# Songs based on books/tv shows/movies **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 8, 2013, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-based-on-books-tv-shows-movies/652417 "2013-03-08T19:30:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![edwards\_beard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7bcc69/32.png) [@edwards\_beard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/edwards_beard)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2013, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-based-on-books-tv-shows-movies/652417/21 "2013-03-08T22:26:34Z")
Thanks for the great ideas so far. I don’t know what’s wrong with me that I completely blanked on all the Tolkien references from Led Zeppelin > [@RealityChuck](#): > > “Ramble On” by Led Zeppelin has all sorts of references to **Lord of the Rings.** They also refer to the trilogy in “Misty Mountain Hop” and “No Quarter.” > > “Brave New World” by the Steve Miller Band takes the title from the book, but little else. > “Take the Money and Run” by Steve Miller has the same title as a Woody Allen film. > The Four Seasons’s “Big Girls Don’t Cry” is based upon a line from the movie **Slightly Scarlet** ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2013, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-based-on-books-tv-shows-movies/652417/22 "2013-03-08T22:29:24Z")
Bruce Springsteen “The Ghost of Tom Joad” was based on John Steinbeck’s _ **The Grapes of Wrath.** _ ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2013, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-based-on-books-tv-shows-movies/652417/23 "2013-03-08T22:31:44Z")
Jefferson Airplane’s “White Rabbit” is filled with characters and images from Lewis Carroll’s _ **Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.** _ ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2013, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-based-on-books-tv-shows-movies/652417/24 "2013-03-08T22:33:02Z")
Almost all the songs on Pink Floyd’s Animals album (“Dogs,” “Pigs,” and “Sheep”) were inspired by Orwell’s\*\*\* Animal Farm.\*\*\* ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2013, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-based-on-books-tv-shows-movies/652417/25 "2013-03-08T22:36:26Z")
Van Halen’s “Women In Love” has no connection to D.H. Lawrence’s novel of the same title. Bob Seger’s “Main Street” is not related to Sinclair Lewis’ novel of the same name. John D. Loudermilk’s “Tobacco Road” (recorded by the Nashville Teens) has no connection to Erskine Caldwell’s novel. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2013, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-based-on-books-tv-shows-movies/652417/26 "2013-03-08T22:37:26Z")
Of course, Metallica’s “One” was a musical retelling of Dalton Trumbo’s anti-war novel and movie _ **Johnny Got His Gun.** _ ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2013, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-based-on-books-tv-shows-movies/652417/27 "2013-03-08T22:39:24Z")
Bad Company named themselves and their first song after a Jeff Bridges Western called _ **Bad Company.** _ ---
**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:** [March 8, 2013, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-based-on-books-tv-shows-movies/652417/28 "2013-03-08T22:55:35Z")
TV Show: Frank Zappa - “Conehead” - Saturday Night Live Movie: Bryan Ferry - “2HB” - Casablanca Book: Kate Bush - “Wuthering Heights” - Wuthering Heights ---
**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:** [March 8, 2013, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-based-on-books-tv-shows-movies/652417/29 "2013-03-08T23:02:12Z")
**Cindy Brady (Have My Baby)** by The Saddle Tramps ---
**Author:** ![James\_Otto\_Sweet\_Heart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ac8455/32.png) [@James\_Otto\_Sweet\_Heart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/James_Otto_Sweet_Heart)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2013, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-based-on-books-tv-shows-movies/652417/30 "2013-03-09T00:10:42Z")
The writing of “The Rest Of Mine” from country singer Trace Adkins all began through the 1995 film named Phenomenon. 🙂 🙂 🙂 God bless you and Trace always!!! Holly (a day one fan of him) ---
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2013, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-based-on-books-tv-shows-movies/652417/31 "2013-03-09T00:21:19Z")
Weird Al also has Ode to a Superhero, which is all about the first Raimi Spider-Man movie, sung to the tune of Piano Man by Billy Joel ---
**Author:** ![Rain\_Soaked](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e19adc/32.png) [@Rain\_Soaked](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rain_Soaked)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2013, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-based-on-books-tv-shows-movies/652417/32 "2013-03-09T00:26:20Z")
The Dire Straits song **Romeo and Juliet** references _West Side Story_ (" I forget the movie song "). Of course, it also references that play by Bill Shakespeare. ---
**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:** [March 9, 2013, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-based-on-books-tv-shows-movies/652417/33 "2013-03-09T00:59:13Z")
Nerf Herder has a song called [Mr. Spock](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xK9P-BrfzLE), which, of course is about the Enterprise’s first officer and mentions Captain Kirk as well. Would you accept a song which was written for a movie, but doesn’t directly refer to the movie’s title? “Back In Time” by Huey Lewis & the News appeared in Back to the Future and the lyrics make references to things in the movie such as “Tell me Doctor, where are we going this time?” “Lightning never strikes twice,” and “Please don’t drive 88.” ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2013, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-based-on-books-tv-shows-movies/652417/34 "2013-03-09T01:09:12Z")
Sting’s _Bourbon Street_ was inspired by _Interview with the Vampire_. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2013, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-based-on-books-tv-shows-movies/652417/35 "2013-03-09T01:16:25Z")
Then there’s the Ballad of Bilbo Baggins, but I don’t know that we need another link to that. ---
**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:** [March 9, 2013, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-based-on-books-tv-shows-movies/652417/36 "2013-03-09T01:47:32Z")
“Key Largo” by Bertie Higgins strongly references the Bogart/Bacall movie of the same name, plus other Bogart films. “Pretty Maids All in a Row” by the Eagles takes its title from a Roger Vadim movie. ---
**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:** [March 9, 2013, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-based-on-books-tv-shows-movies/652417/37 "2013-03-09T03:38:25Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > [Weird Al has several songs about specific TV shows.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_TV_Album) Weird Al also recorded “Isle Thing,” a song about Gilligan’s Island. It was a parody of Tone Lōc’s “Wild Thing.” Nerf Herder recorded a song called “She’s a Sleestak,” which references the creatures from “Land of the Lost.” ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2013, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-based-on-books-tv-shows-movies/652417/38 "2013-03-09T04:09:09Z")
Phil Collins’ “Both Sides of the Story” is a musical re-telling of a major scene in Lawrence Kasdan’s movie _ **Grand Canyon.** _ In the movie, a black gang member who’s been menacing a stranded motorist (Kevin Kline) and a tow truck driver (Danny Glover) with a pistol observes, “No gun, no respect. That’s why I always got the gun.” ---
**Author:** ![Swamp\_Adder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/977dab/32.png) [@Swamp\_Adder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swamp_Adder)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2013, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-based-on-books-tv-shows-movies/652417/39 "2013-03-09T04:19:23Z")
[Star Trekkin’](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCARADb9asE) by The Firm [As You Wish](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CtBYLFcQzJs) by Aqueduct consists almost entire of quotes from The Princess Bride. ---
**Author:** ![Tangent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tangent/32/3098_2.png) [@Tangent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tangent)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2013, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-based-on-books-tv-shows-movies/652417/40 "2013-03-09T05:33:04Z")
[_Molly (16 Candles Down the Drain)_ by Sponge](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oS_NgT607hQ) is named after Molly Ringwald, who starred in the movie _Sixteen Candles_. The song, however, isn’t about Molly Ringwald or the movie. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-based-on-books-tv-shows-movies/652417.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-based-on-books-tv-shows-movies/652417.md?page=3)