# Posthumous hits **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 12, 2012, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posthumous-hits/631265 "2012-08-12T13:53:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2012, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posthumous-hits/631265/1 "2012-08-12T13:53:12Z")
> [@Why didn't Hendrix's "Dolly Dagger" become one of his bigger songs?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-didnt-hendrixs-dolly-dagger-become-one-of-his-bigger-songs/630461/22): > > Out of curiosity, just how many posthumous releases become big hits? I am thinking that Janis Joplin’ “Me and Bobby McGee” and Otis Redding “Dock of the Bay” came out, or became popular right after they died. But I think after a few months, people just revert to the familiar songs. The hardcore fans will buy vault material and live shows. Jim’s Son asked the question in this [Hendrix thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=660960) but nobody responded so I thought it deserved a thread of its own. Off the top of my head, the biggest posthumous response was after John Lennon’s death, when “Women” was a huge hit and “Watching the Wheels” a decent-sized one. The _Double Fantasy_ album had been released only three weeks before his death and it sold several extra million because of it. “It Doesn’t Matter Anymore” was released a month after Buddy Holly died. It hit #13 but is played more than his last few pre-death singles today. “Riders on the Storm” didn’t hit the Hot 100 until the day that Jim Morrison died and eventually went to #14, all of that after his death. “L. A. Woman” was never an official single but I’d have to argue that its continuous airplay was a result. What else do you have? ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2012, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posthumous-hits/631265/2 "2012-08-12T14:18:21Z")
Patsy Cline had three good hits released posthumously in 1963— _Faded Love_, _Sweet Dreams of You_, and \* Leavin’ on Your Mind\*. ---
**Author:** ![Ashley\_Pomeroy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c68b51/32.png) [@Ashley\_Pomeroy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ashley_Pomeroy)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2012, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posthumous-hits/631265/3 "2012-08-12T14:18:57Z")
Elvis Presley springs to mind - a remix of “A Little Less Conversation” got to number one in 2002, and he had a lot of lesser hits around the same time, because his early singles were all re-released. And George Harrison, of course - the re-release of… Hang on, there’s [a Wikipedia page](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_posthumous_number_ones_on_the_UK_Singles_Chart) that I could just copy from. Eva Cassidy was the other name I was going to mention (although she was more of an albums act). ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2012, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posthumous-hits/631265/4 "2012-08-12T14:37:29Z")
You Know You’re Right - Nirvana ---
**Author:** ![tomcar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7993a0/32.png) [@tomcar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomcar)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2012, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posthumous-hits/631265/5 "2012-08-12T14:40:19Z")
Lennon had several. I love “Nobody Told Me” and “Stepping Out.” Not a fan of Nirvana, but Their unplugged album was huge and it came out after Kurt’s death I believe. ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2012, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posthumous-hits/631265/6 "2012-08-12T14:44:16Z")
Jim Croce had three huge hits in the six months after his death: “I Got a Name,” “Time in a Bottle” (#1), and “I’ll Have to Say I Love You in a Song.” ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2012, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posthumous-hits/631265/7 "2012-08-12T14:58:11Z")
[Tupac Shakur apparently wrote and released 8 albums worth of material after he died](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ai1yagSvUUI). His rival raper, Notorious B.I.G. aka Biggie Smalls was shot and killed on 9 MArch, 1997. Two weeks later his album _Life After Death_ was released and was a huge hit. Two songs also topped the charts (_Mo Money Mo Problems_ and _Hypnotize_). Johnny Cash’s _American V: A Hundred Highways_ album was released 3 years after his death and topped the Billboard 200. Otis Redding’s _(Sittin’ On) Dock of the Bay_ was released after his death and was a #1 single. In fact, it was Redding’s only #1 single. Janis Joplin’s _Pearl_ included her cover of Kris Kristofferson’s _Me and Bobby McGee_, which went to #1. The album was released shortly after her death. Queen’s _Bohemian Rhapsody_ topped the charts more than a year after Freddie Mercury’s death, thanks to it’s inclusion on the _Wayne’s World_ film soundtrack. Jim Croce had 3 huge hit songs after his death, including _I’ll Have to Say I Love You In A Song_. (ETA: Doh! Scooped by **Biffy**!) ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2012, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posthumous-hits/631265/8 "2012-08-12T15:06:39Z")
Roy Orbison’s album _Mystery Girl_ was released after his death and went to #5. ---
