# Similar Sounding Songs **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [July 21, 2021, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/similar-sounding-songs/946986 "2021-07-21T16:22:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2026, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/similar-sounding-songs/946986/122 "2026-01-18T23:10:36Z")
||“Suite de pièce Vol. 2 No. 1, Minuet in G Minor (HWV 434-4)”| | — | — | |Artist|George Frideric Handel| |Album|1733| [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/5VMMwcnSu0E/maxresdefault.jpg "Handel: Minuet in G Minor, HWV 434/4 (Arr. Kempff for Piano)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5VMMwcnSu0E) ||“Happy Together”| | — | — | |Artist|The Turtles| |Album|_Happy Together_, 1967| [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/2EbzKWbRDZ8/hqdefault.jpg "1967 HITS ARCHIVE: Happy Together - Turtles (a #1 record--mono)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2EbzKWbRDZ8) ~Max ---
**Author:** ![F.U.Shakespeare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@F.U.Shakespeare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.U.Shakespeare)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2026, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/similar-sounding-songs/946986/123 "2026-01-19T16:18:10Z")
Which parts of these pieces are similar? * * * The first time I heard the opening line of Dan Fogelberg’s “Another Auld Lang Syne”, I thought the melody was similar to Tchaikovsky’s “1812 Overture” (the part where the cannons sound). When I later read the album cover, I saw that it had a line in the credits, “Inspiration: Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky”. ---
**Author:** ![Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/intergalactic_gladiator/32/112_2.png) [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intergalactic_Gladiator)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2026, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/similar-sounding-songs/946986/124 "2026-01-19T21:47:59Z")
I’ve started seeing this on social media recently but evidently Chariots of Fire theme is just a slowed down version of On Top of Spaghetti. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/8a-HfNE3EIo/maxresdefault.jpg "Vangelis - Chariots Of Fire") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8a-HfNE3EIo) [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/yU2GqcjJcdM/maxresdefault.jpg "On Top of Spaghetti") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yU2GqcjJcdM) ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2026, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/similar-sounding-songs/946986/125 "2026-01-19T22:07:38Z")
Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star sounds a lot like the ABC Song. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2026, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/similar-sounding-songs/946986/126 "2026-01-19T22:29:16Z")
> [@F.U.Shakespeare](#): > > Which parts of these pieces are similar? If addressed to me, the verse of “Happy Together” has the same melody as Handel’s piece, albeit different keys and different tempos (try playing Handel at 2x speed). Both step down in a minor harmonic scale, two bars per step: mediant, supertonic, tonic, leading tone, then quickly back up again. (hope I used the right terminology there) ~Max ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2026, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/similar-sounding-songs/946986/127 "2026-01-19T23:16:13Z")
I’m sitting here reading this thread listening to Sirius. A song by Charlatans is playing and I swear I thought it was Deep Purple’s _Hush_. ---
**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 19, 2026, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/similar-sounding-songs/946986/128 "2026-01-19T23:23:31Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star sounds a lot like the ABC Song. It’s the same tune (for which Mozart composed a set of variations). > **[Ah! vous dirai-je, maman](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ah!_vous_dirai-je,_maman)** > > "Ah! vous dirai-je, maman" (.mw-parser-output .IPA-label-small{font-size:85%}.mw-parser-output .references .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .infobox .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .navbox .IPA-label-small{font-size:100%}French: \[a vu diʁeʒ(ə) mamɑ̃\], English: Oh! Shall I tell you, Mama) is a popular children's song in France. Since its composition in the 18th century, the melody has been applied to numerous lyrics in multiple languages – the English-language song "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little S... It’s not at all uncommon for lyrics of a “new” song to be set to the tune of a pre-existing song. This is what happened with “[The Star-Spangled Banner](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Star-Spangled_Banner)” and “[My Country 'Tis of Thee](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Country,_%27Tis_of_Thee),” and some Christian hymns. ---
**Author:** ![peccavi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peccavi/32/388_2.png) [@peccavi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/peccavi)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2026, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/similar-sounding-songs/946986/129 "2026-01-20T00:15:08Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > It’s not at all uncommon for lyrics of a “new” song to be set to the tune of a pre-existing song. “American movie makers have always held a deep reverence for composers whose works lie in the public domain.” – Cecil Adams [Who composed the score for the old Flash Gordon serial? - The Straight Dope](https://www.straightdope.com/21341460/who-composed-the-score-for-the-old-flash-gordon-serial) ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2026, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/similar-sounding-songs/946986/130 "2026-01-20T01:41:30Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > I’m sitting here reading this thread listening to Sirius. A song by Charlatans is playing and I swear I thought it was Deep Purple’s _Hush_. Hehehe, I would never have confused them, but I immediately knew exactly what song you meant. