Anyone remember Kim Carnes’ recording of Bette Davis Eyes? Hard to believe this was the original.
Good one. That’s new to me!
A fantastic percentage of the British Invasion songs, both singles and album cuts, turned out to be covers of obscure American songs. Most of us didn’t know that at the time because nobody wrote about rock history and nobody played oldies. If you missed those songs originally you have to be fantastically plugged in to some older kids’ record collections to hear them at all.
I think the tide turned in 1968. One-hit wonder People put out I Love You, an earworm for the ages. I almost fell over when I learned it was a Zombies album cut.
Speaking of Fun Boy Three, how many of their fans knew that “It Ain’t What You Do It’s the Way That You Do It” (with Bananarama) was first released in the 1930s? Four recordings appeared in 1939, by Jimmie Lunceford, Harry James, and Ella Fitzgerald, and Nat Gonella and His Georgians. That’s an all-star lineup.
And a wonderful bit of trivia. Tiffany’s cover of a Tommy James hit was followed at number one by Billy Idol’s cover of a Tommy James hit, “Mony Mony.” I think that’s the only time in rock history that two covers of the same artist hit number one back to back.
I thought “Mockingbird” was an old “traditional” children’s song, and that James Taylor & Carly Simon had originated the male/female duo of it.
Get off my lawn!
I remember the original by Tommy James. He also recorded Mony Mony, which was later a hit for Billy Idol. And he recorded Crimson and Clover, which was covered by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts.
What is happening?! I’m into music and I’d say that I thought about 80% of these were originals. Ignorance fought!
Oh, that is pretty cool! I didn’t realize the Tiffany song got as high as #1. I guess I must have just sanitized it from my memory. I do remember “Mony Mony” quite well, though. (Although I was partial to the Tommy James version. – I have something bouncing around in my brain that the name of the song came from some big neon marquee outside a hotel Tommy James was staying at that flashed “Mony” all night long at him, inspiring the song.)
ETA: Okay, I was somewhat close, I guess:
The first time I recall this happening to me was when I heard the original Status Quo version of Pictures of Matchstick Men, which I had always thought was a Camper Van Beethoven original. I liked the original so much better that I remade my mix tape and replaced it. (This was a while ago :)).
I was surprised to discover the UFO’s Alone Again Or was originally done by some band from LA that I had never heard of. (Love)
Speaking of Tommy James and the Shondells, they also did the original version of “Mony Mony,” which for years I only knew as a Billy Idol song. Which I mostly knew as a song you played at college frat parties, where nobody would mind when you shouted out obscenities between the verses.
Speaking of Tiffany, round about the time of her popularity, the Bangles had a hit single with “Hazy Shade of Winter.” I forget exactly how I found out, but I remember being very surprised to learn that it was a cover of a Simon and Garfunkel song. It didn’t sound like S&G at all to me.
Well, first of all you have to define “cover”.
I have had three definitions:
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The first version is “original” the rest are covers. This would make all tunes not done by the writer = covers.
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The first recorded for sale version is “original” the rest are covers.
3.The first version to hit the charts is “original” the rest are covers.
I like #3 myself. Certainly, many many hit songs are such that the big hit version of is the one we all think of. To say that it is just a “cover” because the songwriter plinked it out on her/his piano before selling it is ridiculous.
However, Otis Redding’s take on the OPs song would still be the original, since it charted in the top 40.
Another one for me, as a child of the 80s, was “Once Bitten Twice Shy” which I always thought was a Great White hair metal original. It wasn’t until around '99, '00 that I discovered it was actually an Ian Hunter (of Mott the Hoople–“All The Young Dudes” if that doesn’t ring a bell) original. I assume our UK readers are scratching their heads, as I’m sure they probably haven’t heard the Great White version and are probably somewhat familiar with the original.
For me, it’s #1 or #2. Definitely not #3. Most successful covers are under-the-radar songs that never hit the charts, or were album tracks that were never released as single to chart in the first place.
“Respect” by Aretha Franklin was written, recorded and released by Otis Redding 2 years prior.
“Hound Dog” by Elvis Pressley was recorded and released by Big Mama Thornton 3 years prior. It was written by Leiber and Stoller.
Both songs were changed in substantial ways for the cover versions.
The “Just a Gigolo/I Ain’t Got Nobody” medley that was a hit for David Lee Roth is practically a note-for-note cover of the Louis Prima version. Both songs were well established standards that had been recorded many times before Prima paired them up.
Or the original song was a hit so many years ago, the current generation of music fans isn’t familiar with it (but their parents may be - that’s how I personally found out about “Istanbul (Not Constantinople)”) or the original was a hit in another country.
Hootie & The Blowfish’s “I Go Blind” is a remake of a song by a Canadian band called 54-40.
Not really wrong about the “traditional children’s song” - first line of the Wiki entry
Blondie’s Hanging on the Telephone is by a group called The Nerves. Didn’t know that until recently.
When I found out Soft Cell’s Tainted Love was a cover, the world didn’t make sense anymore. Here’s the original.
Huh! An educational thread, this 
Natalie Imbruglia’s big hit Torn is a sorta cover - the people who wrote it had various projects that recorded versions of it. Natalie’s was the one that made money.
Pop Trivia: Gloria Jones was later Marc Bolan of T-Rex’s band-mate and partner, and she was driving the car when Marc was killed in a crash.