Tommy James & The Shondells:
I just love that Sixties feeling :) but apart from that, really nice song, an intoxicating rhythm and a bizarre, but good voice. Love it.
Billy Idol:
Nice bass on the rhythm there! Made a great rock dance song on which not only nostalgics can dance on^^ and the spirit of the song stays the same nevertheless. The intro was unnecessary though.
Amazulu:
Utter crap. Well, the idea isn't bad, I admit, at least I didn't give it up from the beginning. But I did later on. Cut off that constantly same bass, there's absolutely no anticipation to the refrain, and it sounds like a song to do gym on, not to dance on, nor does it sound anything near a song sung to a certain Mony.
The Chipmunks & The Chipettes:
The voice butchered the song. He calls himself a chipmunk but doesn't even reach a clear cut tone when going up. And it also lacks a certain motivation, it sounds like "Let's do it..." instead of "Let's do it!"
Weird Al Yankovic:
Actually I prefer this to the chips and Amazulu, it's again more of a stirring dance song than a gym or pop song. And who cares about the actual lyrics in that case..^^
Status Quo:
They really merit their name. I could repeat what I said about their last cover almost word to word. Good music, always nice to hear, not more, not less. Some more motivation perhaps for the singer?
My final ranking:
1. Tommy James & The Shondells
2. Billy Idol
3. Weird Al Yankovic
4. Status Quo
5. The Chipmunks & The Chipettes
6. Amazulu
The original wins because it just sounds right, and the singer is probably the most talented of all of the lot. Also it builds anticipation up like none other. Billy gets an honorable mention for making it close second and probably having contributed a major part in spreading the song. Thanks DayCee for making me discover the song!
