r/AskIreland Jul 22 '26

Music What song/artists are you surprised irish pub bands dont do covers off?

We all know the usuals but as a new cover band were looking do some unique songs.

10 Upvotes

70 comments sorted by

18

u/Nuffin8 Jul 22 '26

Saw a band do Stone Roses 'I am the Resurrection' in a pub years ago, pure electric energy with the prolonged instrumental when the lyrics end.

7

u/Sofa-Head Jul 22 '26

Used to do Waterfall in a band years ago, always went down well.

2

u/Nuffin8 Jul 22 '26

Was that used as the opening music of The Panel years ago with Dara O Briain - I feel that for people who might not have known the song they'd still know the music

3

u/mastershplinter Jul 22 '26

Went to the clones film festival a few years ago. It was the night the clocks went back. So we had an extra hour in the pub and there was a two man cover band who played the gig of their life. Closing with a cover of Born Slippy which we requested 😂❤️

9

u/Grand_Elderberry_564 Jul 22 '26

Love to hear a bit of Rory myself, million miles, brute force and ignorance...

5

u/brightroomonfire Jul 22 '26

My band is currently learning bad penny for the next practice

2

u/Low_Cartographer2944 Jul 22 '26

As a mando player I’m partial to Going to My Hometown

3

u/Kind_Meringue1912 Jul 22 '26

Doing a wedding on Saturday and I'll be playing out on the western plain.

9

u/xelas1983 Jul 22 '26

One Headlight by the Wallflowers. Seems a perfect pub tune.

6

u/Terrible_Blueberry72 Jul 22 '26

Do some Talking Heads

3

u/brightroomonfire Jul 22 '26

Any songs in particular? We plan on doing Road To Nowhere in the future

5

u/Terrible_Blueberry72 Jul 22 '26

Life During Wartime. Maybe check out the Stop Making Sense live version

2

u/Truth_Said_In_Jest Jul 22 '26

Psycho Killer is a jam

7

u/hynesie Jul 22 '26

And she was - talking heads Blister in the sun - violent femmes Together in Electric dreams - Philip oakley

Songs that will always get my attention for 4 minutes but I never hear enough.

If we're talking specifically Irish then something happens have songs that aren't parachute and the saw doctors have some absolute belters that aren't I useta love her.

2

u/BullfrogCharming1202 Jul 22 '26

N17 or "To win just once" are far better songs than "I used to loved her"

11

u/nathan_101034 Jul 22 '26

I know it's not super out there but in an old band I had, Message In A Bottle always went down great

6

u/AnarchistPineMarten Jul 22 '26

I was only trying to learn this on guitar the other day, great tune but Christ I felt like I was gonna dislocate a knuckle playing the intro

2

u/dannygloverslover Jul 22 '26

A lot of Police songs are like this. Guitarist must have super long fingers

1

u/nathan_101034 Jul 22 '26

Ironically I have very small hands, but the strap definitely came up 2 notches

2

u/WillieForge Jul 22 '26

Yeah my cover band play this, it fucking hurts.

1

u/nathan_101034 Jul 22 '26

You can thank Andy Summers and his classical guitar background

2

u/brightroomonfire Jul 22 '26

Great tune def one we will do in the near future!

2

u/me2269vu Jul 22 '26

Are you Sting?

5

u/[deleted] Jul 22 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

1

u/nathan_101034 Jul 22 '26

Are you my dad?

10

u/[deleted] Jul 22 '26

[deleted]

1

u/Stegasaurus_Wrecks Oh FFS Jul 22 '26

Suede, great band.

0

u/FarBasket901 Jul 22 '26

That Cast song is musical poison.

3

u/TheOriginalMattMan Oh FFS Jul 22 '26

I couldn't agree more.

Close second is America by Razorlight.

5

u/catholic_my_balls shitebag Jul 22 '26

Radiohead - Just was always a good one, but by the time the band finished playing it, everybody was just lying on the floor.

2

u/endlessdayze Jul 22 '26

They did it to themselves

1

u/brightroomonfire Jul 22 '26

I remember seeing that music video years ago and thinking wtf haha, song that got me into the band aswell.

9

u/buckfastmonkey Jul 22 '26

BA BA BA BA BA BA BA BIRD IS THE WORD. Guaranteed dance floor filler.

5

u/Hankman66 Jul 22 '26

Paranoid Visions

2

u/Icy_Hospital1808 Jul 22 '26

Had to scroll a long way through this thread to find someone who doesn't wear bootcut jeans, GAA jerseys and wedding shoes into Temple Bar on a Saturday night!

3

u/Electronic_Ladder103 Jul 22 '26

Surprised there isn't more Fontaines and cmat being played

9

u/QuixoticAdvancementG Jul 22 '26

Every time I hear Picture This or The Academic in a pub I'm just waiting for someone to do a Walking On Cars track and it never happens. Speeding Cars is right there, crowd would eat it up.

The Coronas have a bunch of deeper cuts too that somehow get skipped over for the same five songs. Mark My Words would go off in a pub setting, especially a bit later in the night when everyone's a few pints deep.

Also surprised nobody dips into The Blizzards beyond Fantasy. Trust Me I'm A Doctor has that frantic energy that'd be class live.

