# Songs you didn't realize were covers **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [December 7, 2020, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-didnt-realize-were-covers/927496 "2020-12-07T18:28:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2020, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-didnt-realize-were-covers/927496/81 "2020-12-24T15:37:47Z")
Another interesting cover is by “The Charmer” a.k.a Louis Eugene Walcott, a.k.a. **Louis Farrakhan**. ---
**Author:** ![saucywench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/85e7bf/32.png) [@saucywench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saucywench)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2020, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-didnt-realize-were-covers/927496/82 "2020-12-24T16:00:12Z")
mbh - The original _Ugly Woman_ (1934) by Roaring Lion was a great find. The original _Go Now_ by Bessie Banks. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/prlWGe2EHro/hqdefault.jpg "Bessie Banks - Go Now") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prlWGe2EHro) _Go Now!_ by The Moody Blues. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/z98rcKVLN-Q/maxresdefault.jpg "Go Now!") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z98rcKVLN-Q) Here’s Denny Laine again with a little help from his friends. [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/qeRWLs0DjIg/hqdefault.jpg "Denny Laine with Paul McCartney and Wings: "Go Now" (1976)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qeRWLs0DjIg) ---
**Author:** ![saucywench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/85e7bf/32.png) [@saucywench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saucywench)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2021, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-didnt-realize-were-covers/927496/83 "2021-02-09T17:07:12Z")
The original _Torn_ by Ednaswap [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/LRRXseBJljs/hqdefault.jpg "Ednaswap - Torn (The Original Version)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRRXseBJljs) ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2021, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-didnt-realize-were-covers/927496/84 "2021-02-09T18:03:41Z")
Huh. I’m surprised that song hadn’t been mentioned already in the thread. “Torn” has an interesting (at least to me) backstory. It was originally written and performed by Ednaswap in 1993, but never released as a studio recording (or any other type of recording, as far as I know.) The first to release a studio version was Lis Sørensen, a Danish singer, who performed it under the title “Brændt.” [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/jyuGaU4rXjA/maxresdefault.jpg "Lis Sørensen - Brændt (Official Music Video)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jyuGaU4rXjA) You will note that the Sørensen version laid down much of the musical groundwork for the Trine Rein version (which we’ll get to in our timeline) and therefore the popular Natalie Imbruglia version. The Ednaswap version has a significantly different vibe to it, but has a melodic figure that is used in both the Rein and Imbruglia versions. So, time line → 1993 - Written by Ednaswap; performed by them in concerts; not released 1995 - Lis Sørensen, first released recording, under the title “Brændt” 1995 - Ednaswap releases “Torn.” This version, if you listen closely, has that sweeping guitar figure in the outro, which Lis’s doesn’t. 1996 - Trine Rein, a Norweigien-American, releases “Torn” – this is also a version more similar to “Brændt” but has that sweeping little guitar solo at the end. It reaches #10 in Norway. Both this version and “Braendt” were released on Medley Records in Norway, so there’s some connection there. 1997 - Natalie Imbruglia releases her version, where it rockets to #1 in many markets. This version sounds closest, to me, to Trine Rein’s version. So here’s the Trine Rein version. [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Eu6dyABmRuQ/hqdefault.jpg "Trine Rein - Torn (Official Music Video)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eu6dyABmRuQ) ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2021, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-didnt-realize-were-covers/927496/85 "2021-02-09T18:19:43Z")
Some of you in the Chicago area (and perhaps beyond) may remember “Kim the Waitress” by Material Issue (it seemed to be played incessantly for a spell back in the day on Q101 c. 1994). It wasn’t until many years later that I discovered it was the cover of a Green Pajamas (from Seattle) song, and not an original. There was also another cover that same year by the band Sister Psychic, also from Seattle. I remember hearing that version around the same time as the Material Issue version and scratching my head as to how and why they got a cover out so fast without realizing the obvious: that they both were covering an older song. ---
**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:** [February 10, 2021, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-didnt-realize-were-covers/927496/86 "2021-02-10T02:54:43Z")
[I Love Rock 'n Roll](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ak5xWekNfSo). Not originally Joan Jett, but a London glam band called The Arrows. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Q](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/898d66/32.png) [@Johnny\_Q](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Q)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2021, 10:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-didnt-realize-were-covers/927496/87 "2021-02-12T10:09:56Z")
Police On My Back, famously done by Clash was originally done by Eddie Grant of “Electric Avenue” fame and his band The Equals. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/DH0Guwo_ky0/hqdefault.jpg "The Equals - Police On My Back (1967)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DH0Guwo_ky0) ---
