(Not to disparage Johnny Rivers at all.)
Not to disparage the Four Tops or Johnny Rivers at allâŚ
This is a new one to me. I donât quite know what to say.
We could start a new thread just for covers of this song.
âŚand it would be a long thread. Here are a couple from Marvin Gaye with different partners:
I think even the B-52s quoted that song in one of theirs.
Yes, that is a serpentine.
I donât know who this is, but he has a great backing band.
On a Saints kick:
Even when I was 10 years old and knew nothing, I could tell this version was superior to Juice Newtonâs.
I honestly (and somewhat deliciously) have no idea what to make of this video.
Itâs somehow both viscerally familiar and totally out of context for me. I feel certain thereâs a joke in there somewhere, but I canât tell if itâs aimed at a Japanese or American audience, or even whether itâs intentional or incidental. And thatâs before Iâve even considered the âApril Foolsâ aspect of this post.
In other words, I enjoyed it, but I canât tell if theyâre Weird Al, or Metallica. Or Weird Al covering Metallica.
Well played. 
The experience kind of reminds me of stumbling across this band named Thunderpussy. At first, the name made me think it was a gimmick, but I listened to their SoundCloud and my (audio-only) impression was that these chicks might rock. And I mean, legitimately rock!
Then, looking for more of their music, I found this video, and now Iâm not entirely sure Iâm not being punked. Itâs a fun video and song, but I have this nagging feeling that Iâm missing some sort of subtext.
I still like the song, though. 
\m/\m/
Well, the band is actually Band-Maid. Maiko is an apprentice geisha - they manifest as Band-Maiko on April 1st. The context appears to be very Japanese - I think the song has in-jokes to Osaka. There are continuing in-jokes from the last April Fools video: Akane (the drummer) is busy slurping noodles while the rest go through a tea ceremony. (Akane supposedly eats like a horse, and I suspect that might not be all a joke.)
Hereâs last yearâs:
Last yearâs song is based on this (Gion-cho appears to be an original song for this year):
Maybe the best way of putting it is Metallica covering Metallica as Weird Al.
I wasnât aware of the Juice Newton version, but I checked it out, as well as the Pretenders, Dusty Springfield, Skeeter Davis, and Nina Simone covers, to make it a fair survey. No need to post any of those â youâre right. Merilee Rushâs version is definitive, and not just because itâs the one I heard first.
Come on along and join usâŚ
Age 16-17:
Age 14-15:
Age 26-27:
Gaaahhh! I wish I had been that good when I was that young!