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Music may be a universal language, but it's nigh impossible to find a song with lyrics that apply to ''everyone''.
Sex is quite possibly the most common barrier. Many songs, (particularly ones about love or [[Intercourse with You|sex]]), are unambiguously addressed to a woman or a man, or specifically sung from a male or female perspective. While it's not uncommon for musicians to perform songs "in-character" rather than as themselves, some people can't accept an artist singing from the viewpoint of a different gender or sexual orientation than their own. So, when covering a song that was originally sung by (or just written for) a member of the opposite sex, what's a singer to do?
Change the lyrics, of course! Most of the time this will entail no more than switching a couple of pronouns or changing "boy" to "girl" (or vice versa) but in some cases it can require a much more extensive rewrite. Another common way of doing this is giving the song a [[Perspective Flip]] - i.e. "then he kissed me" becomes "then I kissed her."
Sometimes this is done to rescue or recycle a song which might have been discarded by another artist, or otherwise never seriously considered for recording. In less enlightened times, a male artist or artists might sing a "female" song for the dubious humor deriving from implications of homosexuality or other nonstandard gender perceptions. In Japanese works [[Bokukko|female vocalists will frequently use 僕 (ぼく, boku)]] as a first person pronoun despite its masculine stats because at only 2 morae it has a better and more versatile flow than neutral or feminine equivalents like わたし (Watashi) or あたし (atashi) and their three morae.
And sometimes the artist just might not care, because the song either appeals to them as-is, is just ''that good'', or both.
[[Tropes Are Not Bad|This can work well in many cases]], while sometimes it can seem forced and awkward, sometimes becoming more of a distraction than it would've been if the artist had simply used the original lyrics. It can also come across as [[Have I Mentioned I Am Heterosexual Today?]], especially if the original version is particularly well known.
For obvious reasons, the trope is almost always [[Averted Trope|averted]] by openly gay
See also [[The Cover Changes the Meaning]], [[Gender Flip]], and [[Perspective Flip]]. [[Double Standard]] may or may not be involved.
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* [[Tony Bennett]] did this all over his album ''For the Ladies'' which was entirely covers of songs made famous by female singers or written for female singers. This is averted in his live shows, however where he feels the original song is more important than the pronouns. And really trying to make "Black and Blue" about anything other than the colorism black women experience doesn't work.
* [[Frank Sinatra]] performed "The Man That Got Away" as "The Gal That Got Away." (Aside from pronouns and such, the only difference in the lyrics was changing "A one-man woman" to "A lost, lost loser.") However, this was averted in [[Jeff Buckley]] and [[Rufus Wainwright]]'s versions. (Then again, Rufus Wainwright is openly gay, so that's not surprising)
** Sinatra also recorded "The Girl Next Door," an alternate-pronoun version of another song originally done by [[Judy Garland]], "The Boy Next Door" from ''[[Meet Me in St. Louis]]''.
* Used by [[The Beatles]] ("my girl says when I kiss her lips...") in their cover of [[The Shirelles]]' "Boys." It's still full of [[Ho Yay]], though.
** Another Beatles example: the obscure girl group song "Devil in His Heart" was changed to "Devil in Her Heart."
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* In their cover of Queen's "Sleeping on the Sidewalk", [[Los Lobos]] changed the lyric "Now I'm sleepin' like a princess" to "Now I'm sleepin' like a ki-ing". Not only did the change throw off the rhythm, but it changed the meaning of the lyric. The intent is to show that, like the protagonist of the fairy tale "The Princess in the Pea", the singer has become so spoiled that he would notice if there were a pea under his mattress.
* "Mr. Sandman" was originally performed by [[The Chordettes]] with the desired "dream" (a.k.a. love interest) being a "he." In [[The Four Aces]]' version (it is this version which is heard in ''[[Back to The Future]]''), the "dream" is a "she."
