‘Mony Mony’, by Billy Idol
Two different cover versions today, starting with a remake that made #1 in the States but only got to #7 in the UK. Similarly, the original ‘Mony Mony’ had been Tommy James & the Shondells’ only British hit, despite the band racking several more in the USA. Billy Idol first recorded ‘Mony Mony’ for his debut solo EP after leaving Generation X, in 1981. It didn’t chart, and is a bit more poppy than the live version, recorded in 1985 but not released until two years later. That is much more indebted to hair metal acts like Bon Jovi and Motley Crue, who were ubiquitous at the time. It’s fun, but then I have a soft spot for the days when rock stars looked more poodle than human, and probably kickstarted gobal warming with the amount of hairspray they released on the world. Interestingly, Idol’s cover of ‘Mony Mony’ was replaced at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 by Tiffany’s ‘I Think We’re Alone Now’, which was originally recorded by… Tommy James & The Shondells.
Here’s the ‘original’, studio version…
‘You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)’, by Sweet
I love Dead or Alive’s ‘You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)’, so much so that I named it as one of my twenty-six ‘Best’ chart-toppers. One of the reasons I like it is that the synths are so clanking and tinny, and the pace so relentless, that it could easily work as a hard rock song. Enter glam legends the Sweet, who recorded it for a 2012 album of cover versions. Sweet weren’t the first rock act to take the song on, as this nu-metal version by Dope attests (think Limp Bizkit on poppers), but I’m featuring them as they were cruelly deprived of chart-toppers back in the ’70s (five #2s alongside their only #1, ‘Block Buster!’)
What I want to hear now is a whole album of SAW covers by rock and metal acts… Black Sabbath doing Kylie, Mel & Kim’s ‘Respectable’ reimagined by Pearl Jam… It would be a best-seller, surely.
Another two covers tomorrow!
The UK Number Ones Blog 
I remember enjoying the original ‘Mony Mony’ by Tommy James & The Shondells at the time (as a tender 13-y o), and it was fun at the time, but I’ve never have regarded it as one of those great pop classics worthy of so many cover versions. Still, Billy did it better than those rather tepid versions by Amazulu and Status Quo (Francis & Co we love you, but all those poxy covers albums you did, really…) But Andy Scott’s Sweet really did themselves proud on ‘You Spin Me Round’. It was good of someone to tell you about that one 🙂
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Oh sorry! It was so long ago that it had completely slipped my mind where and when I found out about that Sweet cover! Consider this full recognition of your services in bringing it to my attention! (I’m posting another cover version tomorrow that a different commentor brought to my attention… and again I’ve forgotten who…)
No problem Stuart!
I’ve always liked Billy Idol’s rendition of “Mony Mony” and agree the live version is better. While with Steve Stevens he had a killer guitarist, the video of the live version is so over the top that it borders on being ridiculous. I had no idea that Sweet covered Dead or Alive’s “You Spin Me Round (Like a Record).” If I would have to pick between their rendition and the original, I think I’d go with Sweet.
That video is so of its time, it feels like it could be a parody. In fact, whenever I see an eighties glam metal video, I do wonder how people took it seriously at the time… (though, like I said, the genre is a guilty pleasure of mine…)
Billy Idol was alright… I never hated him or anything and he had some good rock hits. STILL can’t get over Crimson and Clover in the UK!
I do like You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)…heard it on The Wedding Singer and liked it.
I think ‘You Spin Me Round’ works really well as a hard rock song. Always a sign of a good song, when it can work in different genres. I actually quite like the nu-metal version I linked to as well.
It did work on that Sweet version….I had no clue they covered that.
It does work in that…funny….it sounded like ZZ Top a little bit lol…with a gruffer voice.
Sweet are the original artists of You Spin Me Right Round. Dead or Alive is the one who did a cover version
I’m not sure about that… All sources say it was written by Pete Burns and produced by SAW