**Author:** ![Manwich](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e480ec/32.png) [@Manwich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Manwich)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2021, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-didnt-realize-were-covers/927496/88 "2021-02-12T14:41:54Z")
[![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/g2cwfj4qK7A/hqdefault.jpg "Harvey Milk - We Destroy The Family") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g2cwfj4qK7A) Is a cover of [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/qycUlyIQpeQ/maxresdefault.jpg "We Destroy the Family") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qycUlyIQpeQ) [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/rrYufOmSVvg/hqdefault.jpg "The Hanson Brothers - Victoria [The Kinks cover] [NoMeansNo]") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrYufOmSVvg) isn’t a cover of [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/N0I2u6DKnwI/maxresdefault.jpg "The Fall - Victoria HD") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0I2u6DKnwI) unless it is. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2021, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-didnt-realize-were-covers/927496/89 "2021-02-12T16:06:44Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Huh. I’m surprised that song hadn’t been mentioned already in the thread. > > “Torn” has an interesting (at least to me) backstory I thought I did, but that was the ‘Original better than the cover’ thread. Ednaswap is the only version I can stand of this song. Great song, but the covers all suck. ---
**Author:** ![saucywench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/85e7bf/32.png) [@saucywench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saucywench)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2021, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-didnt-realize-were-covers/927496/90 "2021-02-12T17:58:38Z")
The original _Time Is On My Side_ written by Jerry Ragovoy was first recorded by jazz trombonist Kai Winding and his orchestra in '63. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/bcn5rvwwvhM/hqdefault.jpg "Kai Winding "Time Is On My Side"") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcn5rvwwvhM) The covers with additional lyrics added… Irma Thomas [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/McOmcNwqprA/hqdefault.jpg?sqp=-oaymwEmCOADEOgC8quKqQMa8AEB-AG-AoAC8AGKAgwIABABGGUgZShlMA8=&rs=AOn4CLCdoYMvS2b-TXzoJ9w605WzFAk-Xg "Irma Thomas, "Time Is On My Side"") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=McOmcNwqprA) The Stones [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/sEj8lUx0gwY/hqdefault.jpg?sqp=-oaymwEmCOADEOgC8quKqQMa8AEB-AHUBoAC4AOKAgwIABABGGUgZShlMA8=&rs=AOn4CLD8N_j_wQuc9zZMBZptClM5ceo1GA "The Rolling Stones - Time Is On My Side") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sEj8lUx0gwY) ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2021, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-didnt-realize-were-covers/927496/91 "2021-02-12T18:16:19Z")
“Unchained Melody” by the Righteous Brothers [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/qiiyq2xrSI0/hqdefault.jpg?sqp=-oaymwEmCOADEOgC8quKqQMa8AEB-AH-BIAC4AOKAgwIABABGGUgZShlMA8=&rs=AOn4CLALpKl3tIIDPlyoQpnjRgOM9aQk9g "Righteous Brothers - Unchained Melody (High Quality)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qiiyq2xrSI0) was used in the film Unchained, performed by Todd Duncan [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/szpGVAGcysw/hqdefault.jpg "Unchained Melody by Todd Duncan 1955") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szpGVAGcysw) and was popularized in part by by Al Hibbler [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/GC7obNtXLYU/hqdefault.jpg "AL HIBBLER - UNCHAINED MELODY") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GC7obNtXLYU) but was first popularized by Les Baxter [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/ku_i0jpv_bk/hqdefault.jpg "Unchained Melody - Les Baxter") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ku_i0jpv_bk) ---
**Author:** ![saucywench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/85e7bf/32.png) [@saucywench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saucywench)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2021, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-didnt-realize-were-covers/927496/92 "2021-07-16T17:24:09Z")
Just found out this one is a cover. Leo Sayer - More Than I Can Say [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/1yZNZ5SKs5w/maxresdefault.jpg "More Than I Can Say") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yZNZ5SKs5w) The original written by [Sonny Curtis](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonny_Curtis) and [Jerry Allison](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerry_Allison), both former members of [Buddy Holly](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddy_Holly)’s band [the Crickets](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Crickets). [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/A3pMJ_GW4Yo/hqdefault.jpg "The Crickets - More Than I Can Say (1960)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A3pMJ_GW4Yo) More covers… [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/O_UgaVsluxc/maxresdefault.jpg "Bobby Vee - More Than I Can Say (Best Quality) Full HD") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_UgaVsluxc) [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/odsjRpxfQJ4/hqdefault.jpg "Sammy Kershaw - More Than I Can Say") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=odsjRpxfQJ4) ---
**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:** [July 16, 2021, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-didnt-realize-were-covers/927496/93 "2021-07-16T17:44:58Z")
**I’m Henery the Eighth, I Am** was a hit for Herman’s Hermits in 1965 (their second #1 hit in the US; it replaced, believe it or not, _I Can’t Get No Satisfaction_), and I thought at the time that it was original. It turns out to be an old British Music Hall song from 1911. and they only used the chorus, none of the verses (despite their line “second verse, same as the first”. It was really “chorus again”) Okay, I thought, so they used an old song. They probably just sped it up. Wrong again. If anything, they probably slowed it down. The people they covered had a reutation for rapid-fire delivery of this song. > [@](#): > > ## Harry Champion version[[edit](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=I%27m_Henery_the_Eighth,_I_Am&action=edit§ion=1)] > > According to one source, Champion “used to fire off [the chorus] at tremendous speed with almost desperate gusto, his face bathed in sweat and his arms and legs flying in all directions.”