Tune du Jour: “Redemption Song” – Bob Marley and The Wailers
THE CLASH of Cover Tunes: Eddie Vedder and Beyonce vs. Johnny Cash and Joe Strummer vs. Sinead O’Connor vs. Playing for Change feat. Mersman Kenkosenki and Stephen Marley
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What could you say? Such a phenomenal song! Among my two or three favorites of Bob Marley. Ah, screw it, it is my favorite Bob Marley song!!!
The Original
Bob Marley and The Wailers:
THE CLASH of Cover Tunes
Eddie Vedder and Beyonce vs. Johnny Cash and Joe Strummer vs. Sinead O’Connor vs. Playing for Change feat. Mersman Kenkosenki and Stephen Marley
Yeah, good luck voting on which is best!
And when you have a spare hour or two, also check out the fantastic versions by The Specials, The Selector, Stevie Wonder, The Chieftains and Ziggy Marley, Jackson Browne, and Bob Geldof and Steven Van Zandt, as well as about 50 other great renditions. Hell, even Yannick Noah acquits himself pretty well on this masterpiece!
Eddie Vedder and Beyonce:
Johnny Cash and Joe Strummer:
Sinead O’Connor:
Playing for Change feat. Mersman Kenkosenki and Stephen Marley:
SPACE
Oh the disharmony! Much like Harlan County there are no neutrals here. It is your solemn responsibility to decide which cover song prevails. In other words … Which Side Are You On!??!
Disclaimer: Votes cast from Florida may or may not be counted.
cover me impressed 
The video for Bob’s version is so enchanting, trippy and dreamlike … it made me wishing I had been dosed-up on special K before taking it in …
Well, if the “Wild Horses” post was the best of 2025, this”Redemption Song” post will be very hard to top in 2026.
I actually teared up watching these videos. The tears started with the clip of Nelson Mandela; such a strong, eloquent and passionate man speaking so forcibly on the injustices of the world … juxtapose the beauty of Mandela with the daily, hourly and minute-by-minute, sheer, mad and demented inhumane bellicosity of donald trump and what self-respecting individual wouldn’t shed tears?
For some reason Pearl Jam never struck a chord for me (and I am still a bit perturbed with the sheer mediocrity of their collaboration with Neil … note to Neil … stick with Crazy Horse!) but I have quickly grown to love Eddie Vedder’s solo work. His collaboration with Beyonce is beyond beautiful and as I listened to it I very nearly jumped down immediately to cast my vote in their favor.
Johnny and Joe … what could you say? These guys were meant to collaborate on this song. Just beautiful coordination and interplay with such obvious mutual respect for one another and their spiritual subject matter.
Wow, Sinead … with hair … never realized what a beautiful woman she was! Her passion and the fine backup help delivered a fantastic interpretation! Funny that, apparently, they were originally going to play something different. I guess the other song got Wally Pipp-ed on this one!
It is simply amazing how consistently brilliant the Playing for Change productions are. I have watched so many of them by now and have yet to not enjoy a jaw-dropping, first-rate performance. And it must have been such a rush for Stephen Marley to be participating on his Dad’s seminal work!
Ridiculous to have to choose one among these four tour de force efforts. Spun the bottle and it pointed to Sinead, with her forceful ending to the song sealing victory by a hair (yeah, again, love that hair …)!
Had to go with Cash and Strummer today. Playing For Change is always great, and this is probably the first time I didn’t vote for them.
I bought this album when it came out and played it to death. If push came to shove, I’d probably say it’s my favorite Marley album. And this song—well, there are certain songs that become generational touchstones: The Times They Are A-Changin’, For What It’s Worth, Ohio, What’s Going On, Imagine… and I put Redemption Song squarely on that list (just behind Having My Baby by Paul Anka).
This was a tough call. I love Pearl Jam, and Eddie Vedder’s voice is always a big yes. I’ve spent approximately zero time thinking about Beyoncé over the years, so that pairing surprised me, but credit where it’s due, they sounded fantastic together.
The Johnny Cash/Joe Strummer version I’d heard before, and it still makes me absurdly happy that those two ever crossed paths at all. Strummer is not exactly a sit-down-with-an-acoustic-guitar kind of singer, but what he lacks in polish he more than makes up for in sincerity. It’s raw, honest, and very moving.
Playing for Change basically couldn’t do a shitty version of anything, even if they deliberately tried. I knew going in that their version would be strong, and with the added bonus of Stephen Marley himself, it instantly became the one to beat. Mesmerizing version, video, performance.
But in the end… I went with Sinéad. I always liked her. I always rooted for her, even (especially?) during her more chaotic, nutty years. This version is devastating. Spontaneous, vulnerable, and completely committed. Ask me again on a different day and I might choose differently, but today, Sinéad takes it.
One of the most brilliant and beautiful songs ever. Eddie Vedder & Beyonce? Surreal. That looked like A Star Is Born. I thought they might fit like a three legged sack race but I was wrong. What Eddie lacks in enunciation he adds in emotional impact. Sinead had such a light touch on this one. Very subdued. Love her phrasing, tone and delivery. Playing For Change did another masterful job. Stephen Marley’s singing was very impressive but Bob himself was involved so that removed them from qualifying and it doesn’t really matter because Cash & Strummer are unbeatable to me. Cash is the craggy, grizzled Oracle Of Truth spouting the reasons of the universe. I am reminded of a line regarding Strummer that said his was a voice calling out for justice although he expects none. The sparse musical arrangement feeds into the pureness. Unbeatable.