# Unlikely composers of rock songs **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 3, 2003, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unlikely-composers-of-rock-songs/211214 "2003-11-03T21:19:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 3
**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:** [November 6, 2003, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unlikely-composers-of-rock-songs/211214/41 "2003-11-06T16:20:05Z")
How about Francis Scott Key for Jimi Hendrix’s\* musical version of his most famous poem? And John Stafford Smith, who’s believed to be the composer of the original tune? 🙂 \*Also performed by Jose Feliciano and Rosanne Barr :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![williamweigand](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b3f665/32.png) [@williamweigand](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/williamweigand)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2003, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unlikely-composers-of-rock-songs/211214/42 "2003-11-06T19:01:36Z")
IIRC Cat Stevens takes credit for writing “Morning Has Broken” although it’s in our church’s Hymnal attributed to someone else.(If I can find it in my older version of the hymnal I will come back with the proper credits.) Also , there’s another hymn with a tune very similar to one of Paul ---
**Author:** ![williamweigand](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b3f665/32.png) [@williamweigand](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/williamweigand)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2003, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unlikely-composers-of-rock-songs/211214/43 "2003-11-06T19:04:53Z")
IIRC Cat Stevens takes credit for writing “Morning Has Broken” although it’s in our church’s Hymnal attributed to someone else.(If I can find it in my older version of the hymnal I will come back with the proper credits.) Also , there’s another hymn with a tune very similar to one of Paul Simon’s tunes. If I’m unable to find that one , maybe one of the other Episcopalians on the Board might know it. ---
**Author:** ![williamweigand](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b3f665/32.png) [@williamweigand](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/williamweigand)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2003, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unlikely-composers-of-rock-songs/211214/44 "2003-11-06T19:14:01Z")
Sorry for the (almost) double post - when I wanted to capitalize the “s” in Simon I accidently hit “control” instead of “shift”.I didn’t know hitting “control” would automatically submit my reply.In the meantime , I checked my Hymnal - this version doesn’t have “Morning Has Broken”. ---
**Author:** ![Lisa-go-Blind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Lisa-go-Blind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lisa-go-Blind)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2003, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unlikely-composers-of-rock-songs/211214/45 "2003-11-06T20:59:04Z")
IIRC, Eleanor Fairjon, a schoolteacher, wrote the lyrics to “Morning Has Broken.” The tune is based on an old Gaelic hymn. Cat Stevens is responsible for putting the lyrics and melody together. ---
**Author:** ![Hometownboy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/5e9695/32.png) [@Hometownboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hometownboy)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2003, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unlikely-composers-of-rock-songs/211214/46 "2003-11-07T04:07:33Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by RealityChuck \* > \*_How about Francis Scott Key for Jimi Hendrix’s_ musical version of his most famous poem? And John Stafford Smith, who’s believed to be the composer of the original tune? 🙂 > > \*Also performed by Jose Feliciano and Rosanne Barr :rolleyes: \*\* :chortle’s at Rosanne Barr reference: Rock and Roll has a heavy dose of blues in its ancestry, so it’s not surprising to see the British Invasion bands mining the classics. Think The Animals’ version of “House of the Rising Sun” Still I wonder what **Robert Johnson** would have made of Cream’s way-amped verions of “Crossroads.” Blues purists may shudder at the thought, but my humble opinion is that he might just have dug it. ---
**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:** [November 7, 2003, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unlikely-composers-of-rock-songs/211214/47 "2003-11-07T05:23:42Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by williamweigand \* > \*\*IIRC Cat Stevens takes credit for writing “Morning Has Broken” although it’s in our church’s Hymnal attributed to someone else.(If I can find it in my older version of the hymnal I will come back with the proper credits.) Also , there’s another hymn with a tune very similar to one of Paul Simon’s tunes. If I’m unable to find that one , maybe one of the other Episcopalians on the Board might know it. \*\* Cat Stevens never claimed authorship of this song (although numerous online cites credit him for it); it’s lyrics are usually attributed to Eleanor Farjeon (1881-1965). ---
**Author:** ![K364](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k364/32/5_2.png) [@K364](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/K364)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2003, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unlikely-composers-of-rock-songs/211214/48 "2003-11-07T06:02:13Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by williamweigand \* > \*\*… Also , there’s another hymn with a tune very similar to one of Paul Simon’s tunes. If I’m unable to find that one , maybe one of the other Episcopalians on the Board might know it. \*\* I’m not epsico…, epsadoo…, uh religious but I’ll tell you the story anyway… It started as a Lutheran Hymn by Hans Leo Hassler. It was used by J.S. Bach in the Saint Matthew’s Passion. Two hundred years later Tom Glazer adapted the melody in a folk song called “Because All Men Are Brothers”. This was recorded by The Weavers and Peter, Paul and Mary among others. Paul Simon used the tune in “An American Tune” (irony!), and, in the sheet music I have, neglected to give Hessler, Bach or Glazer credit. [Here is a midi of the Hymn](http://www.friske.com/sound/passion.mid) ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2003, 6:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unlikely-composers-of-rock-songs/211214/49 "2003-11-07T06:09:58Z")
> [@](#): > > Still I wonder what Robert Johnson would have made of Cream’s way-amped verions of “Crossroads.” Blues purists may shudder at the thought, but my humble opinion is that he might just have dug it. Me too. Johnson was a bit of a punk, in the good sense. If he had been a rock star, he probably would have flared brightly and gone out like Jimi Hendrix. ---
