# Song Parodies That Are Better Than The Original **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 12, 2014, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-parodies-that-are-better-than-the-original/681168 "2014-02-12T17:48:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2014, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-parodies-that-are-better-than-the-original/681168/1 "2014-02-12T17:48:14Z")
On the way home from work yesterday, the station I was listening to treated (?) me to R.E.M.'s “Stand.” By the time the song was almost through and I’d heard the same lyrics a few times over, I thought, “you know, Al Yankovic’s “Spam” is actually a better song on the merits: the same music, but easily more interesting lyrics.” And it got me to wondering: how many song parodies succeed in being better than the original song being parodied? I can’t imagine that there are many such songs, because most parodied songs are pretty good to begin with. For instance, part of the reason Yankovic’s “Yoda” and “Eat It” are good is that the Kinks’ “Lola” and Michael Jackson’s “Beat It” were good. The only other example I could think of was the Rutles’ “Cheese and Onions” which is loosely a parody of “All Together Now” from the Beatles’ “Yellow Submarine,” but turns itself into something more by borrowing from “A Day In The Life” and possibly other songs. But it’s clearly not intended as a parody of “A Day In The Life.” So here’s my very short list: Yankovic’s “Spam” \> R.E.M.‘s “Stand” The Rutles’ “Cheese and Onions” \> The Beatles’ “All Together Now” Anybody got any others? ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2014, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-parodies-that-are-better-than-the-original/681168/2 "2014-02-12T17:52:32Z")
Lewis Carroll’s parodies of hildren’s poems have long outlasted the original, maudlin works in public memory. I’m not sure if that makes them “better”, but they certainly are more compelling and more fun. To me. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2014, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-parodies-that-are-better-than-the-original/681168/3 "2014-02-12T17:58:28Z")
Weird Al’s parodies are often better songs than the originals. My favorite example is Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way”: - It doesn’t matter if you love him or capital H-I-M Just put your paws up 'Cause you were born this way, baby My mama told me when I was young We are all born superstars She rolled my hair and put my lipstick on In the glass of her boudoir\* …versus Al’s “Perform This Way”. \* My mama told me when I was hatched Act like a superstar Save your allowance, buy a bubble dress And someday you will go far Now on red carpets, well, I’m hard to miss The press follows everywhere I go I’ll poke your eye out with a dress like this Back off and enjoy the show\* Her lyrics are mediocre, with poor rhymes and barely scan. His are far better and have good rhymes. ---
**Author:** ![johnspartan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a183cd/32.png) [@johnspartan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnspartan)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2014, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-parodies-that-are-better-than-the-original/681168/4 "2014-02-12T18:06:57Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > Weird Al’s parodies are often better songs than the originals. My favorite example is Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way”: > > - > > It doesn’t matter if you love him > or capital H-I-M > Just put your paws up > 'Cause you were born this way, baby > > My mama told me when I was young > We are all born superstars > She rolled my hair and put my lipstick on > In the glass of her boudoir\* > > …versus Al’s “Perform This Way”. > \* > My mama told me when I was hatched > Act like a superstar > Save your allowance, buy a bubble dress > And someday you will go far > > Now on red carpets, well, I’m hard to miss > The press follows everywhere I go > I’ll poke your eye out with a dress like this > Back off and enjoy the show\* > > Her lyrics are mediocre, with poor rhymes and barely scan. His are far better and have good rhymes. There’s a pretty good X-Men one of this song too… [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=faOf0qSI1us](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=faOf0qSI1us) White and Nerdy I’d argue is better than the original. ---
**Author:** ![Buck\_Godot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/buck_godot/32/6573_2.png) [@Buck\_Godot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buck_Godot)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2014, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-parodies-that-are-better-than-the-original/681168/5 "2014-02-12T18:10:09Z")
“White an Nerdy” is the greatest song evah. “Ridin dirty”? meh. ---
