The Definitive List of Miley Cyrus’ Best Covers, From ‘Zombie’ To ‘Don’t Dream It’s Over’
No one pulls off a cover like Miley Cyrus.
As anyone who caught Biffy Clyro’s horrific version of ‘WAP‘ a little while back knows all too well, delivering a good cover is not as easy as it sounds.
If you play it safe and stick too close to the original, it’ll be forgotten as soon as you let the mic drop. On the other hand, if you mess around too much with the magic, you risk infuriating your chosen artist’s fan base — as well as your own. There’s a balance to be struck, and it’s more difficult to strike than most realise.
Miley Cyrus has never had difficulty finding that middleground. Over the course of her career she’s performed dozens of excellent covers — often as part of her fundraising Backyard Sessions — tackling everything from revered folk songs to bruising rock cuts to tracks written by her contemporary pop peers. In the last few weeks alone she’s slipped back into the news thanks to sharp renditions of Blondie’s ‘Heart Of Glass’, Britney Spears’ ‘Gimme More’ and The Cranberries’ beloved ‘Zombie’.
We’ve taken a look back over Cyrus’ cover history and pulled out some of the best. Dive in and enjoy.
The Cranberries — ‘Zombie’
Unlike CXLOE on Like A Version last week, who transformed ‘Zombie’ into an eerie synth soundscape, Cyrus imbues the already heavy rock track — written about the 1993 IRA bombing in Warrington — with even more anger and pathos.
This is a song of sadness and fury, and Cyrus brings everything she’s got — the throat tearing yells she lets loose at the end will raise hairs on your neck.
Britney Spears — ‘Gimme More’
In which Cyrus answers the eternal question, “What would a Britney Spears song sound like with a lap steel guitar?”
The answer is, simply, fantastic.
Crowded House — ‘Don’t Dream It’s Over’
You’d expect Ariana Grande to run rings around Cyrus’ vocals in this cover, but in the end it was the other way around. Cyrus’ elastic, husky notes fit exquisitely into Crowded House’s beloved track.
Added points for the ad hoc banter from Cyrus that nearly derails the track in the middle, delivered as if she was the disgruntled resident jazz singer in a dimly lit New York basement bar.
Melanie — ‘Peace Will Come (According To Plan)’
No one has ever been as happy as Miley Cyrus in this video — she beams from ear to ear as she sings alongside one of her heroes, the renowned ’60s folk songwriter Melanie. Melanie looks equally as stoked, and their eyes barely leave each other as they sway through ‘Peace Will Come (According To Plan)’.
Cyrus’ vocals sound completely timeless, her vocal stylings sound just as home in the folk of the ’60s as they do in modern pop.
Melanie — ‘Look What They’ve Done To My Song Ma’
Another cut from the same Backyard Sessions, Miley and Melanie’s smiling ‘Look What They’ve Done To My Song Ma’ is a warm blanket on a frosty morning, as close as we’ll ever come to bottling pure joy.
Bonus points for the French verse that Melanie pulls out in the middle, much to Cyrus’ delight.
Billie Eilish — ‘my future’
Cyrus shoots a rocket up Eilish’s lilting new single ‘my future’, making the 2020 pop song sound like an 1950s jazz standard. Her vocals also inch inexorably closer to the untouchable Amy Winehouse.
‘Lilac Wine’
The angular, twisting ‘Lilac Wine’ — written by James Shelton in 1950 and recorded by artists like Eartha Kitt, Nina Simone, Jeff Buckley, and dozens more — is a difficult number to nail. Cyrus makes it sound as easy as water pouring over smooth stones.
Roberta Flack — ‘The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face’
There’s no tricks or outlandish performance art here — merely a perfect, respectful, loving cover of one of the best songs ever written.
Blondie — ‘Heart Of Glass’
Cyrus’ recent cover of Blondie’s best known song at the iHeartRadio festival nearly cracked the internet. TikTok was flooded with reaction videos, and by popular demand the cover was quickly added to streaming services.
It’s a faithful cover, but where Debbie Harry croons…Miley Cyrus roars.