# Songs knowingly done in the style of another artist **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 30, 2008, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-knowingly-done-in-the-style-of-another-artist/435587 "2008-01-30T14:54:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![kelly5078](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/6f9a4e/32.png) [@kelly5078](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kelly5078)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2008, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-knowingly-done-in-the-style-of-another-artist/435587/21 "2008-01-30T17:31:21Z")
> [@spoke-](#): > > Buddy Holly and the Crickets were knowingly copping Bo Diddley’s style with “Not Fade Away.” And then there’s Tommy Roe’s “Sheila,” knowingly copying Buddy Holly, right down to the falsetto (or is it just a little boy voice?) and hiccup. ---
**Author:** ![TLDRIDKJKLOLFTW](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/51bf81/32.png) [@TLDRIDKJKLOLFTW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TLDRIDKJKLOLFTW)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2008, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-knowingly-done-in-the-style-of-another-artist/435587/22 "2008-01-30T19:11:02Z")
An obscure one that I’ve always liked is Sugar Ray’s “Rivers,” which is a near-perfect Weezer tribute/pastiche. It was only released on a movie soundtrack sometime in the mid-nineties. ---
**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:** [January 30, 2008, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-knowingly-done-in-the-style-of-another-artist/435587/23 "2008-01-30T19:27:30Z")
I’m going to nominate Todd Rundgren’s “Good Vibrations,” a note-for note cover of the Beach Boys’ original, complete with Rundgren’s channeling of Brian Wilson. ---
**Author:** ![Manduck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/manduck/32/256_2.png) [@Manduck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Manduck)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2008, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-knowingly-done-in-the-style-of-another-artist/435587/24 "2008-01-30T19:37:10Z")
XTC did a couple of albums under the name The Dukes of Stratosphear, that was entirely pastiches of psychedelic-era music. The song “Pale and Precious” is in the style of the Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds album. There are lots of other examples, but I can’t think of the titles right now. ---
**Author:** ![Winston\_Bongo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a9adbd/32.png) [@Winston\_Bongo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Winston_Bongo)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2008, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-knowingly-done-in-the-style-of-another-artist/435587/25 "2008-01-30T19:49:46Z")
[QUOTE=kelly5078] And then there’s Tommy Roe’s “Sheila,” knowingly copying Buddy Holly, right down to the falsetto (or is it just a little boy voice?) and hiccup. [/QUOTE] Wha . . . ? :eek: I have thought for my \*entire life \* that Buddy Holly sang “Sheila.” Then again, I also thought “Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress” was CCR until just a few years ago. Okay, I’ll add one: Sam Phillips’ entire album \*Martinis and Bikinis \* intentionally mimics The Beatles, but not to the point of being a rip-off or parody. It’s more of a “music inspired by” kind of thing, and it works really well. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2008, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-knowingly-done-in-the-style-of-another-artist/435587/26 "2008-01-30T20:35:33Z")
Rush, believe it or not. Alex Lifeson’s guitar work on _Between Sun and Moon_, from their Counterparts CD, was supposedly a direct nod to Mark Knopfler/Dire Straits. And frankly, I hear some Keith Richards and even Angus Young in there, too. _Heresy_, from Roll the Bones, sounds a lot like U2. ---
**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:** [January 30, 2008, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-knowingly-done-in-the-style-of-another-artist/435587/27 "2008-01-30T20:46:56Z")
Tom Lehrer’s takes on “Clementine.” The Turtles did an entire album called “The Turtles Present the Battle of the Bands” where they mimicked other bands and styles of music, including “Surfer Dan” (The Beach Boys) and “Eleanor” (the Beatles), as well as examples of bluegrass, psychedelic rock, hard rock, country, and Hawaiian Music (“I’m King Kamanawanalea,” a fairly bawdy pun for the time). “Kamanawanalea” sounds like “Come on I wanna lay ya.” ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2008, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-knowingly-done-in-the-style-of-another-artist/435587/28 "2008-01-30T20:47:33Z")
**"Two Doors Down."** That’s the song where **Dwight Yoakam** does a brief **George Jones** impression in the middle of the song. I knew it would come to me ---
**Author:** ![stpauler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@stpauler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stpauler)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2008, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-knowingly-done-in-the-style-of-another-artist/435587/29 "2008-01-30T21:01:50Z")
The Beautiful South did a song called “Liars’ Bar” a la Tom Waits, the lyrics, piano and even a raspy voice are pretty spot on. ---
**Author:** ![Wee\_Bairn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/90db22/32.png) [@Wee\_Bairn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wee_Bairn)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2008, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-knowingly-done-in-the-style-of-another-artist/435587/30 "2008-01-30T21:19:11Z")
I would add Badfinger, but even with the Apple connection I don’t know if you could say they made a conscious effort to sound like the Fab Four. I also can’t recall enough about Klaatus’s first album to remember if the music sounded like them at all either, albeit in inferior form. ---