**Author:** ![DfrntBreign](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f6c823/32.png) [@DfrntBreign](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DfrntBreign)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2012, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posthumous-hits/631265/9 "2012-08-12T15:36:16Z")
_Eat A Peach_ by The Allman Brothers Band was released after the death of Brother **Duane Allman** and included “One Way Out” and “Melissa” which both peaked at #86 and “Ain’t Wastin’ Time No More” which went to #77. Even though it was neither released posthumously nor charted at all, a little voice in the back of my head keeps saying [_“Post Toastee”_](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4wtYv-41QI) by **Tommy Bolin** deserves some kind of honorable mention. I guess my little voice has trouble with reading comprehension. It’s trying to make a case for **Warren Zevon** , too. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2012, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posthumous-hits/631265/10 "2012-08-12T16:03:20Z")
Thanks to its inclusion on the _ **Good Morning, Viet Nam** _ soundtrack, Louis Armstrong’s “What a Wonderful World” became a top 40 hit in 1988, long after his death. ---
**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:** [August 12, 2012, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posthumous-hits/631265/11 "2012-08-12T16:20:09Z")
Robert Johnson’s recordings were far more successful 60 years after his death than when they were recorded. ---
**Author:** ![dataguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/eada6e/32.png) [@dataguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dataguy)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2012, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posthumous-hits/631265/12 "2012-08-12T16:21:18Z")
A Change is Gonna Come - Sam Cooke ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2012, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posthumous-hits/631265/13 "2012-08-12T16:29:34Z")
**Lynyrd Skynyrd** ’s album _Street Survivors_ went platinum after the band’s [plane crash](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lynyrd_Skynyrd#Plane_crash_.281977.29), and the single “[What’s Your Name?](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_qXsO-axQWM)” hit number 13 on the singles chart. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2012, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posthumous-hits/631265/14 "2012-08-12T16:56:11Z")
How about the hit duets album Natalie Cole made with her long-deceased father, Nat King Cole? ---
**Author:** ![Greekfreak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c68b51/32.png) [@Greekfreak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greekfreak)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2012, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posthumous-hits/631265/15 "2012-08-12T17:03:45Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > How about the hit duets album Natalie Cole made with her long-deceased father, Nat King Cole? That one disgusted me–she snorted what minimal fame she had then shamelessly dug up her father’s corpse when she couldn’t get arrested. Not to mention she has about as much talent as Lisa Marie Presley. ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2012, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posthumous-hits/631265/16 "2012-08-12T17:09:24Z")
**Ashley** -Eva Cassidy’s biggest hit (IMO) was a cover. ---
**Author:** ![Accidental\_Martyr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ce7236/32.png) [@Accidental\_Martyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Accidental_Martyr)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2012, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posthumous-hits/631265/17 "2012-08-12T17:19:22Z")
Sublime’s album, _Sublime_, was released after the death of singer/guitarist Badley Nowell in 1996. It went to #13 on the charts and “What I Got” was a #1 song on the Modern Rock charts. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2012, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posthumous-hits/631265/18 "2012-08-12T17:20:43Z")
Essentially Eva Cassidy’s entire career while making hits was posthumous. She sang and recorded a lot during her life. She had some music released while she was alive. She didn’t have any hits (or even anything close to being a hit) though until four years after her death. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2012, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posthumous-hits/631265/19 "2012-08-12T17:37:21Z")
Some cynics might say it was made to cash in on the Beatles name, but “Free As A Bird” started as a vocal track by Lennon and was added to by the other three Beatles. It was released as part of their Anthology project in 1995. Roy Orbison’s final album, _King of Hearts_, was released in 1992, four years after his death. It contained a couple of hits, “I Drove All Night” and a new recording of “Crying” with k. d. lang. ---
**Author:** ![Philliam](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/philliam/32/3011_2.png) [@Philliam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philliam)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2012, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posthumous-hits/631265/20 "2012-08-12T18:13:25Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > Some cynics might say it was made to cash in on the Beatles name, but “Free As A Bird” started as a vocal track by Lennon and was added to by the other three Beatles. It was released as part of their Anthology project in 1995. > > Roy Orbison’s final album, _King of Hearts_, was released in 1992, four years after his death. It contained a couple of hits, “I Drove All Night” and a new recording of “Crying” with k. d. lang. Can’t say I detect much cynicism about creating “Free As A Bird”. The musician in me says “Damn, that is a great emotional tribute to their mate - I would have loved to play on that session. George, Paul & Ringo - you nailed it.” [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posthumous-hits/631265.md?page=2)