Original vs Cover: Nine Inch Nails & Johnny Cash

S1E4: Welcome back to The Compareoke Lounge! In this episode, T & G dive deep into a powerful and emotional showdown between the original and cover versions of a classic song: Nine Inch Nails' "Hurt" and Johnny Cash's iconic rendition.
Join us as we react, review, and compare the hauntingly raw original by Trent Reznor with the deeply poignant cover by the Man in Black himself, Johnny Cash. We'll explore the distinct styles, the emotional impact, and the artistic choices that make each version unique.
Which version resonates more with you? Is it the industrial edge of Nine Inch Nails or the soulful melancholy of Johnny Cash? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!
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[@WaveGazer]

You probably should've listened to the album version of the NIN version. That was a live performance of the song.

[@TheCompareokeLounge]

Yes. Starting to think exactly that about a lot of these songs covered.

[@jimschlatman215]

It's tough because both versions are amazing! Johnny Cash definitely made it his own and performed a perfect cover, but I would still personally choose the original. I first heard Hurt when it was released back in 1994 and for many years there was only the NIN version so every time I think of this song I always think of the original. However if I heard Johnny Cash cover first and got familiar with that version first maybe it would be different, but I didn't so it's NIN for me

[@TheCompareokeLounge]

I know just what you mean because both versions are great! I think we all tend to favor the familiar in general.

[@GlenW69]

Nice song version comparison🤙. I too prefer Johnny Cash's cover over the NIN original, mainly cause I like his deeper voice I guess haha. The original is good too though. When I think of NIN, I mainly think of "I wanna f*ck you like an animal.. I wanna feel you from the inside..", lol. I think the song's deeper meanings; "the needle tears a hole", simply drug use/addiction: "my empire of dirt" (his property, real estate, all his possessions), aquired by seeking fame and fortune, "you can have it all" (after he's dead): "it all goes away, in the end", "I will make you hurt", his pursuit of worldliness probably above family IMO: none of those things matter nearly as much as the life lived itself and the importance of family, at least my basic interpretation anyway. Cash's version, his video, to me captures the essence of these meanings seemingly better than the original NIN song, perhaps not the drug use idk, but still applicable as you get older, doctors hospitals and needles never far away lol😂. I do think Trent Reznor, NIN singer, he probably wrote most of their songs, but idk don't care haha. The original song does do a great job conveying the message, but when Cash covered it I think he amplified it, brought the song more limelight than I think it had before that etc.

[@TheCompareokeLounge]

I think that you have explained the nuances of the differences in the versions really well. I didn't do any research beforehand but I subsequently learned that Johnny Cash did deal with addiction and other behaviors that caused him to get dropped from his label of 27 years at the time and this song was part of a resurgence that was brought to him by music producer Rick Rubin. It turns out even though Reznor was fairly young and Cash was in his golden years that they were both able to relate on polar perspectives about the same reflective feelings.

[@TheCompareokeLounge]

Can you think of any songs we can compare here?