**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:** [February 12, 2014, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-parodies-that-are-better-than-the-original/681168/6 "2014-02-12T18:11:46Z")
Weird Al Yankovic’s “Gump,” which is a parody of “Lump” by the Presidents of the United States of America. “Lump” lyrics: _Lump sat alone in a boggy marsh Totally motionless except for her heart Mud flowed up into Lump’s pajamas She totally confused all the passing piranhas_ “Gump” lyrics: _Gump sat alone on a bench in the park “My name is Forrest,” he’d casually remark Waitin’ for the bus with his hands in his pockets He just kept sayin’ “Life is like a box of chocolates”_ The lyrics scan perfectly with the tune and convey the plot of the movie. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2014, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-parodies-that-are-better-than-the-original/681168/7 "2014-02-12T18:24:03Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Lewis Carroll’s parodies of hildren’s poems have long outlasted the original, maudlin works in public memory. I’m not sure if that makes them “better”, but they certainly are more compelling and more fun. To me. I concur! I’ve read the originals at least in part, courtesy of _The Annotated Alice_, and they are pretty treacly stuff. Just to pick one: Against Idleness and Mischief (Isaac Watts) How doth the little busy bee Improve each shining hour, And gather honey all the day From every opening flower! How skillfully she builds her cell! How neat she spreads the wax! And labours hard to store it well With the sweet food she makes. Carroll: How doth the little crocodile Improve his shining tail, And pour the waters of the Nile On every golden scale! How cheerfully he seems to grin, How neatly spreads his claws, And welcomes little fishes in, With gently smiling jaws! No contest. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2014, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-parodies-that-are-better-than-the-original/681168/8 "2014-02-12T18:46:06Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > The only other example I could think of was the Rutles’ “Cheese and Onions” which is loosely a parody of “All Together Now” from the Beatles’ “Yellow Submarine,” but turns itself into something more by borrowing from “A Day In The Life” and possibly other songs. But it’s clearly not intended as a parody of “A Day In The Life.” A group called Big Daddy did _A Day in the Life_ in the style of Buddy Holly. I don’t know if I’d say it’s better than the original, but as a pastiche of Holly and the Beatles it’s brilliant. https://www.youtube.com/embed/AsPJq0Xomxw?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2014, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-parodies-that-are-better-than-the-original/681168/9 "2014-02-12T18:49:11Z")
> [@Buck\_Godot](#): > > “White an Nerdy” is the greatest song evah. > > “Ridin dirty”? meh. Likewise, “It’s All About the Pentiums” and “It’s All About the Benjamins”. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2014, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-parodies-that-are-better-than-the-original/681168/10 "2014-02-12T19:16:14Z")
Likewise for _Smells Like Nirvana_, and it’s not particularly close. ---
**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:** [February 12, 2014, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-parodies-that-are-better-than-the-original/681168/11 "2014-02-12T19:20:43Z")
Concur with Lewis Carroll, and with at least a few of Weird Al’s songs, going back to the early years (“Hey Ricky” vs “Hey Mickey”). ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2014, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-parodies-that-are-better-than-the-original/681168/12 "2014-02-12T19:28:53Z")
I’ll preface this by saying that I am not a Don McLean fan, and generally dislike American Pie for being incomprehensible crap. That said, “The Saga Begins” is the set of lyrics that pops into my head when the music starts, not the lyrics to “American Pie.” Weird Al did something right if his lyrics replaced those of a classic song in someone’s head, even if they dislike the classic song. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2014, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-parodies-that-are-better-than-the-original/681168/13 "2014-02-12T20:01:30Z")
> [@bump](#): > > I’ll preface this by saying that I am not a Don McLean fan, and generally dislike American Pie for being incomprehensible crap. > > That said, “The Saga Begins” is the set of lyrics that pops into my head when the music starts, not the lyrics to “American Pie.” > > Weird Al did something right if his lyrics replaced those of a classic song in someone’s head, even if they dislike the classic song. I was going to post this example. I think it shows how much Weird Al fundamentally appreciates the Star Wars series – the lyrics are somehow lovingly crafted. He tells the whole story. ---
**Author:** ![stpauler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@stpauler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stpauler)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2014, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-parodies-that-are-better-than-the-original/681168/14 "2014-02-12T20:26:23Z")
I’m a big fan of drag queen Willam and his well done parodies (usually accompanied by Detox and Vicky Vox). He covered Blurred Lines and made it about actress Amanda Bynnes’ slide into drug use. I think your comeback gig will be on “Intervention” (oh I love A&E) Cause you smoked your SAG/AFTRA pension Coke nose shot-muggin’ (Boop, Boop, Boop) Smoked a Glade Plug-In. (Boop, Boop, Boop)(You can do that?) Better get them drugs in. (Boop, Boop, Boop) That’s why we gonna take a seat girl. We right behind you, you just do you boo, fire can gonna stop you. (We love you…) Got your back, girl. What I like about you. (Alright) Is when you huff glue. Talking