Once there was a song that I liked, but had no strong feelings about. Once there was also a group that was never really my cup of tea, but that I considered mostly harmless.

Then the song and the group came together, and it became my most hated cover version of all time.

I type of course of 10,000 Maniacs' "unplugged" butchery of "Because the Night," originally performed by Patti Smith and written by Smith and Bruce Springsteen. Natalie Merchant drains any soul, any passion from the song like a vegan-coffeehouse succubus. Come to think of it, her/their cover of "Peace Train" is pretty damn annoying too..."eee-ahh--ee-ah-oo-ah" was never meant to be a lead vocal, unless your boss is Dave Seville. In all seriousness I'd rather listen to Britney Spears covering "Satisfaction." I'd rather listen to Michael Bolton take on Percy Sledge. Brit & Mike know their fans don't know any better.

It's likely that my bile for the cover overinflates the original. To be fair, Patti also has some blood on her hands for her "Hey Joe" cover, esp. the spoken-word nonsense about Patty Hearst. And Natalie Merchant took steps toward redemption with her lovely work on the Mermaid Avenue albums. Finally, I'll cop to liking the 10,000 Maniacs cover of "More Than This," when Mary Ramsey took over vocals, though I only ever hear it in the Christmas Tree Shop when visiting the inlaws.

Anyway, here.