# Songs that "sound" like covers of another band or group, but aren't **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [April 17, 2020, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-covers-of-another-band-or-group-but-arent/851982 "2020-04-17T15:11:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2020, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-covers-of-another-band-or-group-but-arent/851982/41 "2020-04-19T18:44:39Z")
Listen to Krokus “Long Stick Goes Boom” and tell me that’s not AC/DC. It’s better AC/DC than the band itself. Pretty much every ELO song other than their hits is pure Beatles. People used to say that ELO was the new Beatles, and I couldn’t hear it, until I got past their hits. It’s true. There was a song in the 80s, I sure wish I could remember, I think a one hit wonder. Anyway, it sounded exactly like what the Beatles would sound like, if they has stayed together and cut an album at the time. I hope it comes to me. ---
**Author:** ![Jet\_Jaguar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jet_jaguar/32/3562_2.png) [@Jet\_Jaguar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jet_Jaguar)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2020, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-covers-of-another-band-or-group-but-arent/851982/42 "2020-04-19T18:54:27Z")
A song currently on the charts, when I first heard [“Bad Decisions” by The Strokes](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5fbZTnZDvPA), I thought it was a Cheap Trick cover. ---
**Author:** ![Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/marvin_the_martian/32/2898_2.png) [@Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marvin_the_Martian)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2020, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-covers-of-another-band-or-group-but-arent/851982/43 "2020-04-20T00:16:56Z")
For a long time I thought that [Journey to the Center of the Mind](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_onagRhKN5E) was the Moody Blues. Probably conflating the title with Legend of a Mind but the sound isn’t too far off either. ---
**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:** [April 20, 2020, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-covers-of-another-band-or-group-but-arent/851982/44 "2020-04-20T00:29:49Z")
> [@Johanna](#): > > The word for what the thread OP is about is _[pastiche](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pastiche)_. Pastiche isn’t quite the same as parody, nor is it exactly hommage. It falls short of plagiarism. What is it? It’s just… finding stuff and using it, to do something familiar and yet different. The link explains it well: a pastiche is like a parody, but while a parody pokes fun at something, a pastiche celebrates it. In music, it deliberately sound like someone/something, but doesn’t make it seem ridiculous. An example in literature are August Derleth’s Solar Pons stories, which are pastiches of Sherlock Holmes, where everything is played straight. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2020, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-covers-of-another-band-or-group-but-arent/851982/45 "2020-04-20T06:10:00Z")
I’ve always thought that **Daydream Believer** sounds like a cover of a Turtles song. ---
**Author:** ![Green\_Bean](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_bean/32/1760_2.png) [@Green\_Bean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Bean)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2020, 7:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-covers-of-another-band-or-group-but-arent/851982/46 "2020-04-20T07:18:12Z")
> [@blondebear](#): > > When I first heard\* Surrender\* by Cheap Trick, I was sure it was a new Who song. But then the vocals kicked in…Robin Zander has a good voice, but he ain’t Roger Daltrey. I thought you were nuts when I read this, but then I took a listen. You’re spot-on. It’s really only the intro, but boy is that Who-y. > [@Joey\_P](#): > > For me, at least lately, it’s been Greta Van Fleet. The first few times I heard something I couldn’t believe there it was possible for there to be a Led Zeppelin song I didn’t know. [Listen to this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJg4OJxp-co) and tell me it doesn’t sound like Robert Plant and Jimmy Page. Greta Van Fleet is pretty much a direct Zep rip-off. [When the Curtain Falls](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=86_vnQc1oBE) is another good example. The drummer seems like he’s trying very hard to channel John Bonham in that one. I rather like Greta Van Fleet, but it’s a little hard to respect them. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2020, 9:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-covers-of-another-band-or-group-but-arent/851982/47 "2020-04-20T09:49:32Z")
[Remember You’re A Womble](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXep9gPzElY) (by Mike Batt) is definitely supposed to be a Status Quo song. ---
**Author:** ![mcgato](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac8455/32.png) [@mcgato](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mcgato)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2020, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-covers-of-another-band-or-group-but-arent/851982/48 "2020-04-20T12:42:58Z")
[“Forever Young” by Alphaville](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1TcDHrkQYg) is usually mistaken for a Cure song. ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanub/32/132_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUB)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2020, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-covers-of-another-band-or-group-but-arent/851982/49 "2020-04-20T12:43:08Z")
For years I thought [Toy Matinee’s “Ballad of Jenny Ledge”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRGMEIX1a5Y) was Steely Dan. I don’t know any of their other stuff but if it all sounds like that one they could be a SD tribute band. ---