** This is also the case on the [[Blind Guardian]] cover. This is made somewhat weirder in the [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDFmNgmaEe0 music video], in which the band's singer is dressed in drag. Of course, according to the video the (not-so-desired) "dream" is apparently a bunch of [[Monster Clown
* An interesting variation: Damien Rice's "The Professor" is originally entirely sung by him, but there is a recording in which Lisa Hannigan sings the second half, changing the pronouns so that she is singing as the woman who the first half is talking about, so that the song is about both perspectives.
* The [[Jonas Brothers]]' cover of "[[The Little Mermaid|Poor Unfortunate Souls]]" removes the singer's gender ("I'm a very busy ''person''/And I haven't got all day.") It also replaces the gendered term "witch" with "kind of strange".
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** [[David Bowie]] covered the same song about a decade later again changing "boy' to "girl" but keeping a verse that the Doors dropped entirely.
* In ''[[Moulin Rouge]]'', "[[Madonna|Like a Virgin]]," sung by [[Large Ham|Zidler to the Duke (who joins in later)]], explaining why Satine wasn't there for an arranged rendezvous.
* "When She Loved Me" was originally sung by Sarah McLachlan for ''[[Toy Story (franchise)|Toy Story]] 2'' from the point of view of the doll Jessie, which [[It Makes Sense in Context|makes perfect sense in context]]. Michael Crawford and a few other male singers have [[Covered Up|covered]] it, which makes a whole lot more sense if you think of it as a song about [[Love Hurts|lost romantic love]]. The funny thing is, there's still [[Les Yay|female singers]] covering it, like Jordan Pruitt on ''Disneymania 5''.
* [[Bruce Springsteen]] wrote "Because The Night" from a male perspective, but couldn't make it fit with the rest of ''Darkness on the Edge of Town''. He ended up giving it to [[Patti Smith]], who recast it from a female perspective. Springsteen released a live concert recording of the song, however, and he included a studio version of it on ''The Promise,'' his 2010 album of ''Darkness'' outtakes.
** Springsteen also used to sing the aforementioned Crystals song "Then He Kissed Me" in live shows as "Then She Kissed Me."
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* Tobias Sammet's Avantasia's cover of "Lay All Your Love on Me" by [[ABBA]] changes the "Now every woman I see" to "Now every man that I see."
* [[Alan Jackson]]'s cover of Charly McClain's 1981 hit "Who's Cheatin' Who" changes the pronouns so that it's a male singing about a female, instead of vice versa. (Yes, Charly is a female.)
* Most songs on Masaaki Endoh's cover series ENSON. These range from the still-working (''[[Galaxy Angel (anime)|Wing of Destiny
* [[They Might Be Giants]] played this straight with their cover of "Maybe I Know" by [[Lesley Gore]] (best known for "It's My Party").
* ("You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" has been covered by [[Rod Stewart]] as "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Man"
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* "House of the Rising Sun" is often gender-flipped, despite the fact that doing so completely obscures the fact that the house in question is a brothel.
* Actor-singer Christian Kane covered Tracy Chapman's signature "Fast Car" on his 2011 album ''The House Rules'', changing the subject of the song to a guy instead of a girl.
* [[Michael Bublé]]'s cover of the [[Christmas Songs|Christmas Song]] "Santa Baby" -- a breathy tune in which a woman lists all the expensive goodies she wants from her boyfriend including minks and an engagement ring -- turns it into [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=itiwN1qvxXQ "Santa Buddy"], by changing the gift list and (unsuccessfully) turning the banter from sultry pouting to a something that sounds like, "guy, do me a favor".
== Male perspective changed to female ==
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** She also pulled a [[Perspective Flip]] on [[Stevie Ray Vaughan]]'s "Pride and Joy": ''I'm his sweet little baby / He's my little lover boy''
* [[Ashley Tisdale]]'s cover of "[[Rick Astley|Never Gonna Give You Up]]," which had already gotten tons of [[Internet Backdraft]], replaced the lyrics "Any other guy" with "Any other girl," which doesn't really rhyme with "I."
