# Songs that "steal" from other songs (not sampled) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 22, 2012, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-steal-from-other-songs-not-sampled/622727 "2012-05-22T15:55:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-steal-from-other-songs-not-sampled/622727/61 "2012-05-24T13:15:14Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Please explain the difference between songs that “have lines from other songs sung in the same style as the original” vs “samples”?😕 In one, you play Keith Richards’ riff to “Satisfaction” yourself, on your own guitar, and include it in your different song. In the other, you record Keith’s actual riff from that song and drop it into your song. The former is “stealing,” the latter is “sampling.” ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-steal-from-other-songs-not-sampled/622727/62 "2012-05-24T13:25:20Z")
Frank Zappa’s “Plastic People” is very similar to “Louie Louie.” Elvis’s “It’s Now or Never” is an acknowledged plundering of “O Sole Mio” by by Giovanni Capurro and Eduardo di Capua. “Because” by the Beatles–music, not lyrics–is Beethoven’s “Midnight Sonata” played backwards. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-steal-from-other-songs-not-sampled/622727/63 "2012-05-24T13:48:39Z")
> [@Nonsuch](#): > > To be fair, “I Feel Fine” bears a not-coincidental resemblance to [“Watch Your Step”](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TvtabNAb_wE) by Bobby Parker. > > The bridge of John’s “Sexy Sadie” on the White Album deliberately copies the chords from the verse of Paul’s “Here There and Everywhere.” > > And one more Beatles example: “Sun King” was acknowledged by the Fabs as an out-and-out ripoff of Fleetwood Mac’s “Albatross.” > ." Perhaps so, but Sugarloaf was referencing the Beatles, and even allude directly to the Beatles in the lyrics. The song itself is about a band trying desperately to talk a record executive into giving them a contract. He tells them “You ain’t bad, but I’ve heard it all before,” and then observes that the song’s riff sounds a lot like “John, Paul and George.” ---
**Author:** ![SunSandSuffering](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@SunSandSuffering](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SunSandSuffering)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-steal-from-other-songs-not-sampled/622727/64 "2012-05-24T14:22:53Z")
Madonna’s ‘Hung Up’ ripped ABBA’s ‘Gimme Gimme Gimme’ Coldplay’s ‘Talk’ ripped Kraftwerk’s ‘Computer Love’ \ ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-steal-from-other-songs-not-sampled/622727/65 "2012-05-24T14:49:25Z")
Old 97’s have a recent song called “[Champaign, Illinois](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cQuXuHBneOw)” that is a shortened, up-tempo version of Bob Dylan’s “[Desolation Row](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0onT5Us4Mk)” but with different lyrics. Dylan is even listed as a co-writer of the song. Another Old 97s song, “Big Brown Eyes,” contains the lyric: “You don’t want me anymore, since Fame and Fortune broke down our door” which is very similar to a lyric in Loretta Lynn’s “Success” which goes “You don’t have time to love me anymore, since Fame and Fortune knocked upon our door.” ---
**Author:** ![mrpayday](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@mrpayday](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mrpayday)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-steal-from-other-songs-not-sampled/622727/66 "2012-05-24T14:49:34Z")
The Sex Pistol’s “Submission” is the Kinks “All Day and all of the Night” [link](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7UZ0bPaOdbQ) ---
**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:** [May 24, 2012, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-steal-from-other-songs-not-sampled/622727/67 "2012-05-24T14:56:52Z")
Martin Mull’s “Licks Off of Records” quotes the guitar parts from “Day Tripper,” “Sunshine of Your Love,” and “Satisfaction.” ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-steal-from-other-songs-not-sampled/622727/68 "2012-05-24T15:05:18Z")
In “Long May You Run,” a tribute to his old car, Neil Young sings: _**Maybe the Beach Boys have got you now, With those waves singing "Caroline, oh, Caroline, no."**_ (“Caroline, No” was the last song on the classic \*\*\*Pet Sounds \*\*\*album.) ---
**Author:** ![SunSandSuffering](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@SunSandSuffering](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SunSandSuffering)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-steal-from-other-songs-not-sampled/622727/69 "2012-05-24T15:35:28Z")
Kraftwerk’s “Autobahn” ripped The Beach Boy’s “Fun Fun Fun” (“wir fahren fahren fahren auf der autobahn”) ---