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/0RJwW77Lsj8/maxresdefault.jpg "The Charlatans - The Only One I Know") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0RJwW77Lsj8) [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/W1PNvopXjbg/maxresdefault.jpg "Deep Purple - Hush") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W1PNvopXjbg) ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2026, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/similar-sounding-songs/946986/131 "2026-01-21T21:26:40Z")
One of my fave bands, and one of their best songs: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/auOBhaXEDvA/maxresdefault.jpg "A Song For Europe") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=auOBhaXEDvA) And the last winter I was going through Neil Young’s back catalog, and I found this, which predates A Song For Europe by about a year (IIRC). [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/rFRIXQPk6BY/maxresdefault.jpg "Neil Young - Words (Between the Lines of Age) [Official Audio]") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rFRIXQPk6BY) All I’ll say is: hmmm… j ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2026, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/similar-sounding-songs/946986/132 "2026-01-21T21:36:35Z")
And speaking of favorite songs, I have read that this is (somewhat) based on My Way (a song I loathe). [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/E7taBfKJjUw/maxresdefault.jpg "David Bowie - Life On Mars? (2021 Remaster)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7taBfKJjUw) This is kind of a tangent, but A Little Soul by Pulp sounds just like Tracks Of My Tears by Smokey Robinson; but then again it doesn’t. (The fact that the cover was a portrait of Smokey sorta identifies it as homage), [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/3XMDfMaKDa0/maxresdefault.jpg "Pulp - A Little Soul") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XMDfMaKDa0) j ---
**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 21, 2026, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/similar-sounding-songs/946986/133 "2026-01-21T21:49:38Z")
> [@Treppenwitz](#): > > This is kind of a tangent, but A Little Soul by Pulp sounds just like Tracks Of My Tears by Smokey Robinson; but then again it doesn’t. (The fact that the cover was a portrait of Smokey sorta identifies it as homage), The similarity is obvious, but I want to point out that the riff both songs share probably is the most common riff in soul music. It appears in tons of songs. Here’s Van Morrison’s take on it: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/t_YGC_vA0Og/maxresdefault.jpg "Caravan (2013 Remaster)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_YGC_vA0Og) ---
**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:** [January 21, 2026, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/similar-sounding-songs/946986/134 "2026-01-21T22:10:58Z")
I still think José Feliciano “borrowed” the theme of this Bach fugue (starting at 1:46) for “Feliz Navidad”: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/bjNBPvrfdew/maxresdefault.jpg "Bach - Prelude and Fugue in Bb major, BWV 560") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjNBPvrfdew) ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2026, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/similar-sounding-songs/946986/135 "2026-01-21T22:12:02Z")
Hmmm. I’m not hearing it. But it’s late and I’m tired - I’ll listen to all three on the bounce tomorrow. j ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2026, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/similar-sounding-songs/946986/136 "2026-01-21T22:12:22Z")
We’ll never know how many people told George that My Sweet Lord sounded familiar. No way it was none. ---
**Author:** ![california\_jobcase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@california\_jobcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/california_jobcase)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2026, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/similar-sounding-songs/946986/137 "2026-01-21T22:43:27Z")
> [@veryfrank](#): > > The Escape Club’s “Wild Wild West” is musically just a rewrite of Elvis Costello’s “Pump it Up.” I always thought “Pump it Up” sounds a lot like Dylan’s “Subterranean Homesick Blues”. Also: The Eagles’ “The Greeks Don’t Want No Freaks” sounds a lot like the Beatles’ “Birthday”. “Since I’ve Been Loving You” on Led Zep III is a shameless copy of Black Cat Bones’ “Death Valley Blues” put to new lyrics. “Hotel California” sounds like Jethro Tull’s “We Used to Know”. Metallica’s “Enter Sandman” uses the bass line from Deep Purple’s “Space Trucking”. ---
**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:** [January 22, 2026, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/similar-sounding-songs/946986/138 "2026-01-22T02:15:42Z")
“The Word” by the Beatles (verses, not chorus) sounds like “You Keep Me Hangin’ On” by the Supremes. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2026, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/similar-sounding-songs/946986/139 "2026-01-22T03:17:09Z")
Yep. Nailed it. ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2026, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/similar-sounding-songs/946986/140 "2026-01-22T14:10:47Z")
OK, I think I got it now - not so near the surface with Van. Back to the thread. Here’s one that I remembered while watching a documentary last night. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/we0oo9t1gAQ/maxresdefault.jpg "The WASP (Texas Radio And The Big Beat) (2021 Remaster)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=we0oo9t1gAQ) and [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/BLbi6y4ktgc/hqdefault.jpg?sqp=-oaymwEmCOADEOgC8quKqQMa8AEB-AH-BIAC4AOKAgwIABABGH8gGSgdMA8=&rs=AOn4CLA3wpR_jqhy1nibOVEe4q-WaVAgMw "David Bowie - The Jean Genie") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLbi6y4ktgc) j ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2026, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/similar-sounding-songs/946986/141 "2026-01-22T14:13:45Z")
I’m not going to ETA that - YouTube videos and all - but just to add that I have half a memory that the riff they have in common is ancient, and there are many more instances of it. j [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/similar-sounding-songs/946986.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/similar-sounding-songs/946986.md?page=8)