**Author:** ![Ponch8](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponch8/32/9883_2.png) [@Ponch8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponch8)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2008, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-knowingly-done-in-the-style-of-another-artist/435587/31 "2008-01-30T21:20:50Z")
“Virtual Insanity” by Jamiroquai sounds very similar to Stevie Wonder. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2008, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-knowingly-done-in-the-style-of-another-artist/435587/32 "2008-01-30T21:32:06Z")
Frank Zappa’s “I Don’t Wanna Get Drafted” from his “You Are What You Is” album has a distinctly Doors-ish cheesy keyboard riff. ---
**Author:** ![TWDuke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e495f1/32.png) [@TWDuke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TWDuke)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2008, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-knowingly-done-in-the-style-of-another-artist/435587/33 "2008-01-30T21:51:21Z")
In much of his pre-Space Oddity work, David Bowie consciously imitated Anthony Newley. Please do not listen for yourself; take my word for it. Later, “Queen Bitch” was a deliberate and acknowledged homage to Velvet Underground. ---
**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:** [January 30, 2008, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-knowingly-done-in-the-style-of-another-artist/435587/34 "2008-01-30T23:26:33Z")
[QUOTE=Shoeless] Frank Zappa’s “I Don’t Wanna Get Drafted” from his “You Are What You Is” album has a distinctly Doors-ish cheesy keyboard riff. [/QUOTE] Are you thinking of the mock-Doors organ solo in “If Only She Woulda,” which precedes “Drafted” on the album? That’s played by Arthur Barrow, who had previously worked with the Doors on the _An American Prayer_ album. ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2008, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-knowingly-done-in-the-style-of-another-artist/435587/35 "2008-01-30T23:39:30Z")
[QUOTE=Garfield226] In addition to flat-out parodies, Weird Al Yankovic also does pastiches. “[Dare to be Stupid](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2nIlFsERnmk),” of DEVO, “[Bob](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nej4xJe4Tdg)” of Bob Dylan, and “[Pancreas](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tq_-zxPgFzE)” of The Beach Boys are all examples. [/QUOTE] I’ve heard that “Everything You Know is Wrong” is a style parody.pastiche of They Might Be Giants…seems reasonable enough to me., but I only know a handful of their songs. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2008, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-knowingly-done-in-the-style-of-another-artist/435587/36 "2008-01-30T23:50:08Z")
[QUOTE=stpauler] The Beautiful South did a song called “Liars’ Bar” a la Tom Waits, the lyrics, piano and even a raspy voice are pretty spot on. [/QUOTE] Well they’d better be careful. Tom waits has been known to sue for “misappropriation” of his singing style. [Example 1](http://php.iupui.edu/~jwarvel2/tw/fritolay.htm). [Example 2](http://www.allbusiness.com/retail-trade/miscellaneous-retail-retail-stores-not/4380504-1.html). ---
**Author:** ![Talon\_Karrde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Talon\_Karrde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Talon_Karrde)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2008, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-knowingly-done-in-the-style-of-another-artist/435587/37 "2008-01-30T23:59:23Z")
[QUOTE=kelly5078] The Beatles’ “Back in the USSR” is definitely a nod to the Beach Boys. But I can see where **AskNott** would see Chuck Berry’s influence, and am prepared to call it a hybrid. [/QUOTE] From what I hear, musically most of the song is an homage to Chuck Berry, while the bridge (“the Ukraine girls really knock me out…”) is a musical homage to the Beach Boys, and the lyrics are also a bit of a parody of California Girls. Other things I’ve heard but can’t confirm: Here, There, and Everywhere is intentionally in the style of the Beach Boys. The Beach Boys song Girl Don’t Tell Me is a Beatles homage. It does sound a little like Ticket to Ride. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2008, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-knowingly-done-in-the-style-of-another-artist/435587/38 "2008-01-31T00:17:06Z")
[QUOTE=bouv] I’ve heard that “Everything You Know is Wrong” is a style parody.pastiche of They Might Be Giants…seems reasonable enough to me., but I only know a handful of their songs. [/QUOTE] Don’t forget _Genius in France_, which is, I believe, a style parody of both TMBG and Zappa (and even features Dweezil Zappa on lead guitar). ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Angel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d26b3c/32.png) [@Johnny\_Angel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Angel)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2008, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-knowingly-done-in-the-style-of-another-artist/435587/39 "2008-01-31T00:22:53Z")
Tom Waits’ _Gin Soaked Boy_ is pretty clearly meant to sound like a Howlin’ Wolf song. A group called Big Daddy used to do 80’s songs in the styles of 50’s and 60’s songs: Money for Nothing in the style of Sixteen Tons Sussudio to the tune of Runaround Sue Billy Jean as Be-bop-a-lula Ebony and Ivory as Little Richard Little Red Corvette as Little Nash Rambler They also did a whole album Beatles’ songs in different styles: When I’m Sixty-Four as 60 Minute Man A Day in the Life as Buddy Holly singing O Boy It’s hard to get ahold of these records anymore, but you can listen to samples of their stuff here: [http://www.themadmusicarchive.com/artist\_details.aspx?ArtistID=541](http://www.themadmusicarchive.com/artist_details.aspx?ArtistID=541) ---
**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:** [January 31, 2008, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-knowingly-done-in-the-style-of-another-artist/435587/40 "2008-01-31T00:28:25Z")
The Bonzo Dog Band’s “Death Cab for Cutie\*” is a dead on take on Elvis. [Here’s the song](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Omc9lkSjYjc), from their one film appearance. No points for spotting the celebrities in the audience. \*Yes, that’s where it comes from. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-knowingly-done-in-the-style-of-another-artist/435587.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-knowingly-done-in-the-style-of-another-artist/435587.md?page=3)