**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:** [May 24, 2012, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-steal-from-other-songs-not-sampled/622727/70 "2012-05-24T16:08:05Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > Early Led Zeppelin has lots of lines stolen from Robert Johnson; I’m thinking particularly of the “squeeze my lemons till the juice runs down my leg” line. The amount of borrowing/theft is huge with early Zeppelin. One such list from [this site](http://www.warr.org/zep.html): “Babe I’m Gonna Leave You” - A folk song by Anne Bredon, this was originally credited as “traditional, arranged by Jimmy Page,” then “words and music by Jimmy Page,” and then, following legal action, “Bredon/Page/Plant.” “Black Mountain Side” - uncredited version of a traditional folk tune previously recorded by Bert Jansch. “Bring It On Home” - the first section is an uncredited cover of the Willie Dixon tune (as performed by the imposter Sonny Boy Williamson). “Communication Breakdown” - apparently derived from Eddie Cochran’s “Nervous Breakdown.” “Custard Pie” - uncredited cover of Bukka White’s “Shake 'Em On Down,” with lyrics from Sleepy John Estes’s “Drop Down Daddy.” “Dazed And Confused” - uncredited cover of the Jake Holmes song (see The Above Ground Sound Of Jake Holmes). “Hats Off To (Roy) Harper” - uncredited version of Bukka White’s “Shake 'Em On Down.” “How Many More Times” - Part one is an uncredited cover of the Howlin’ Wolf song (available on numerous compilations). Part two is an uncredited cover of Albert King’s “The Hunter.” “In My Time Of Dying” - uncredited cover of the traditional song (as heard on Bob Dylan’s debut). “The Lemon Song” - uncredited cover of Howlin’ Wolf’s “Killing Floor” - Wolf’s publisher sued Zeppelin in the early 70s and settled out of court. “Moby Dick” - written and first recorded by Sleepy John Estes under the title “The Girl I Love,” and later covered by Bobby Parker. “Nobody’s Fault But Mine” - uncredited cover of the Blind Willie Johnson blues. “Since I’ve Been Lovin’ You” - lyrics are the same as Moby Grape’s “Never,” though the music isn’t similar. “Stairway To Heaven” - the main guitar line is apparently from “Taurus” by Spirit. “White Summer” - uncredited cover of Davey Graham’s “She Moved Through The Fair.” “Whole Lotta Love” - lyrics are from the Willie Dixon blues “You Need Love.” If you’re a Zeppelin fan it’s well worth listening to the original songs. Zeppelin did heavy it up quite a bit, the songs are a lot richer. And of course maybe the “original” artists borrowed too. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-steal-from-other-songs-not-sampled/622727/71 "2012-05-24T19:25:43Z")
> [@Bob Ducca](#): > > Old 97’s have a recent song called “[Champaign, Illinois](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cQuXuHBneOw)” that is a shortened, up-tempo version of Bob Dylan’s “[Desolation Row](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0onT5Us4Mk)” but with different lyrics. Dylan is even listed as a co-writer of the song. And there was an older song by Dylan with the same title, co-written with Carl Perkins, which I heard when I was living in Champaign in the 1970s. [Here](http://www.smilepolitely.com/music/bob_dylan_said_champaign_illinois_twice_3737/) is the story of the two of them. Different songs, same name, both co-written by Dylan. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-steal-from-other-songs-not-sampled/622727/72 "2012-05-24T19:31:25Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > If you’re a Zeppelin fan it’s well worth listening to the original songs. > > Zeppelin did heavy it up quite a bit, the songs are a lot richer. And of course maybe the “original” artists borrowed too. Interesting - but not surprising. I have never been a Zep fan, even when they were new, and this might be why. At the same time as this John Mayall and then Cream and Clapton were very careful about crediting the old blues songs they covered. As opposed to the Stones - the original Sticky Fingers album had “Love in Vain” uncredited. I think they fixed that on later versions. This “borrowing” made some people pissed off. I heard Taj Mahal do a song that had a verse “I want you to know, Where the Rolling Stones got their music from” The outrage might have been misplaced given their name. ---
**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:** [May 24, 2012, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-steal-from-other-songs-not-sampled/622727/73 "2012-05-24T19:45:43Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > Interesting - but not surprising. I have never been a Zep fan, even when they were new, and this might be why. At the same time as this John Mayall and then Cream and Clapton were very careful about crediting the old blues songs they covered. > As opposed to the Stones - the original Sticky Fingers album had “Love in Vain” uncredited. I think they fixed that on later versions. It looks like the original pressing of the Stones’ “Love in Vain” credited it to “Woody Payne,” which was a pseudonym used by Robert Johnson; it was later credited to Johnson directly. So the Stones were not stealing credit for the song. ---
**Author:** ![GESancMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gesancman/32/2923_2.png) [@GESancMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GESancMan)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2012, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-steal-from-other-songs-not-sampled/622727/74 "2012-05-24T20:37:19Z")
The bit at the end of (the song) “The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway” by Genesis: \*They say the lights are always bright on Broadway. They say there’s always magic in the air. \* ---
