# Bands that took their name from songs of other unrelated artists **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 4, 2010, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-that-took-their-name-from-songs-of-other-unrelated-artists/559499 "2010-11-04T19:46:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Meltdown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Meltdown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meltdown)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2010, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-that-took-their-name-from-songs-of-other-unrelated-artists/559499/1 "2010-11-04T19:46:56Z")
It came to my attention today that the band _Nazareth_, which I always assumed named themselves after the Biblical city, actually took their name from a line in the song “The Weight” by _The Band_. > [@](#): > > They took their name from the first line of The Band’s classic song “The Weight” (“I pulled into Nazareth / Was feelin’ about half past dead…”) Source: [Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nazareth_(band)) What other bands chose their name from other people’s songs? I added the word “unrelated” in the title so as to intentionally exclude tribute bands and the like, which I believe do this all the time. ---
**Author:** ![Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maggie_the_Ocelot)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2010, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-that-took-their-name-from-songs-of-other-unrelated-artists/559499/2 "2010-11-04T19:50:32Z")
Boys Don’t Cry, after the Cure song. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2010, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-that-took-their-name-from-songs-of-other-unrelated-artists/559499/3 "2010-11-04T19:54:16Z")
**Death Cab for Cutie** , from the name of a song by the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2010, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-that-took-their-name-from-songs-of-other-unrelated-artists/559499/4 "2010-11-04T19:57:51Z")
Death Cab For Cutie was named for a song by the Bonzo Dog Band. Godsmack named themselves for a song by Alice in Chains. Lady Gaga says she came up with the name from Queen’s “Radio Ga Ga”. Radiohead named themselves after a song by, I think, the Smiths. Didn’t the Rolling Stones name themselves after Dylan’s “Like a Rolling Stone”? ---
**Author:** ![casdave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@casdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/casdave)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2010, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-that-took-their-name-from-songs-of-other-unrelated-artists/559499/5 "2010-11-04T20:06:24Z")
Deacon Blue took their name from a Steely Dan song. Steely Dan took their name from an, …ahem… appliance in a Edgar Rice Boroughs novel. ---
**Author:** ![Ichbin\_Dubist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/51bf81/32.png) [@Ichbin\_Dubist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ichbin_Dubist)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2010, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-that-took-their-name-from-songs-of-other-unrelated-artists/559499/6 "2010-11-04T20:09:52Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > Didn’t the Rolling Stones name themselves after Dylan’s “Like a Rolling Stone”? Actually, Muddy Waters’ “Rollin’ Stone.” Similarly, The Pretty Things took their name from a Willie Dixon song. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2010, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-that-took-their-name-from-songs-of-other-unrelated-artists/559499/7 "2010-11-04T20:10:59Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > Didn’t the Rolling Stones name themselves after Dylan’s “Like a Rolling Stone”? No, from Muddy Water’s “Rollin’ Stone.” ---
**Author:** ![gregorio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/fbc32d/32.png) [@gregorio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gregorio)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2010, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-that-took-their-name-from-songs-of-other-unrelated-artists/559499/8 "2010-11-04T20:35:32Z")
> [@casdave](#): > > Deacon Blue took their name from a Steely Dan song. > > Steely Dan took their name from an, …ahem… appliance in a Edgar Rice Boroughs novel. But it made me smile. From [wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steely_Dan): > [@](#): > > Being fans of Beat Generation literature, Fagen and Becker named the band after “Steely Dan III from Yokohama”, a strap-on dildo referred to in the William S. Burroughs novel The Naked Lunch ---
**Author:** ![Meltdown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Meltdown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meltdown)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2010, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-that-took-their-name-from-songs-of-other-unrelated-artists/559499/9 "2010-11-04T20:40:01Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > Radiohead named themselves after a song by, I think, the Smiths. Talking Heads. But good one! ---
**Author:** ![Student\_Driver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3da27b/32.png) [@Student\_Driver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Student_Driver)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2010, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-that-took-their-name-from-songs-of-other-unrelated-artists/559499/10 "2010-11-04T20:41:01Z")
[Eric’s Trip](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric%27s_Trip) took their name from the song “Eric’s Trip” on Sonic Youth’s album [Daydream Nation](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daydream_Nation). ---
