# Performer sang/played backup on cover of his/her song **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [January 29, 2020, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/performer-sang-played-backup-on-cover-of-his-her-song/847148 "2020-01-29T02:59:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**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:** [January 29, 2020, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/performer-sang-played-backup-on-cover-of-his-her-song/847148/1 "2020-01-29T02:59:12Z")
I’ve always loved “They Don’t Know” by Tracey Ullman, but only recently discovered that (A) it was previously a single by Kirsty McColl, and (B) McColl actually sang backup on Tracey’s slightly later version (Both singers were under contract with Stiff Records at the time). This probably happens a lot, like Steven Tyler on Run-DMC’s cover of “Walk This Way,” but are there many other instances? –Mick Jagger was in the video for Bette Midler’s “Beast of Burden,” I forget if he sang –Johnny Cash and Ronnie Spector guested on songs that were kind of about their older hits, by Rodney Crowell and Eddie Money, respectively –Sippie Wallace guested on Bonnie Raitt’s cover of “Woman Be Wise” Who else? ---
**Author:** ![Oswald\_Bastable](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oswald_bastable/32/214_2.png) [@Oswald\_Bastable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oswald_Bastable)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2020, 8:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/performer-sang-played-backup-on-cover-of-his-her-song/847148/2 "2020-01-29T08:25:51Z")
Lennon sang backing vocals and played guitar on Bowie’s cover of Across the Universe (on Young Americans). OB ---
**Author:** ![RobotDevilDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e19adc/32.png) [@RobotDevilDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RobotDevilDog)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2020, 9:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/performer-sang-played-backup-on-cover-of-his-her-song/847148/3 "2020-01-29T09:52:39Z")
> [@Oswald\_Bastable](#): > > Lennon sang backing vocals and played guitar on Bowie’s cover of Across the Universe (on Young Americans). > > OB John Lennon did the same thing on Elton John’s version of Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds in 1974. AND, on the B-side of the LITSWD single, Elton covered Lennon’s lesser-known song One Day (At a Time), with Lennon playing guitar. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2020, 10:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/performer-sang-played-backup-on-cover-of-his-her-song/847148/4 "2020-01-29T10:47:19Z")
Does this count? Labi Siffre is in the video pretending to play backup on a cover of his song [It Must Be Love](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmezIIrFQmY). ---
**Author:** ![Bumbershoot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bumbershoot/32/3428_2.png) [@Bumbershoot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bumbershoot)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2020, 11:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/performer-sang-played-backup-on-cover-of-his-her-song/847148/5 "2020-01-29T11:02:22Z")
George Harrison sang backup and played acoustic guitar on Jeff Healey’s cover of While My Guitar Gently Weeps. ---
**Author:** ![TCMF-2L](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tcmf-2l/32/16553_2.png) [@TCMF-2L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TCMF-2L)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2020, 11:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/performer-sang-played-backup-on-cover-of-his-her-song/847148/6 "2020-01-29T11:35:58Z")
**The Fat Boys** did a version of **The Twist** featuring **Chubby Checker. Chubby** did perhaps the most famous previous version of the song although not the original. TCMF-2L ---
**Author:** ![TCMF-2L](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tcmf-2l/32/16553_2.png) [@TCMF-2L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TCMF-2L)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2020, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/performer-sang-played-backup-on-cover-of-his-her-song/847148/7 "2020-01-29T11:43:27Z")
British Boy Band **Five** released a version of **Queen’s We Will Rock You** in the year 2000 featuring the, by then, only two active members of the original **Queen: Brian May** on guitar and **Roger Taylor** on drums. TCMF-2L ---
**Author:** ![TCMF-2L](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tcmf-2l/32/16553_2.png) [@TCMF-2L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TCMF-2L)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2020, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/performer-sang-played-backup-on-cover-of-his-her-song/847148/8 "2020-01-29T11:49:02Z")
The song which became **Shipbuilding** had a vaguely complicated history but the final lyrics are credited to **Elvis Costello**. The most famous version of the song is by **Robert Wyatt** and has **Costello** on backing vocals. TCMF-2L ---
**Author:** ![TCMF-2L](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tcmf-2l/32/16553_2.png) [@TCMF-2L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TCMF-2L)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2020, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/performer-sang-played-backup-on-cover-of-his-her-song/847148/9 "2020-01-29T11:57:40Z")
**Kirsty MacColl** did a cover version of the **Billy Bragg** song **A New England**. Although he didn’t play on the new version he did write an extra verse for Kirsty since the existing song was too short. TCMF-2L ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2020, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/performer-sang-played-backup-on-cover-of-his-her-song/847148/10 "2020-01-29T12:28:52Z")
Pete Townshend did backing vocals on the Ramones’ cover of “Substitute”. Leslie West played guitar on Ozzy Osbourne’s cover of “Mississippi Queen”. Robby Krieger played guitar on Blue Öyster Cult’s live cover of “Roadhouse Blues”. ---