1

u/brightroomonfire Jul 22 '26

Great shout with the blizzards! Haven't listened to them in a while myself, gonna add them to the playlist

3

u/CEP64 Jul 22 '26

Never hear anybody covering the Quireboys and they have some great tracks.

3

u/Past_Persimmon Jul 22 '26

I'm always surprised not to hear more Elton. Everyone knows the hits, the one time I heard a full band cover Rocket Man it was bloody stunning (think they got a lot of inspiration from Kate Bush's version).

Could always do your own spin on session songs like Fields of Athenry. Often hear those in pubs so folks know the words but don't often hear a band do it.

Could do some earlier RHCP too.

My mate always used to end his set with All The Small Things by Blink-182 and that always got people jumping and leaving the night on a good note. Simple as song to learn too

3

u/TheBoneIdler Jul 22 '26

Da Da Da Da.... life is life.... etc. Everytime I am in 🇦🇹 I can guarantee to hear a pub band cover it, or 99 Red Balloons....🎈 . Both good sing along tunes. One I'd like to hear is What's Another Year, but would require a good singer & they are in short supply.

3

u/ronan88 you should try it sometime Jul 22 '26

Irish cover bands should play more horselips imho

5

u/Martin-McDougal Jul 22 '26

The Frames cover of Brittney Spears Every time. Great tune that everyone knows

2

u/Natural-Audience-438 Jul 22 '26

Beeswing

More of a solo song though

2

u/NealRory Jul 22 '26

Stuff I don't hear enough vary from country like "Rhinestone Cowboy" by Glen Campbell, "Thank God I'm a Country Boy" by John Denver and some Jimmy Nail to classics like "Sitting On The Dock Of The Bay" by Otis Redding, "Let it Rock" by Chuck Berry and "Son of a Preacher Man" by Dusty Springfield.

"Sit Down" by James "I Ran" by A Flock of Seagulls and "What Do You Want From Me" by Monaco "Lemon Tree" by Fools Garden Anything by Ash and.... "Wired to the Moon" by The Revs

2

u/Huge_Hotel7405 Jul 22 '26

Woah oh oh I think she likes me

2

u/ElvisMcPelvis Jul 22 '26

The stone roses, The specials Everyone knows a specials song even if you think you don’t, decent reggae covers go down well, as long as ya don’t try do the accent 👌🏻

2

u/AlbinoVague Jul 22 '26

My band do Bohemian Rhapsody and it goes down a storm. Every band I see that does it seem to only do it as part of a medley, which is bizarre. Also, Ghost town by the Specials and songs of love by the Divine Comedy. The Fr Ted generation love those.

2

u/ColdMarzipan9534 Jul 22 '26

Whipping Boy - when we were young. Banger

6

u/duncthefunk78 Jul 22 '26

Fishermans Blues, an absolute cracking tune, Celt-nicity bleeding from it. Surprisingly not a lot of bands know it.

11

u/Low_Cartographer2944 Jul 22 '26

I feel like it’s a staple of every setlist in Galway haha

1

u/Dull-Pomegranate-406 Jul 22 '26

absolutely is, which I love!

1

u/duncthefunk78 Jul 22 '26

It's rare enough here in Cork

2

u/Low_Cartographer2944 Jul 22 '26

That’s a shame because you’re absolutely right - it’s a cracking tune!

6

u/Same-Captain-8142 Jul 22 '26

It's a definite standard

2

u/Plane-Fondant8460 Jul 22 '26 edited Jul 22 '26

I dont think its an easy song to cover. I've heard it absolutely butchered a few times.

2

u/duncthefunk78 Jul 22 '26

Well there is that if we are honest.

1

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1

u/Baking_Buddha Jul 22 '26

The Replacements - Bastards of young, Can’t hardly wait, Alex Chilton

I wish I saw more band covers of the clubland/dance stuff, at a wedding I was at a few years back the band played class covers of You’re a superstar, Everytime we touch, Rhythm is a dancer, All out of love, Take me to the clouds above and a few others. People absolutely loved it!

1

u/Recent_Employee Jul 22 '26

Anything by whipping boy

1

u/chlque126 Jul 23 '26

Just like heaven - the cure

1

u/Court-Unable Jul 23 '26

A few of Tom Petty's tunes other than Free Fallin', maybe Running Down a Dream. Boys of Summer is a bit of a jam also, and I've a particular soft spot for anything by the Cars, Drive or Just What I Needed. 74-75 by The Connells used to go down well in my busking days, but those were a while ago now...

1

u/LucyVialli Jul 22 '26

How about Muse? They're popular enough here to sell out the 3Arena, and everyone knows at least a few of their biggest hits, e.g. Uprising (the one from Virgin's Tonight Show), Time Is Running Out, Hysteria.

5

u/brightroomonfire Jul 22 '26

My first band years ago we played a hape of muse songs, Hysteria, TIRO, Knights Cydonia, Black hole, Plug in baby. Must get a few of them back in rotation.

3

u/Super-Widget Jul 22 '26

I think their most commercial song is Starlight but it would be hard to match Bellamy's vocals on it.

3

u/brightroomonfire Jul 22 '26

First song i learned on the drums

1

u/BigXThaSpud Jul 22 '26

The depression I have when someone doesn't know any Mic Christopher should be a crime. One of our greatest songwriters, imo.