Covers Revue, Vol. 34 – Marilyn Manson covers "Sweet Dreams" :: Originally by Eurythmics

One of the biggest names in the musical 80’s is the Eurythmics. Annie Lennox and David Stewart (previously of The Tourists) produced some of the biggest hits of the decade, including “Here Comes the Rain Again” and “Would I Lie To You?” but no hit was bigger than “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This).”

This massive Eurythmics track put the duo on the map in 1983, and knocked off The Police, who held the No. 1 spot for eight consecutive weeks with their hit “Every Breath You Take.”

Though “Sweet Dreams” didn’t have staying power on the charts (lasting at No. 1 for only a week), the song is forever singed into our heads! The monstrous bass drums and short-and-sweet, deep synths that dance up and down. Lennox’s voice is far from feminine but the deepness in her voice went with her androgynous style and made her the bad ass that she is!

“Sweet dreams are made of this/Who am I to disagree?/I travel the world and the seven seas/Everybody’s lookin’ for somethin’/Some of them want to use you/Some of them want to get used by you/Some of them want to abuse you/Some of them want to be abused.” These words automatically make you think of those heavy synths and Lennox’s oooooo’s and aaaaah’s.

The Eurythmics were made with this song and brought attention to the great Annie Lennox. It no doubt helped in her very successful solo career as well.

Now when the name Marilyn Manson comes to mind, a lot of people think “freak” … Is that a safe assumption? I think so. That’s what I think anyway. At any rate, I actually like a couple of his songs, including his covers. His twisted twist on “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)” is truly creepy and freaky…And true to Marilyn Manson form.

Manson’s version is a lot harder and slower and features more guitars than electronics. The track starts out with the instantly recognizable melody played on a slightly distorted electric guitar as opposed to the deep synths and Manson’s voice is more drawn out. He goes from a normal tone to whispering to yelling to screaming in a matter of seconds!

Though Manson is seen as a freak and bad influence in our society, I actually kind of like some of his stuff (although I do try to stay away from his music videos). I think he does a very good job at putting his stamp on this classic 80’s tune, but the Eurythmics had it down from the beginning!