Great Michael Jackson Covers

By Scott Harris Posted Oct 27th 2009 05:15PM

Since the untimely death of pop legend Michael Jackson, fans and artists alike have been searching for the best way to express their grief and one method is returned to again and again: through the music itself. Just yesterday, for instance, we told you about the new 'Thriller' cover by Frou Frou lead singer Imogen Heap. And with the release of the eagerly anticipated concert film 'This Is It', now seems like the perfect time for us to celebrate his legacy by unveiling our list of the greatest Michael Jackson covers of all time. We just ask that you remember one thing while listening to these songs: they're for dancing, not reading, so don't be afraid to get out of your chair. Video Compilation After the Jump!

Last year's 'American Idol' winner, David Cook, became a fan favorite after his performance of 'Billie Jean'. He admitted, however, that he drew his inspiration from this Chris Cornell version of Jackson's classic hit.

One of the highlights of Jackson's memorial concert was Mariah Carey's performance of the Jackson 5 hit 'I'll Be There'. The legendary diva originally recorded the song, however, way back in 1992, when she went all the way to the top of the charts with it.

Jackson's music isn't just for the pop set, though, as Alien Ant Farm proved with their speed metal version of 'Smooth Criminal' back in 2001.

Artists from Boyz II Men to Alicia Keys have covered Jackson's classic 'Human Nature'. It was John Mayer's stripped down version, though, that wowed the crowd at the memorial concert.

For the 25th anniversary of Jackson's breakthrough album 'Thriller', the King of Pop lined up some of today's top artists to work on a new, re-imagined version, which included this version of 'Wanna be Starting Something' by Akon.

This touching version of 'Ben' from British pop phenomenon Boyzone becomes even more poignant after the recent tragic death of band member Stephen Gately at the tender age of 33.

Speaking of boy bands, former teen idol Jesse McCartney continued to show his new maturity when he teamed up with Jordin Sparks for this sexy duet version of 'The Way You Make Me Feel'.

One of the most famous versions of a Jackson tune wasn't a cover at all, but a parody. Jackson showed his sense of humor when he allowed Weird Al Yankovic to make this award winning video for 'Fat', his take-off on 'Bad'.

Fall Out Boy, one of the top rock acts of our day, has been known to show their Jackson love on stage, playing live versions of several of his songs. Our favorite, though, is this amped up version of 'Beat It'.

And as a special bonus, we leave you with this snippet of legendary crooner Celine Dion letting out her inner wild child as she both sings -- and dresses up as -- Michael for an epic rendition of 'Bad'.

Tags: alicia keys, AliciaKeys, David Cook, DavidCook, imogen heap, ImogenHeap, John Mayer, JohnMayer, mariah carey, MariahCarey, michael jackson, MichaelJackson

Comments

(7)

Tuesday 27 October

By eearn1

Vote down Vote up Report this

Emily Ehlbert has one of the best acoustic covers of Thriller on you tube.

By The Teknisyan

where does the david cook's version stand?

Wednesday 28 October

By CYE

Chris Cornell gets kudos for reconceptualizing Billie Jean, but I have to say David Cook sang it AMAZINGLY. Would have loved to see that again, but it seems the video has disappeared from Youtube. Does anyone know what's up with that?

Tuesday 03 November

By Darlene McCrary

The original youtube of David singing "Billie Jean" got taken down after almost 7 million hits. But there are others still there, perhaps not as good a quality. I also would like to know why it was taken down. David is fantastic singing it.

By Laura

Should have linked Cook's version of Billie Jean -- it blows Cornell's version out of the water!!

Saturday 14 November

By Claire

David Cook's Billie Jean performance on American Idol is pretty stunning. It's the main reason Cornell is finally getting recognition for his arrangement.

By Ashlee

I am so glad that Fall Out Boy's version of "Beat It" made the cut. I thought they really did it justice. FOB rocks!

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