**Author:** ![Frostillicus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Frostillicus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frostillicus)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2012, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-steal-from-other-songs-not-sampled/622727/75 "2012-05-25T15:54:44Z")
Bruce Springsteen stole the melody from **Badlands** from The Animals’ **Please Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood.** Source: Bruce Springsteen, Keynote Address at the South by Southwest Music Fstival. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2012, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-steal-from-other-songs-not-sampled/622727/76 "2012-05-25T16:21:52Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > It looks like the original pressing of the Stones’ “Love in Vain” credited it to “Woody Payne,” which was a pseudonym used by Robert Johnson; it was later credited to Johnson directly. So the Stones were not stealing credit for the song. No, at least not the original pressing of _Get Yer Ya-Ya’s Out_!. (I think the same goes for _Let it Bleed_, but I’m not positive.) There, it’s just a Jagger/Richards song (which is especially weird, since they do credit Chuck Berry for “Little Queenie” and “Carol” – but “Love in Vain” was significantly altered from the original version, whereas the Chuck Berry songs were just straight-up covers.) ---
**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:** [May 25, 2012, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-steal-from-other-songs-not-sampled/622727/77 "2012-05-25T16:56:19Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > No, at least not the original pressing of _Get Yer Ya-Ya’s Out_!. (I think the same goes for _Let it Bleed_, but I’m not positive.) There, it’s just a Jagger/Richards song No, they didn’t take credit for the actual song on _Ya-Ya’s_, just the arrangement–it was credited as “Traditional, arr. Jagger & Richards.” On the LP of _Let It Bleed_, it was credited to Woody Payne, as **RealityChuck** mentioned. This credit was inadvertently dropped from the first CD pressing (in an echo of the way the credit for Rev. Robert Wilkins for “Prodigal Son” got lost when Decca censored the original _Beggars Banquet_ cover). ---
**Author:** ![JimAkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c89c15/32.png) [@JimAkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JimAkin)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2017, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-steal-from-other-songs-not-sampled/622727/78 "2017-03-18T22:56:45Z")
My favorite example of a non-sampled swipe/homage is in The Who’s “Put the Money Down,” from the _Odds & Sods_ album. The song’s main melody deviates briefly during the lines “Oh Mommy Mommy, please may I go downtown?/He’s gonna walk on the water. Put the money down.” In that passage, “Oh Mommy, Mommy” echoes the melody and phrasing of the same words in Chuck Berry’s Sweet Little Sixteen: “Oh Mommy, Mommy please let me go. It’s such a sight to see somebody steal the show. O Daddy, Daddy I beg of you. Whisper to Mommy, it’s all right with you.” R.I.P. Chuck Berry ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2017, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-steal-from-other-songs-not-sampled/622727/79 "2017-03-18T23:01:11Z")
Of all the Chucks who have walked the Earth, he’s the greatest Chuck ever. Rest well, Mr Berry. ---
**Author:** ![TCMF-2L](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tcmf-2l/32/16553_2.png) [@TCMF-2L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TCMF-2L)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2017, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-steal-from-other-songs-not-sampled/622727/80 "2017-03-21T22:44:25Z")
The\*\* Sex Pistols\*\* song **Pretty Vacant** was apparently based on the **ABBA** song **SOS**. The bass playing in their **God Save The Queen** was inspired by **Fire Brigade** by **The Move**. Their **Holiday In The Sun** blatantly steals from **The Jam’s** **In The City** - The **Sex Pistols** song written soon after touring with **The Jam** who didn’t complain because they felt a sense of loyalty towards the whole punk music scene. The **R.E.M.** song **Man On The Moon** refers to **Elvis Presley** in the lyrics and includes **Michael Stipe** doing an **Elvis** style **Hey Baby**. The **Dire Straits** song **Money For Nothing** features **Police** singer **Sting** on backing vocals and **Sting** delivers the line **I want my MTV** to the melody of his own **Police** composition **Don’t Stand So Close To Me**. **Dire Straits** main man **Mark Knofler** meanwhile deliberately tried to achieve a **ZZ Top** tone to his lead guitar. The **Bob Marley** song **Buffalo Soldier** features, strangely enough, the La La-La chorus from the theme to **the Banana Splits show** - The same theme which was covered by punk band **The Dickies**. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-steal-from-other-songs-not-sampled/622727.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-steal-from-other-songs-not-sampled/622727.md?page=5)