Under the Bridge: Red Hot Chili Peppers vs. Gym Class Heroes

When a band plays a song written by another band, it is common that the cover will not sound like the original. This may occur because the band my try to change the song and “make it their own”, meaning that they will change it to fit their style of music. These changes in the song can even therefore changing the message and feeling of the song. An example of this can be seen through the comparison of the song “Under the Bridge” by the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and the cover version by Gym Class Heroes.
The song “Under the Bridge” has a very different tone when compared to that of other songs by Red Hot Chili Peppers as it is a slow song and seems to be very emotional and sad. It is written by the lead singer about a time in his own life. It is obvious that this song is about a time when he was feeling lonely. He is feeling very sad and remembering all the mistakes he has made, and how it felt when he was alone and no one was there to comfort him. He says that he tried to find comfort in the city he lived in, but yet he was still alone (“It’s hard to believe that there’s nobody out there its hard to believe that I’m all alone”). It also seems like he is looking for an escape, trying to run away from who he is and change (“I don’t ever want to feel, like I did that day, take me to the place I love, take me all the way”). Listening to the song gives me a feeling of sadness, because of the struggles that he went through. It seems to me as though he realized his mistakes too late and therefore lost out on a lot of things.
The cover of the song by Gym Class Heroes differs from the original in the tone of the song. I think that the way the band has changed the song has given it more of a happier feel. The drums, bass and guitar are more sped up from the original song and the singer in the song sings and raps. In my opinion, the song sounds as if it has a similar meaning to the original, about loneliness. However, when I listen to this song, I get a feeling of happiness because while the lyrics are dark and sad, they are sung in a happy and upbeat tone; to me, it seems as though the person is happy and is only remembering his lonely past. He regrets the mistakes he made but has now overcome them, and is fearful of going back to the way his life was (“I don’t ever want to feel, like I did that day”). He has broken free of his old ways, so that he can live his life. He desires to be happy and is relieved that that part of his life is over. The band adds lyrics at the rapping part of the song saying “from the four track tapes to over 10 million sold”, this shows that the person has changed, in that they have become successful. At the end of the song, more lyrics are added when the phrase “the bridge is over” is repeated, I think that the bridge is a symbol of the old life of the person, and that it is now over.