* The [[Bow Wow Wow]] cover of "I Want Candy" is a straight-up gender flip, but it does make the line "I like candy when it's wrapped in a sweater" sound a bit
* ''DEV2.0'' flipped the genders on [[Devo]]'s "Girl U Want" to result in "Boy U Want." They didn't change any other words though, so you had a pre-teen girl sing a song about sexual arousal. Hilariously wrong.
** [http://www.aolwatch.org/backup/boyuwant.htm Not neccessarily so].
* [[Heart]]'s cover of "Black Dog" by [[Led Zeppelin]] changes some pronouns from third-person to second-person ("started telling '''your''' friends '''you''' gonna be a star") and others from first-person to second-person ("tell '''you''' no lies, make '''you''' a happy man").
* In the [[Robots in Disguise]] cover of "[[The Kinks|You Really Got Me]]," all references to "girl" (i.e., "Girl, you really got me now") are changed to "boy".
* [[Sheryl Crow]]'s cover of [[Guns N' Roses]]' "Sweet Child o' Mine" changes she/her to he/his ("he's got a smile that it seems to me...").
* On her most recent album, ''Quiet Night'', [[Diana Krall]] sings "The Boy From Ipanema".
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* [[Shirley Bassey]]'s cover of [[Ben E King|Ben E. King]]'s "I Who Have Nothing" is another perspective-flipped example.
* Used in [[Cat Power]]'s version of "Satisfaction", but averted in [[Bjork]] and [[PJ Harvey]]'s version.
* [[One-Hit Wonder]] [[Toni Basil]]'s only charting song, [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LSfnopkT37I "Mickey"], was a [[Covered Up|
{{quote|''Oh Kitty, you're so pretty, can't you understand...}}
:became
{{quote|''Oh Mickey, you're so pretty, can't you understand...}}
* [[Joss Stone]] covered [[The White Stripes]]' "Fell in Love With a Girl" as "Fell in Love With a Boy," despite the fact that it doesn't fit with the song's rhyme scheme.
* [[Tiffany]] covered the Beatles with "I Saw Him Standing There."
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* [[Billie Holiday]] and other female singers have done "She's Funny That Way" as "He's Funny That Way," though the earliest female versions are "I'm Funny That Way."
* In Donna Summer's version of "MacArthur Park", "Spring was never waiting for us, girl" became "Spring was never waiting for us, till (it ran one step ahead)"
** In this same song, Jimmy Webb's "I recall the yellow cotton dress / It was foaming like a wave / On the ground around your knees" becomes "I recall the yellow cotton dress / Foaming like a wave / On the ground beneath your knees" in Donna Summer's version. The original assumes a gentleman is singing this to a lady, and she's the one wearing the yellow dress.
* Amii Stewart's [[Covered Up|cover version]] of Eddie Floyd's "Knock on Wood" has her telling the partner rather than herself to knock on wood. Mary Griffin's version, featured in the film ''[[Studio 54]]'', leaves the lyrics unchanged.
* Max A Million's and Unique II's covers of Matthew Wilder's "Break My Stride" both used a female singer, and thus "she said" became "you said", and the bridge changed from "another girl like you" to "another boy/guy like you".
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* In recent years, since [[Ashley Tisdale]] did a cover of "Kiss The Girl" in 2006, it's become common for that song to be sung by women. Before that, in [[The Nineties]] it was a rarely covered song and it was done by men, but look on [[YouTube]] and you'll find cover songs of "Kiss The Girl" done by women outnumber those done by men by about 20 to 1. It's gotten to where people forget that it was sung by Sebastian and not Ariel in [[The Little Mermaid]]. The unusual thing is, the words entirely remain the same, but the connotations completely change, when sung by a man it's always a third person urging to just follow his heart and kiss the girl he loves, when sung by a woman it becomes a not-so-subtle hint to the guy she likes that she's growing impatient with his hesitation.