**Author:** ![Duke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e8c25b/32.png) [@Duke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2010, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-that-took-their-name-from-songs-of-other-unrelated-artists/559499/11 "2010-11-04T20:45:05Z")
Wow, I just came in to mention Eric’s Trip…I thought I was about the only Doper who knew about them. Cocteau Twins took their name from a song by Simple Minds. ---
**Author:** ![Suburban\_Plankton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suburban_plankton/32/219_2.png) [@Suburban\_Plankton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suburban_Plankton)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2010, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-that-took-their-name-from-songs-of-other-unrelated-artists/559499/12 "2010-11-04T20:56:21Z")
There’s always _Toad the Wet Sprocket_, who got their name from a Monty Python skit called “Rock Notes”, which is a music news broadcast which mentions a number of fictional bands, one being Toad the Wet Sprocket. ---
**Author:** ![palindromemordnilap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/db5fbb/32.png) [@palindromemordnilap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/palindromemordnilap)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2010, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-that-took-their-name-from-songs-of-other-unrelated-artists/559499/13 "2010-11-04T22:00:08Z")
Reginald Dwight took his stage name in homage to Bluesology saxophonist Elton Dean and Long John Baldry. He’s known today as Dean Long. 😉 And Declan Patrick MacManus took the name stage name Elvis Costello, with the first name…well, you know. ---
**Author:** ![multimediac17](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/839c29/32.png) [@multimediac17](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/multimediac17)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2010, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-that-took-their-name-from-songs-of-other-unrelated-artists/559499/14 "2010-11-04T22:05:46Z")
Dixie Chicks took their name from the Little Feat song and album _Dixie Chicken_. ---
**Author:** ![palindromemordnilap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/db5fbb/32.png) [@palindromemordnilap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/palindromemordnilap)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2010, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-that-took-their-name-from-songs-of-other-unrelated-artists/559499/15 "2010-11-04T22:15:14Z")
Hmmm… I seem to have confused “bands taking their names from songs by other bands” with “artists taking their names from other artists.” Anyway, at this site [http://library.thinkquest.org/4626/rock.htm](http://library.thinkquest.org/4626/rock.htm) it says Simple Minds were named after a line in the David Bowie song “Jean Genie”. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2010, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-that-took-their-name-from-songs-of-other-unrelated-artists/559499/16 "2010-11-04T22:22:45Z")
> [@casdave](#): > > Steely Dan took their name from an, …ahem… appliance in a Edgar Rice Boroughs novel. Not Edgar R. … William S. _Naked Lunch_, not Naked Ape-man ETA: Oops. **gregorio** got it first. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2010, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-that-took-their-name-from-songs-of-other-unrelated-artists/559499/17 "2010-11-04T22:27:40Z")
The Moody Blues took their name from the Duke Ellington song “Mood Indigo.” Deep Purple were named for the old standard, “Deep Purple” (When the deep purple falls/over sleepy garden walls . . . ) ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2010, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-that-took-their-name-from-songs-of-other-unrelated-artists/559499/18 "2010-11-04T22:30:44Z")
Madness took the name of a song by Prince Buster. Adam Again were named after an album/song by Michael Omartian. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2010, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-that-took-their-name-from-songs-of-other-unrelated-artists/559499/19 "2010-11-04T22:31:07Z")
Just going from memory: Pretty Boys Make Graves Panic! at the Disco (they claim not to be. But I always think they are) Boys Don’t Cry Scar the Armada Dear Ambellina Maria Mystar (The last three are from Coheed and Cambria lyrics. and then there IS the tribute band “Two Among the Fence” but per the OP that doesn’t count) Milks and Rectangles - from Avalanches (Frontier Psychiatrist) The Telephone Junkies - from Elvis Costello Blood on the Dancefloor - from either Panic! at the Disco or Michael Jackson ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2010, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-that-took-their-name-from-songs-of-other-unrelated-artists/559499/20 "2010-11-04T23:35:05Z")
One presumes that **Aqualung** got the name from the Jethro Tull song. And a now disbanded indie band called **Blood on the Tracks** is most likely named after the song by Bob Dylan. **HelloGoodbye** is named after The Beatles song “Hello, Goodbye.” And **Seether** is named after the Veruca Salt song. Pretty sure you meant Pretty **Girls** Make Graves, Ludovic. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-that-took-their-name-from-songs-of-other-unrelated-artists/559499.md?page=2)