(Wait a minute.. that song sounds like this song!) Musical Plagiarism Thread

[Nowhere Man]

Songs which you listen to for a while and realise the melody sounds like it's been nicked! Not just the really obvious examples.

An example I just thought of was a minor classic from The Who, 1967's Townshend sung "I Can't Reach You".
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_8ZuRuZNIQo

Parts of that songs melody sound almost swiped in their entirety by The Jam's, "Smither-Jones" from 1979.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFfQRYpq1K0

I still like the song, but it's a bit less creative than I originally thought regarding Bruce Foxton's shining moment! Although much of the early Jam stuff is highly reminiscent of '65-'67 era Who tunes. (They were a "mod" band, after all.)

The Jam's "Set The House Ablaze" from 1980 in turn had its riff completely taken by Bloc Party in a much more blantantly obvious way though.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_oL-dBxvPiw

Here's Bloc Party's hit, "Helicopter" from 2004.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2R6S5CJWlco

Apparently the band wasn't familiar with the original riff. (what complete and utter bollocks!) Surprising they never got sued over it honestly.

[Oops! Wrong Planet]

Ken Dodd's Happiness sounds like the Milky Bar Kid theme.

*rests mic gently on floor*

[Lemming]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oCphbDRkZSo

Melissa Etheridge - I'm The Only One

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkXNEmtf9tk

Alannah Myles - Black Velvet

SAME EXACT OPENING

[Neville Chamberlain]

The Fall - Athlete Cured

Spinal Tap - Tonight I'm Gonna Rock You Tonight

Apparently, Steve Hanley was just idly banging out the riff in the studio and Mark E Smith just said "We'll have that!"

[Phil_A]

"Ruby" by the Kaiser Chiefs is suspiciously similar in places to Suede's "Whipsnade".

[Glebe]

I dunno why Pink Floyd never sued Phil Collins over 'I Wish it Would Rain Down'.

Also, speaking of The Jam, 'Start!' is notorious for it's similarity to the Fab's 'Taxman', although I imagine it was intended to be a bit of a wink and a nod...

[itsfredtitmus]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D99O6oTJVHo

goes into

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNCnP1Eyhy4

[drummersaredeaf]

Blur steal Bowie:

https://youtu.be/cH_g0mZKRvQ

I always thought the Coldplay/Satriani one was interesting from a few years back. It's not as obvious as the above one, but there's an overlap for sure. Can quite believe that the bed-wetters had never heard the original too.

https://youtu.be/UvB9Pj9Znsw

[studpuppet]

The Fall - Athlete Cured

Spinal Tap - Tonight I'm Gonna Rock You Tonight

Apparently, Steve Hanley was just idly banging out the riff in the studio and Mark E Smith just said "We'll have that!"

From The Big Midweek:

'You can't use that!' insists Simon Rogers. 'It's a clear lift.'

'I don't care, we're using it!' says Mark and we've got a stand-off I can't help feeling slightly guilty about.

'It's a total rip-off!' Simon's wide-eyed with outrage. One of the things he's always loved about our music is how original it is, and now here's Mark insisting we use the riff, note-for-note, exactly the same, not altered in the slightest by key changes, time changes, chord changes or any other sort of disguise from 'Tonight I'm Gonna Rock You Tonight'. A symptom of constant touring, this spoof anthem of modern rock has been ingraining itself into my internal sound system ever since we got the video player. Which is why, during a recent soundcheck, I happened to be doodling it just as Mark walked in. 'We'll use that,' he decided. 'Are you sure?' I asked pointedly, thinking that, since Mark had seen the gospel according to Spinal Tap at least half as often as the rest of us, there was no need to spell out what it actually was.

'You can't just call it somfin else and sing about a sick German aflete and pretend it's a new song and expect me to cover it ap [sic] with some bloody cymbal-rattling! I'll neva live it dahn.' I wonder if Mark's got a private bet on with some of his alter egos as to which of them can piss the next producer off first.

'What the fuck are you talking about?' he retorts. 'I'm trying to show that if you locked these fuckers in a studio and told them they weren't getting fed till they'd copied a song, they'd starve to death!' Simon shakes his head in disbelief, struggling to interpret this back-handed compliment for what it is.

cf. Elves from The Wonderful & Frightening World Of...

From the booklet accompanying The Wonderful and Frightening World of The Fall (re-release of the album by Beggars Banquet, 2010):

Brix Smith "Elves was mine. I think it was I Wanna Be Your Dog, of which at the time I was truly unaware. I must have heard it and not even realised what I had done. Until later, and at which time I went to dig a hole in the dirt!"  Steve Hanley: "This is I Wanna Be Your Dog...what we used to do is try to hide that kind of thing...and make it your own. But by the time we finished with Elves it sounded nothing like The Stooges."

[studpuppet]

Personally I always like ones where most people are guaranteed to have heard the plagiarised version first:

Taj Mahal - Jorge Ben Jor

[itsfredtitmus]

Vanishing Girl from xtc is just lion sleeps tonight

[Dr Rock]

Dum Dum Girls - Coming Down
https://youtu.be/sZdbNMDH8hc


completely rips off (as many comments attest)


Mazzy Star - Fade Into You
https://youtu.be/IWvEXChflEE



(I like both songs though)

[phantom_power]

Personally I always like ones where most people are guaranteed to have heard the plagiarised version first:

Taj Mahal - Jorge Ben Jor

See also:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_XBXtkd76k

[studpuppet]

See also:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_XBXtkd76k

A Cut 'n' Shut Hot Rod in fact...