* Sammi Smith's "Help Me Make It Through The Night" from 1971 was originally intended to be sung by a man.
* Although [[Pat Benatar]]'s [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5kisPBwZOM "Hit Me With Your Best Shot"] is not exactly a cover, when one listens closely to it, it's pretty
{{quote|''Well, you're a real tough cookie with a long history
''Of breaking little hearts like the one in me.
''Before I put another notch in my lipstick case
''You better make sure you put me in my place.''}}
* Hitomi Takahashi's single ''Bokutachi no Yukue'' (best known as the opening for ''[[Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny]]'').
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngm29TVagMc Holly Cole's cover of ''I've Just Seen a Face''] changes "she's the girl for me" to "he's the boy for me", amongst other gender flips.
== Multiple flipflops ==
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* Averted by Electrelane in their [[Les Yay]] [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-RE7DcEv1s&feature=related cover] of "[[Bruce Springsteen|I'm On Fire]]".
* Joan Baez made several changes to "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down" (originally by The Band), but ''kept'' the line "Back with my ''wife'' in Tennessee, and one day ''she'' said to me ..."
* [[Blondie (band)|Blondie]] have a couple of examples of playing this straight, but have also averted it with their cover of [[Buddy Holly]]'s "I'm Gonna Love You Too". Granted, the only line in the original that mentioned gender was "after all, another fella took ya", but leaving that in does change potential interpretations of the song: in the Buddy Holly version it's "another fella" as in "a man other than me", but having a woman sing that line makes it sound like both the subject of the song and the person he's currently with are men.
* Averted by [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kKULjplrgPs Claudette's cover of Billy Joel's ''Only the Good Die Young'']. This is also an example of [[The Cover Changes the Meaning]], as the song goes from being about a young man trying to get with a [[Catholic School Girls Rule|Catholic girl]] by suggesting that she not take religion too seriously to being about a girl encouraging a potential girlfriend to embrace her true self (''Come out, Virginia.''), not to let her faith get her down about it (''The stained glass curtain you're hiding behind never lets in the sun.'') and become part of the queer community that already accepts her. (''I'd rather laugh with the sinners than cry with the saints. The sinners are much more fun.'')
* Xiu Xiu have a habit of covering songs without changing any of the pronouns. Considering singer Jamie Stewart is quite camp (and has written many songs of his own sung to men, both from male and female perspectives) this is almost always the least troubling example of [[The Cover Changes the Meaning]] in their versions however.
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* The ''[[Sucker Punch]]'' soundtrack is mostly female singers doing songs by male artists ([[The Beatles]], [[The Smiths]], [[Jefferson Airplane]]) - but the lyrics are unchanged (the most blantant is [[The Stooges|"Seek and Destroy"]], which is still "I'm the world's forgotten boy...").
* [[Judy Garland]] averts this completely when she sings "For Me and My Gal."
* The [[Bob Rivers]] twisted tune parodies largely avert this by using a female vocalist (or an opposite-sex pair, or whatever) if the original song being covered requires this. For instance, "I Can't Ski Babe" is sung by two vocalists who sound believably like Sonny and Cher. Conversely, [["Weird Al" Yankovic]] is prone to stick his own face (and voice) onto everything. The most obvious is "I Perform This Way", a parody of [[Lady Gaga]]'s "Born This Way" – the part calls for a female blonde, but instead we see Weird Al's face pasted onto a blonde lady's head and figure. The result is jarring and bizarre.
* Wally Cox's 1953 recording of the folk song [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1V_KomqNtKY "There Is A Tavern In The Town"] (AKA "The Drunkard Song" and "Fare Thee Well For I Must Leave Thee"). He (and the all-male-tenor chorus) are unambiguously singing a song whose "narrator" is a young woman, and are playing it absolutely straight. Oddly, despite Cox's girlish voice, the performance is clearly not intended to evoke snickers at implied homosexuality.
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