**Author:** ![C.Montgomery\_Burns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ecd19e/32.png) [@C.Montgomery\_Burns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C.Montgomery_Burns)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2020, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-covers-of-another-band-or-group-but-arent/851982/50 "2020-04-21T23:27:44Z")
“Lies” by The Knickerbockers was a fairly good sound-alike for the Fab Four era Beatles. They were an American band, but on the song the lead singer is singing with a definite John Lennon impression, right down to the Liverpool-ish accent. It came out almost exactly at the time The Beatles were starting to move away from that sound. ---
**Author:** ![Yorkshire\_Pudding](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/59ef9b/32.png) [@Yorkshire\_Pudding](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yorkshire_Pudding)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2020, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-covers-of-another-band-or-group-but-arent/851982/51 "2020-04-21T23:36:53Z")
> [@mcgato](#): > > [“Forever Young” by Alphaville](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1TcDHrkQYg) is usually mistaken for a Cure song. Is it? I mean, yeah, I get it, but is that a thing? Again, one of the many possible ‘different nations/different cultural awareness’ mistakes. ---
**Author:** ![River\_Hippie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/river_hippie/32/26_2.png) [@River\_Hippie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/River_Hippie)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2020, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-covers-of-another-band-or-group-but-arent/851982/52 "2020-04-22T00:10:14Z")
This Rolling Stones song starts like it’s going to be a ZZ Top “La Grange” cover. [Hip Shake](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVJUJxCQp0I) ---
**Author:** ![Happytree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happytree/32/3555_2.png) [@Happytree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happytree)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2020, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-covers-of-another-band-or-group-but-arent/851982/53 "2020-04-22T00:23:09Z")
I was sure “Roses Are Free” by Ween was a Prince cover the first time i heard it. ---
**Author:** ![ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chockfullofheadygoodness/32/511_2.png) [@ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2020, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-covers-of-another-band-or-group-but-arent/851982/54 "2020-04-22T17:07:04Z")
> [@skdo23](#): > > This was done to death in 1992, but _Plush_ by Stone Temple Pilots sounded like it was sung by Pearl Jam. A few years later, _Big Bang Baby_ sounded like STP was channeling their recent tour mates Redd Kross. A big chunk of Rancid’s catalog sounds like it could be Clash covers. ---
**Author:** ![ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chockfullofheadygoodness/32/511_2.png) [@ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2020, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-covers-of-another-band-or-group-but-arent/851982/55 "2020-04-22T17:09:12Z")
> [@Manwich](#): > > Ghostbusters / I Want a New Drug is the exception that proves that rule, at least legally. And to bring it back to the OP, throw in Queen’s _The Invisible Man_ ---
**Author:** ![Yorkshire\_Pudding](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/59ef9b/32.png) [@Yorkshire\_Pudding](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yorkshire_Pudding)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2020, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-covers-of-another-band-or-group-but-arent/851982/56 "2020-04-22T17:27:49Z")
I had Spotify playing me some Counting Crows type stuff this afternoon, and it did as you’d imagine: Ben Folds, Sheryl Crow, Better Than Ezra, Wallflowers, the odd bit of Tom Petty, Barenaked Ladies, Third Eye Blind, etc. Then it put on something I’d never heard before but which made me think “Bon Jovi? That’s a bit off-piste for a Crows playlist, isn’t it?” I was dismantling a fridge at the time and couldn’t immediately check. Looked it up later: turns out the mystery ‘Bon Jovi’ track was Save Me San Francisco by Train. ---
**Author:** ![jt65742](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ea5d25/32.png) [@jt65742](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jt65742)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2020, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-covers-of-another-band-or-group-but-arent/851982/57 "2020-04-22T17:42:54Z")
When I first heard “Make Me Feel” by Janelle Monae I was sure it was cover of a Prince song I had not heard. ---
**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:** [April 22, 2020, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-covers-of-another-band-or-group-but-arent/851982/58 "2020-04-22T18:23:46Z")
I heard that song on the radio today and thought of this thread: I think everybody thought they were listening to Depeche Mode when this came out in 1989: Camouflage - [Love Is A Shield](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DL_Pxgqmno) Might as well post this: Camouflage - [The Great Commandment](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6s1-caKRtQ) ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2020, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-covers-of-another-band-or-group-but-arent/851982/59 "2020-04-22T20:25:30Z")
[Lunatic Fringe](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqUa_G1h3pw) by Red Rider sounds like a Fleetwood Mac song. [Walk of Life](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nUW6G5QdyYU) by Dire Straits sounds just like a Bruce Springsteen song. And pretty much every Bruno Mars song sounds like funk/R&B from the 70’s to 90’s. ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-covers-of-another-band-or-group-but-arent/851982/60 "2020-04-28T16:21:37Z")
I always thought “[There She Goes](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eu2iv-vMKT8)” by The La’s was a cover of something. Turns out it was not. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-covers-of-another-band-or-group-but-arent/851982.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-covers-of-another-band-or-group-but-arent/851982.md?page=4)