Which one is your favorite? - LII -

This will be the second song I chose from Depeche Mode for the covers post. Released in 1989, the song reached No. 13 on the UK Singles Chart and No. 28 on the Billboard Hot 100. In 2004, it was ranked No. 368 in Rolling Stone's list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time".

Here is the song for this week;

"Personal Jesus"

It was inspired by Priscilla Presley's book Elvis And Me, where she described their relationship. Martin Gore of Depeche Mode said: "It's a song about being a Jesus for somebody else, someone to give you hope and care. It's about how Elvis was her man and her mentor and how often that happens in love relationships - how everybody's heart is like a god in some way, and that's not a very balanced view of someone, is it?"

The video was the first by Depeche Mode to get significant airplay on MTV. Directed by Anton Corbijn, it has an Old West theme, with Dave Gahan and Martin Gore as cowboys. During the heavy breathing section of the song (around 2:20), there are some tight silhouette shots of Gore huffing, and then a shot of a horse's hindquarters. "I don't know if Anton was consciously trying to be perverted, I think it was more coincidental that it happened at that point," Gore told Uncut. "These video people see things very strangely." It was a little too much for MTV, so Corbijn made an edit eliminating some of the silhouette breathing, and that was the version the network aired.

Prior to its release, advertisements were placed in the personal columns of regional newspapers in the UK with the words "Your own personal Jesus." Later, the ads included a phone number one could dial to hear the song. The ensuing controversy helped propel the single to No. 13 on the UK charts, becoming one of Depeche Mode's biggest sellers. The single was particularly successful commercially thanks to the fact that it was released six months prior to the album it would later appear on. Up to that point, it was the best selling 12" single in Warner Bros. history...

Johnny Cash did a stripped-down version (that you will hear below) on his 2002 album American IV, The Man Comes Around. Martin Gore revealed to The London Times that the band was unaware that Cash had covered this song. When they heard about the country legend's recording, the threesome was naturally thrilled. Said Gore: "I think when you're somebody of Johnny Cash's caliber, you don't ask for permission."

Here are the 6 versions I picked for you;

• Johnny Cash - "Personal Jesus"

• Richard Cheese - "Personal Jesus"

• Def Leppard - "Personal Jesus"

• Nina Hagen - "Personal Jesus"

• Marilyn Manson - "Personal Jesus"

• KO KO MO - "Personal Jesus"

Now the floor is yours, go ahead and make your comments (here, Instagram, Facebook wherever you feel like...).

nb. Please note that I intentionally do not include the original versions of the songs as it would be a little unfair to the artists covering the songs, and I am sure that sometimes you will be surprised to see that the songs you thought were the originals are just covers.