shit when you Vine too. We love you Blurred Bynes. New tits real sexy, wig extra messy, looking real, real sketchy But you a mess girl. (Mess girl~) Bitch when you O.D., you’re gonna O.D., (alright) go ahead Amanda Bynes Fuck Amanda Bynes! [(Full lyrics here)](http://lybio.net/detox-willam-vicky-vox-dwv-blurred-bynes/parody/) They also re-did Wilson Phillips’ “Hold On” to a song about Chik-Fil-A servin’ up their bigotry called “Chow Down (at Chik-Fil-A)”: Have it your way (Have it your way) (Yeah, take that shit) BK, McD, Subway all taste the same (Preservatives) You’re tired of eating meat that just went moo (Sorry ’bout that) Taco Tuesday makes your butt spew (Hamburger Mary’s Tace Tuesday Excluded!!!) (farts) (That’s gross) So please don’t sue us for libel (For libel) We just want a little meat without your Bible Someday somebody’s gonna make you want to gobble up a waffle fry. But no no, don’t you know, Chick-Fil-A says you make the baby Jesus cry. Dude’s with boobs, Gay-for-Pay, even Dykes say hey So chow down at Chick-fil-A Chow down at Chick-fil-A Even if you’re gay (Even if you’re gay) Chow down at Chick-fil-A [(Full lyrics here)](http://lybio.net/chow-down-at-chick-fil-a/parody/) ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2014, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-parodies-that-are-better-than-the-original/681168/15 "2014-02-12T20:42:07Z")
Just as everyone remembers Lewis Carroll’s comical “Father William” but not the actual didactic poetry it was lampooning… many people still remember Cheech & Chong’s “Basketball Jones” but almost nobody remembers “Love Jones,” the soul song that inspired it. ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2014, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-parodies-that-are-better-than-the-original/681168/16 "2014-02-12T21:00:51Z")
Weird Al is the ghod of parodies. Eat It Ricky The Saga Begins And so many others… ---
**Author:** ![Doug\_K](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5ac83/32.png) [@Doug\_K](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_K)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2014, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-parodies-that-are-better-than-the-original/681168/17 "2014-02-12T21:08:21Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > The only other example I could think of was the Rutles’ “Cheese and Onions” which is loosely a parody of “All Together Now” from the Beatles’ “Yellow Submarine,” but turns itself into something more by borrowing from “A Day In The Life” and possibly other songs. But it’s clearly not intended as a parody of “A Day In The Life.” In 1976, the first Rutles album, Neil Innes sang Cheese and Onions on NBC’s Saturday Night (Before it was renamed Saturday Night Live). He was introduced as “The Rutle who lives in New York: Nasty”. Neil was the musical guest on that show. He also did, with a small orchestra of musicians dressed as bobbies another song that was reworked into a Rutles song for The Rutles Archaeology, Shangri-La. I thought the original performances of both were far superior to the reworked versions. Cheese and Onions was just Neil singing and playing piano. The Day in the Life sounding stuff was added for the Rutles album. In its original form it was more reminiscent of Imagine, but it was not a direct parody. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2014, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-parodies-that-are-better-than-the-original/681168/18 "2014-02-12T21:14:26Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > Likewise for _Smells Like Nirvana_, and it’s not particularly close. Oh, c’mon. I’m not much of a Nirvana fan, but gimme a break. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2014, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-parodies-that-are-better-than-the-original/681168/19 "2014-02-12T21:40:55Z")
> [@bump](#): > > I’ll preface this by saying that I am not a Don McLean fan, and generally dislike American Pie for being incomprehensible crap. > > That said, “The Saga Begins” is the set of lyrics that pops into my head when the music starts, not the lyrics to “American Pie.” > > Weird Al did something right if his lyrics replaced those of a classic song in someone’s head, even if they dislike the classic song. Hell, that’s true for me of plenty of Weird Al’s songs (“Yoda,” “Eat It,” “I Love Rocky Road,” “King of Suede,” etc.), but that doesn’t mean the parody is _better._ ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2014, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-parodies-that-are-better-than-the-original/681168/20 "2014-02-12T22:13:58Z")
A band called Modern Man did a parody of Bruce Springsteen’s “Born To Run” and wrote it around some New Jersey food-safety legislation that was going to ban soft-cooked eggs at diners (_band comment_: “Evidently they’ve solved that whole pesky ‘crime’ problem …”) and titled it, appropriately enough: “Eggs Like These.” 'Cuz baby eggs like these, Baby they were born to runnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn _audience singalong_: Bahhhh, bah bah bah, baaahhhh, baaaaaAAAAAAAhhhhhhhh _band comment_: The words are “BAH.” I couldn’t find much beyond [their own site](http://robcarlsonmusic.com/music.html) – scroll down for The Wide Album for the tracks. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-parodies-that-are-better-than-the-original/681168.md?page=2)