[lebowskibukowski]

Can't say I have ever checked but does 'Just When You're Thinking Things Over' by The Charlatans actually give a nod to John Lennon's 'Bring On The Lucie' in the writing credits, or is it just full on cheeky rascal theft?

[Rizla]

Knowing Phil was a big fan of The Action, seems to me this has a bit of this about it. Subtle.

[Dr Rock]

Can't say I have ever checked but does 'Just When You're Thinking Things Over' by The Charlatans actually give a nod to John Lennon's 'Bring On The Lucie' in the writing credits, or is it just full on cheeky rascal theft?

It's very similar isn't it.

[phantom_power]

Can't say I have ever checked but does 'Just When You're Thinking Things Over' by The Charlatans actually give a nod to John Lennon's 'Bring On The Lucie' in the writing credits, or is it just full on cheeky rascal theft?

They have form as well. I Never Want and Easy Life If Me and He Were Ever To Get There sounds very much like I Am The Walrus. As does Autograph, to a lesser extent

[NoSleep]

Echoes of The Jungle [1931] - Duke Ellington & His Cotton Club Orchestra

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vYNwiAXuh_U

'Tain't What You Do [1939] - Jimmy Lunceford

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFweZ7KF8og

<sub>Macarena [1993] - Los Del Rio

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1Df-YjO8W8</sub>

[SteveDave]

They have form as well. I Never Want and Easy Life If Me and He Were Ever To Get There sounds very much like I Am The Walrus. As does Autograph, to a lesser extent

Not to mention the "Na-nana-na-na"s from "Nine Acre Court" sounding like a Sly And The Family Stone song I can't put my finger on at the moment. Is it "Sing A Simple Song"?

[Petey Pate]

Buddy Miles - Down by the River

Pink Floyd - Breathe

(Perhaps not an intentional rip off, but they do sound similar)

[Chriddof]

Blur steal Bowie:

https://youtu.be/cH_g0mZKRvQ

Around the same time as M.O.R., there was another of their songs that also ripped Bowie off, but it was a B-side so hardly anyone noticed:

All Your Life

There's Oh You Pretty Things in there, and the drumbeat from Five Years altered a bit... not sure where the piano-dancing-up-the-scale bit is from, it sounds incredibly familiar.

[Steven]

There's Oh You Pretty Things in there, and the drumbeat from Five Years altered a bit... not sure where the piano-dancing-up-the-scale bit is from, it sounds incredibly familiar.

Ahem..

[SpiderChrist]

Another Weller "homage"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0v9WhRpQw8E

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-RFwFjaVAk

[Serge]

World Column - So Is The Sun (1969)
The Jam - Trans Global Express (1982)

In previous versions of this thread, I have mentioned some of Blur's other, eh, 'borrowings': 'Music Is My Radar' is basically CAN's 'Vitamin C', and 'Caramel' from '13' is Popol Vuh's 'Vuh'.

[Absorb the anus burn]

Rise by PiL is surely constructed around Once In A Lifetime by Talking Heads.

[holyzombiejesus]

I wish I could find a link to 'What's The Difference' from the latest Michael Head album. I don't think I've ever heard a more blatant rip off.

There's a live version here but it's not very clear...

[daf]

Vanishing Girl from xtc is just lion sleeps tonight

That, sir, is a TREMENDOUS spot!

Technically, a Dukes of Stratosphear song, of course - and as such . . . a thought occurred to me :
could it actually be a deliberate 60's reference? (as all their songs are bursting at the sausage with a cornucopia of psychedelic refs.)

Let's look at the evidence :
1) Had it been a product of Sir John John's paisley pen, I'd argue that this was 100% the case (referring to the 1961 Tokens version, of course!)

2) But as this was a Colin Red Curtain song, I think we have to nix that notion in the nub.
With ALL due disrespect to "The Curtain", he simply doesn't have the range (. . . darling) for such an oddball reference, in what's essentially a tribute to The Hollies.

3) Ah, but daf, you say - Andy Sir John Johns could have suggested it in the studio, couldn't he - sticking his purple oar in, as he is wont to do, and all that . . . What about that EXCELLENT therory then, eh? eh?

4) No, old fruit, it's already there on the demo -  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLaQ9eApt9U

Verdict :
I think this MUST be a "He's So Fine / My Sweet Lord" style case of 'subconscious seepage' oozing it's way into Moulding's old coconut - and, no doubt, of the Tight Fit variety too, for shame!!

- - - - -

TOP POP FACT #3
It's one of the few songs on which Andy, rather than Colin, plays bass :

AP: Oh yeah. We'd be playing as much live as possible. And if we couldn't do it live, then the other person would play the instrument -- like, Colin would be playing the rhythm guitar on "Vanishing Girl," and because we needed a bass on the song, I played the bass. He played rhythm guitar because I'm a slow learner, and there were too many chords to remember, so I played the bass -- I could pick that up quicker -- so we got the whole rhythm track done as one thing.

http://chalkhills.org/articles/XTCFans20091025.html

[daf]

Mecano - Los Amantes (1988)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRlot9Anzbg



Sound familiar, Jarvis?

He claims he wrote it in 1986 - Yeeeah . . . Jimmy Hill, chinny reckon, churn on, golden churn!
Pulp Blackmail Corner :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thSgdsWLe4E

[Jockice]

Mecano - Los Amantes (1988)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRlot9Anzbg



Sound familiar, Jarvis?

He claims he wrote it in 1986 - Yeeeah . . . Jimmy Hill, chinny reckon, churn on, golden churn!
Pulp Blackmail Corner :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thSgdsWLe4E

Ta. I remember hearing that broadcast while lying in bed almost asleep but had convinced myself it was a dream.