# Gender in song covers **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [April 9, 2024, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gender-in-song-covers/1000063 "2024-04-09T21:21:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Drum\_God](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drum_god/32/44_2.png) [@Drum\_God](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drum_God)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2024, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gender-in-song-covers/1000063/41 "2024-04-12T21:25:32Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > For a recent example, there’s the cover of Tracy Chapman’s _Fast Car_ by Luke Combs. He keeps the lyric exactly as they were written, even though the song is clearly from a woman’s point of view. I read somewhere (maybe SDMB?) that Combs’ recording license for the song requires that he sing it EXACTLY as written without changing a single syllable. So he sings that he’s a checkout girl. In concerts supposedly, he changes it, since a performance license is different. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2024, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gender-in-song-covers/1000063/42 "2024-04-12T21:27:43Z")
> [@Drum\_God](#): > > I read somewhere (maybe SDMB?) that Combs’ recording license for the song requires that he sing it EXACTLY as written without changing a single syllable. What’s a recording license? I thought you could record anybody’s song however you like without permission as long as you paid the royalties. ---
**Author:** ![xtenkfarpl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/c2a13f/32.png) [@xtenkfarpl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xtenkfarpl)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2024, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gender-in-song-covers/1000063/43 "2024-04-12T21:31:29Z")
> [@Lucas\_Jackson](#): > > A competent bandleader shot-caller would want to deliver the best performance and play in the key the singer could sing in. No argument, of course. It just seemed to be a bit of a blind spot for him… an oddity, I thought. Oh well, in the past… Weird Musicians I Have Played With… 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Drum\_God](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drum_god/32/44_2.png) [@Drum\_God](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drum_God)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2024, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gender-in-song-covers/1000063/44 "2024-04-12T21:33:09Z")
Nope. A mechanical license allows you to record a song AS IS with no changes whatsoever. If you want to change the words, melody, etc., you need a custom license. The owner of the work does not have to grant a custom license and, I believe, Tracy Chapman didn’t. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2024, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gender-in-song-covers/1000063/45 "2024-04-12T21:45:49Z")
Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2024, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gender-in-song-covers/1000063/46 "2024-04-12T22:09:54Z")
> [@Drum\_God](#): > > Nope. A mechanical license allows you to record a song AS IS with no changes whatsoever. If you want to change the words, melody, etc., you need a custom license. The owner of the work does not have to grant a custom license and, I believe, Tracy Chapman didn’t. Interesting, thanks. I, too, was under the impression you could record anything as long as you paid the royalties. ---
**Author:** ![Mark\_Finn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/34f0e0/32.png) [@Mark\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mark_Finn)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2024, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gender-in-song-covers/1000063/47 "2024-04-12T22:25:04Z")
“The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” was written by Robbie Robertson of the “Band”, who first recorded it. The most successful recording was by Joan Baez - a female singing from a male point of view. A few words were changed from the original lyrics - without affecting the male-female theme. ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2024, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gender-in-song-covers/1000063/48 "2024-04-12T22:30:02Z")
[Following up, according to NOLO:](https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/question-when-mechanical-royalty-due-28002.html#:~:text=As%20noted%20above%2C%20once%20the,version%20gets%20a%20mechanical%20license.) _How Mechanical Licenses Allow Licensing for Cover Songs_ _The songwriter or music publisher has complete control over the original recording of a song. **But once the songwriter has made an original recording, or authorized another musician to make an original recording, any musician can make a cover version of it so long as:** _ - the cover version doesn’t deviate substantially from the original - the musician obtains a license, known as a “mechanical license,” and - the musician pays the associated mechanical license fee. _Mechanical Licenses Are "Compulsory Licenses_ _As noted above, once the songwriter has made an original recording or authorized someone else to make an original recording, **they can’t prevent others from making a cover version so long as the musician making the cover version gets a mechanical license.** _ _Mechanical licenses are a form of compulsory license, meaning that, to get one, you don’t need the copyright owner’s permission._ ---
