blue/Otis Redding Sings Soul, thereby giving it a fresh, new feminist twist.

6. "Torn" by Natalie Imbruglia

Originally performed by: Lis Sørensen and Ednaswap

Australian-born soap opera actress-turned-singer Natalie Imbruglia took America by storm with her 1997 debut single “Torn”, a track that had first been recorded in 1993 in Danish by Lis Sørensen and then in 1994 by American rock band Ednaswap.