**Author:** ![TCMF-2L](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tcmf-2l/32/16553_2.png) [@TCMF-2L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TCMF-2L)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2020, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/performer-sang-played-backup-on-cover-of-his-her-song/847148/11 "2020-01-29T13:34:03Z")
American heavy metal band **Fear Factory** did a cover version of the **Gary Numan** song **Cars**. He did backing vocals for them. TCMF-2L ---
**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:** [January 29, 2020, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/performer-sang-played-backup-on-cover-of-his-her-song/847148/12 "2020-01-29T13:37:05Z")
Carl Wilson sang backup on David Lee Roth’s version of “California Girls.” Kerry Livgren appears on [a version of “Carry On Wayward Son”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LHvm1xmk5lc) by an all-female group called Rachel Rachel. (I’m not sure whether he plays on the track or just appears in the video.) ---
**Author:** ![TCMF-2L](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tcmf-2l/32/16553_2.png) [@TCMF-2L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TCMF-2L)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2020, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/performer-sang-played-backup-on-cover-of-his-her-song/847148/13 "2020-01-29T13:54:56Z")
The song **Living Doll** was a hit for **Cliff Richard and the Shadows** in 1959 (according to Wikipedia the Shadows were known as the Drifters at the time.) It was re-recorded as a very successful charity single by the anarchic comedy team **The Young Ones** (perhaps best known for their Eponymous TV show) in 1986. **Cliff** did the vocals and guitarist **Hank Marvin** of **The Shadows** also joined **Cliff** for the first time in over a decade. TCMF-2L ---
**Author:** ![TCMF-2L](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tcmf-2l/32/16553_2.png) [@TCMF-2L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TCMF-2L)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2020, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/performer-sang-played-backup-on-cover-of-his-her-song/847148/14 "2020-01-29T14:01:06Z")
**Gene Pitney** recorded a reasonably successful version of **Something’s Gotten Hold Of My Heart** in 1967. **Marc Almond** (best known for being half of **Soft Cell** ) did a version in 1988 which **Pitney** heard and liked so much he recorded it as a duet with **Almond** and that version became a UK hit in 1989. TCMF-2L ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2020, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/performer-sang-played-backup-on-cover-of-his-her-song/847148/15 "2020-01-29T14:15:58Z")
Speaking of Kirsty MacColl … Here’s Cáit O’Riordan joining Puddles Pity Party on a [cover](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7nLkKbIp54c) of _I’m A Man You Don’t Meet Every Day_. (One of the few Pogues songs she sang on.) ---
**Author:** ![LLCoolL](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/llcooll/32/3596_2.png) [@LLCoolL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LLCoolL)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2020, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/performer-sang-played-backup-on-cover-of-his-her-song/847148/16 "2020-01-29T15:42:14Z")
Maybe not in the spirit of this thread: “Unforgettable” by Nathalie Cole featured backing vocals by her late father Nat King Cole. ---
**Author:** ![Labdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/439d5e/32.png) [@Labdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labdad)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2020, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/performer-sang-played-backup-on-cover-of-his-her-song/847148/17 "2020-01-29T17:21:55Z")
George Harrison sang harmony and played dobro on the Alvin Lee/Mylon LeFevre cover of “So Sad (No Love of His Own).” ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2020, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/performer-sang-played-backup-on-cover-of-his-her-song/847148/18 "2020-01-29T17:23:44Z")
Ferget backup…Roger Daltrey sang _lead_ on the Chieftains cover of Behind Blue Eyes. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2020, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/performer-sang-played-backup-on-cover-of-his-her-song/847148/19 "2020-01-29T17:58:56Z")
Maybe not 100% of what the OP is looking for, but Emmylou Harris sang duet and backing vocals on several recordings on the Gram Parsons tribute album “Return Of The Grievous Angel”, songs on which she had dueted with Gram Parsons on the original recordings, for instance: The Pretenders and Emmylou Harris - [She](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fn-3W2WL08o) ---
**Author:** ![infinitii](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e8c25b/32.png) [@infinitii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/infinitii)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2020, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/performer-sang-played-backup-on-cover-of-his-her-song/847148/20 "2020-01-29T18:03:10Z")
On Kelly Clarkson’s debut album, Danielle Brisebois provide backing vocals on a cover of her own song “Just Missed the Train”. I love the song and love Danielle. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/performer-sang-played-backup-on-cover-of-his-her-song/847148.md?page=2)