**Author:** ![Stratocaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stratocaster/32/16393_2.png) [@Stratocaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stratocaster)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2024, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gender-in-song-covers/1000063/49 "2024-04-12T22:35:37Z")
That doesn’t read as if it would have prevented Luke Combs from changing the gender. FWIW (since I can’t recall where), I read that he considered the song perfect, and made the decision not to change anything, including the gender. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2024, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gender-in-song-covers/1000063/50 "2024-04-26T20:49:31Z")
From 1928: Bing Crosby sings “There Ain’t No Sweet Man That’s Worth the Salt of My Tears”: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/BIGsDQo8ObM/maxresdefault.jpg "There Ain't No Sweet Man That's Worth The Salt Of My Tears") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIGsDQo8ObM) (Vocals at 1:16) ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2024, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gender-in-song-covers/1000063/51 "2024-04-26T21:00:59Z")
Great find! ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2025, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gender-in-song-covers/1000063/52 "2025-07-24T18:12:51Z")
Bumping to add a new find from 1926: Frank Bessinger sings “I’d Rather Be the Girl in Your Arms.” [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/84ZtaUrkVvQ/maxresdefault.jpg ""I'd Rather Be The Girl In Your Arms" - Jean Goldkette & His Orchestra, v/ Frank Bessinger (1926)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84ZtaUrkVvQ) ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2025, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gender-in-song-covers/1000063/53 "2025-08-07T02:38:04Z")
Blossom Dearie sings Dave Frishberg’s “I’m Hip” - including the lyric “you notice I don’t wear a beard.”\* [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/SPzt3A4Se_U/hqdefault.jpg?sqp=-oaymwEmCOADEOgC8quKqQMa8AEB-AG-AoAC8AGKAgwIABABGH8gQygmMA8=&rs=AOn4CLApmDtmR4uiAzVvqMeGnZLmDD8vbw "Blossom Dearie - I'm Hip") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPzt3A4Se_U) \*which she indeed did not. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2025, 11:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gender-in-song-covers/1000063/54 "2025-08-07T11:22:10Z")
Here’s Phoebe Bridger covering Wheatus’s “Teenage Dirtbag”, turning the song into an adorable lesbian romance: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/t3BmrWXYif0/maxresdefault.jpg "Phoebe Bridgers: "Teenage Dirtbag" (Wheatus cover)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t3BmrWXYif0) (For the record, for years I though that that was what it was supposed to be, until I found out that Wheatus’s lead singer was in fact male, so as far as I am concerned this is a correction). ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2025, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gender-in-song-covers/1000063/55 "2025-08-07T13:40:50Z")
Sara Bareilles, “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” Rainbow Girls, “Down Home Girl” (Girls singing the Stones version almost word for word just sounds _even dirtier!_) Miley Cyrus, “50 Ways to Leave Your Lover” ---
**Author:** ![ekedolphin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ekedolphin/32/10003_2.png) [@ekedolphin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekedolphin)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2025, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gender-in-song-covers/1000063/56 "2025-08-07T14:05:22Z")
Yola also did a tremendous cover of “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” in an alto register, using the lyric “This **girl’s** too young to be singing the blues.” ---
**Author:** ![griffin1977](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/977dab/32.png) [@griffin1977](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/griffin1977)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2025, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gender-in-song-covers/1000063/57 "2025-08-07T14:13:50Z")
[A New England](https://youtu.be/Vnzpg5GgQCo?si=5QGKlk6yi2gF2Y-j) by Kristy MacColl, the cover of the Billy Bragg song. There are no gender swaps but she changes the subject of some of the lines to make it clear it’s a women singing about a man: “I’m not looking for a new England. I’m just looking for another girl.” =\> “I’m not looking for a new England. Are you looking for another girl?” “I put you on a pedestal, they put you on the pill” =\> “I put you on a pedestal, you put me on the pill” “When will you grow up to be a man?” =\> “When you grow up to understand?” ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2025, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gender-in-song-covers/1000063/58 "2025-08-07T15:38:10Z")
> [@griffin1977](#): > > Kristy MacColl Nitpick: _Kirsty_ MacColl. I’m sure she had to correct that a lot in her too-brief life. Perhaps it was an autocorrect. Stupid AI. ---
**Author:** ![griffin1977](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/977dab/32.png) [@griffin1977](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/griffin1977)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2025, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gender-in-song-covers/1000063/59 "2025-08-07T15:43:34Z")
> [@gnoitall](#): > > Perhaps it was an autocorrect Definitely Autocorrect. Growing up in the UK I met far more Kirstys than Kristys [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gender-in-song-covers/1000063.md?page=2)