**Author:** ![Lucki\_Chaarms](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9de0a6/32.png) [@Lucki\_Chaarms](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucki_Chaarms)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2003, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unlikely-composers-of-rock-songs/211214/50 "2003-11-07T06:19:22Z")
I read in some piece of official Cat Stevens literature that he was fond of searching the hymn/spiritual section of music stores and libraries to see if he could turn up some interesting stuff to play around with. He came across “Morning Is Broken” at some point and the rest is history. AFAIK he never claimed to have written the music, either, but maybe I misinterpred or misremembered that. LC ---
**Author:** ![Coldfire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a587f6/32.png) [@Coldfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coldfire)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2003, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unlikely-composers-of-rock-songs/211214/51 "2003-11-07T15:24:26Z")
The intro to the **Dire Straits** song _Tunnel of Love_ is an excerpt from the _Carousel Waltz_ by **Rodgers & Hammerstein**. **Savatage** heavily borrows from classical composers all the time. Most notably, their songs _In the Hall of the Mountain King_ (guess the classical piece they borrowed from, and win a fridge :D), _Mozart and Madness_ (based on **Mozart** ’s _25th Symphony_), and _Memory_ (partially based on **Beethoven** ’s _9th_) come to mind. ---
**Author:** ![Coriolanus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/coriolanus/32/18769_2.png) [@Coriolanus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coriolanus)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2003, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unlikely-composers-of-rock-songs/211214/52 "2003-11-07T15:53:46Z")
**Good Morning Little Schoolgirl** - Sonny Boy Williamson ~ 1937 Grateful Dead (et al) covered it (slightly different lyrics but the covers of Robert Johnson, above, were accepted). Sweet did a song ‘Air on a tape loop’ that may have been a tribute of a sort to Brahms (as per **BigGirl** ) ELO _cleverly_ opens their cover of Chuck Berry’s ‘Roll Over Beethoven’ with - hmm - what is that - the overture to Ludvig Van’s 5th? I was suprised to hear Peter, Paul and Mary singing ‘If I had my way, I would tear this old building down’ - which I always thought was a Grateful Dead composition, but turns out to be written by Rev. Gary Davis. ---
**Author:** ![Hometownboy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/5e9695/32.png) [@Hometownboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hometownboy)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2003, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unlikely-composers-of-rock-songs/211214/53 "2003-11-08T05:37:26Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Corbomite \*\*\*I was suprised to hear Peter, Paul and Mary singing ‘If I had my way, I would tear this old building down’ - which I always thought was a Grateful Dead composition, but turns out to be written by Rev. Gary Davis. \*\* The song appeared on PP&Ms first, self-titled album in 1962, about five years before the first Grateful Dead album. ---
**Author:** ![Hometownboy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/5e9695/32.png) [@Hometownboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hometownboy)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2003, 6:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unlikely-composers-of-rock-songs/211214/54 "2003-11-09T06:21:24Z")
OK, one more comes to mind Nearly every word of Jefferson Airplane’s **Crown of Creation** is taken directly from SF author John Day-of-The-Triffids Wyndham’s novel “Re-birth.” Example: “Soon you’ll attain the stability you strive for in the only way that it’s granted in a place among the fossils of our time.” ---
**Author:** ![Lisa-go-Blind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Lisa-go-Blind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lisa-go-Blind)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2003, 6:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unlikely-composers-of-rock-songs/211214/55 "2003-11-09T06:44:58Z")
Marx and Engels wrote the backing vocals to Belle and Sebastian’s, uh, “Marx and Engels”: > [@](#): > > The bourgeoisie, historically, has played a revolutionary part to all feudal, idyllic relationships. > It has resolved personal worth and in place of freedom is exploitation for profit alone. > There is a spectre of the past in my bold assertion. > We could learn much from the past. ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 8:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unlikely-composers-of-rock-songs/211214/56 "2005-02-24T08:34:04Z")
Bob Marley’s song “War” quotes from a speech by Jah Rastafari himself (Haile Selassie, monarch of Ethiopia) given before the League of Nations: > [@Haile Selassie](#): > > **Until the philosophy > which holds one race superior > and another inferior > is finally > and permanently > discredited > and abandoned…** Everywhere is war. Me say war. ---
**Author:** ![Dijon\_Warlock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a9a28c/32.png) [@Dijon\_Warlock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dijon_Warlock)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 10:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unlikely-composers-of-rock-songs/211214/57 "2005-02-24T10:11:54Z")
Another Emerson, Lake and Palmer entry: “The Barbarian” from their debut album is their rendition of Bela Bartok’s “Allegro Barbaro.” ---
**Author:** ![picunurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@picunurse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picunurse)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unlikely-composers-of-rock-songs/211214/58 "2005-02-24T13:47:15Z")
> [@Sam Stone](#): > > Hoyt Axton wrote “The Pusher” for Steppenwolf. He also wrote _Snowblind Friend_, _Never been to Spain_ and others. His mother wrote _Green Back Dollar_ made popular by The Kingston Trio [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unlikely-composers-of-rock-songs/211214.md?page=2)