[[1]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I%27m_Henery_the_Eighth,_I_Am#cite_note-MacInnes-1) In later versions recorded by Champion, “Willie” is changed to “William” because the former is a British slang term for “penis.” > **[I'm Henery the Eighth, I Am](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I%27m_Henery_the_Eighth,_I_Am)** > > "I'm Henery the Eighth, I Am" (also "I'm Henery the VIII, I Am" or "I'm Henry VIII, I Am"; spelled "Henery" but pronounced "'Enery" in the Cockney style normally used to sing it) is a 1910 British music hall song by Fred Murray and R. P. Weston. It was a signature song of the music hall star Harry Champion. > Joe Brown included the song on his first album A Picture of You in 1962. But in 1965, it became the fastest-selling song in history to that point when it was revived by Herman's Hermits, bec... ---
**Author:** ![lobotomyboy63](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobotomyboy63/32/2900_2.png) [@lobotomyboy63](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lobotomyboy63)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2021, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-didnt-realize-were-covers/927496/94 "2021-07-16T17:46:12Z")
Leo Sayer co-wrote and performed it first. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/q6UdgWrrlNY/maxresdefault.jpg "Leo Sayer - The Show Must Go On") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6UdgWrrlNY) > In Sayer’s version, the last line of the chorus is “I won’t let the show go on”. [Three Dog Night](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Dog_Night) sang it as “I must let the show go on”, which Sayer was reportedly not happy about.[_[citation needed](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed)_ ] I guess he had a hit with it in the UK but Three Dog Night’s version is the one Americans would recognize. > **[The Show Must Go On (Leo Sayer song) | Three Dog Night version](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Show_Must_Go_On_(Leo_Sayer_song)#Three_Dog_Night_version)** > > Three Dog Night's cover of "The Show Must Go On" became their last Top 10 hit in the U.S., where it reached number four on the Billboard Hot 100 and number one on the Cash Box Top 100, as well as in Canada, where it reached number two. It also reached #11 in the Netherlands and #12 in Germany. > Record World said that "3DN's treatment of this Leo Sayer English smash is a superb example of their interpretive power." > Several AM radio edits have shortened the instrumental introduction, due to time ... ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2021, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-didnt-realize-were-covers/927496/95 "2021-07-16T17:48:02Z")
> [@EinsteinsHund](#): > > I’ve never seen the film, but it’s one of the greatest soundtrack albums (and compilation albums actually) of all time. The film is fascinating, but the only reason I could understand the dialects was that I had just lived in rural Jamaica for a year. ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2021, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-didnt-realize-were-covers/927496/96 "2021-07-16T19:31:55Z")
I guess it doesn’t really qualify as the original since it was only recorded as a demo, but I never realized “Girls Just Want To Have Fun” was not an original song by Cyndi Lauper. Here is the demo by the writer: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/fyJrPns4IlI/hqdefault.jpg "GIRLS JUST WANT TO HAVE FUN WRITERS ORIGINAL RECORDING!") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyJrPns4IlI) ---
**Author:** ![BlankSlate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blankslate/32/80_2.png) [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2021, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-didnt-realize-were-covers/927496/97 "2021-07-16T22:15:53Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > The film is fascinating, but the only reason I could understand the dialects was that I had just lived in rural Jamaica for a year. I saw it on PBS in the 80’s and it had subtitles (thankfully.) ---
**Author:** ![Saintly\_Loser](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saintly_loser/32/4045_2.png) [@Saintly\_Loser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saintly_Loser)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2021, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-didnt-realize-were-covers/927496/98 "2021-07-16T23:43:34Z")
> [@mbh](#): > > Growing up, from time to time I would hear Jimmy Soul’s “If You Wanna Be Happy”, from 1963. Covered, some years later (1976), by Bill Wyman: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAWV8E-9tvM](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAWV8E-9tvM) ---
**Author:** ![Mark\_Finn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/34f0e0/32.png) [@Mark\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mark_Finn)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2021, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-didnt-realize-were-covers/927496/99 "2021-07-17T12:08:53Z")
In 1961, Lonnie Donegan recorded [“Does your Chewing Gum Lose its Flavour (on the Bedpost Overnight?)”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lbg0ZBXnuZE) . It’s actually a cover of a 1924 song by Billy Jones and Ernest Hare [“Does the Spearmint Lose its Flavor…”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U97g571eY1k) Possibly the BBC’s refusal to play songs with commercial product names in them led to the change in title in the 1961 version? ---
**Author:** ![Saintly\_Loser](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saintly_loser/32/4045_2.png) [@Saintly\_Loser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saintly_Loser)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2021, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-didnt-realize-were-covers/927496/100 "2021-07-17T15:22:20Z")
> [@Mark\_Finn](#): > > Possibly the BBC’s refusal to play songs with commercial product names in them led to the change in title in the 1961 version? Coca Cola/Cherry Cola, from _Lola_. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-didnt-realize-were-covers/927496.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-didnt-realize-were-covers/927496.md?page=6)